John P. Lavelle, Jr.

John also counsels clients on state and federal election and campaign finance laws. He served as Pennsylvania state counsel to the Obama for America and Hillary for America campaigns. He also has led statewide and regional voter protection programs for candidates and political campaigns.

John speaks frequently on product liability and litigation issues. He serves as president of the boards of Community Legal Services, Inc. and Philadelphia Legal Assistance. He also serves as a judge pro tempore in the Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas Civil Trial Division.  He has served as a special master appointed by the US District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania and also as a member of the court’s Merit Selection Panel for magistrate judges. He serves as president of the Princeton University Class of 1985 and is on the board of Marian Catholic High School.

At the beginning of his career, John served as a law clerk to Judge Thomas N. O’Neill, Jr. of the US District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.

Medical Devices

• Represents a medical device manufacturer in the federal multidistrict litigation (MDL) In re: Philips Recalled CPAP, Bi-Level PAP, and Mechanical Ventilator Products Liability Litigation
• Obtained dismissal of numerous individual cases involving medical devices on the basis of federal preemption
• Obtained dismissal of a contribution claim by a hospital concerning a personal injury suit arising from misuse of a medical device
• Obtained the first Pennsylvania appellate decision recognizing that strict liability does not apply to prescription medical devices

Pharmaceuticals

• Represents a retail pharmacy chain in the opioid MDL and state court litigation
• Represents a pharmaceutical manufacturer in the MDL In re: Valsartan, Losartan and Irbesartan Products Liability Litigation
• Successfully argued in the trial court and on appeal that a wrongful death claim for alleged off-label promotion of an opioid pharmaceutical product was preempted by federal law
• Obtained dismissal of a product liability action concerning an antipsychotic pharmaceutical product
• Served as lead defense counsel in a mass tort proceeding concerning a vaccine product

Class Actions

• Represented an insurer in a putative class action concerning payment of dividends to policyholders
• Obtained dismissal of a putative consumer class action concerning flat-screen televisions
• Defended an automobile finance company in a putative class action alleging violations of notice requirements for consumer credit transactions under state law

Commercial Litigation

• Successfully defended a tortious interference claim, with a nonsuit granted by the court at conclusion of a jury trial
• Represented businesses and individuals challenging the Philadelphia Beverage Tax on soft drinks

Election Law

• Represented as amici curiae the Committee of Seventy, League of Women Voters of Pennsylvania, Fair Districts PA, and Draw the Lines PA in the redistricting and reapportionment litigation before the Pennsylvania Supreme Court
• Represented the League of Women Voters of Pennsylvania and Urban League of Greater Pittsburgh in litigation involving “signature match” issues that resulted in the state confirming that boards of elections cannot reject a ballot based solely on an election official’s belief that a signature does not match the signature in the voter’s file
• Led statewide and regional voter protection programs for candidates and campaigns
• Argued and obtained a ruling by the US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit upholding the right of voters who have moved to vote in their district of registration under federal and state law

Pro Bono

• Represented low-income Pennsylvania households in obtaining more than $700 million in retroactive emergency SNAP (food stamp) allotments and $1 billion per month in additional emergency SNAP benefits from the US Department of Agriculture
• Helped rectify bureaucratic errors that suspended Medicaid health insurance for more than 150,000 Pennsylvanians and had benefits reinstated
• Worked to ensure that Pennsylvanians in need were not denied Home and Community Based Services (HCBS), which allow individuals to live at home as independently as possible, due to changes to the clinical assessment process
• Worked to reinstate Medicaid, SNAP, and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families cash assistance benefits for hundreds of thousands of Pennsylvanians in need who had not received timely notice of denials of applications or terminations due to mail delays
• Advised on the creation of a nonprofit organization dedicated to identifying, sourcing, and transporting personal protective equipment to frontline responders in the fight against COVID-19 across the United States and Asia
• Obtained a favorable settlement on behalf of Petra Community Housing, a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing affordable housing to underserved communities, allowing Petra to build affordable housing in Phoenixville, Pennsylvania