Brenda S. Fulmer is a shareholder in the law firm of Searcy Denney Scarola Barnhart & Shipley, one of the largest personal injury firms in Florida. She also serves on the firm’s Executive Committee and is the leader of the firm’s dedicated Serial Torts Unit, which focuses on complex defective drug, medical device and consumer products litigation.
For the past twenty-six years, her practice has focused on the areas of pharmaceutical and medical device serial tort litigation. Over the years, she has represented thousands of plaintiffs in lawsuits and individual actions filed in state and federal courts involving: 3MD Double-Ended Combat Weapons Earplugs; Abilify; Actos, Aelsculap Knee Implants, AMO and Bausch & Lomb Contact Lens Solution; Avandia, Baycol, Belviq, Bextra; Biomet Metal-on-Metal Hip Implants, Breast Implants, CardioGen PET Scans; Cialis; DePuy ASR and Pinnacle Metal-on-Metal Hip Implants; DePuy Attune Knee Implants; Digitek; Birth Control Pills Drospirenone (Yaz, Yasmin, Ocella, Gianvi, Beyaz, Safyral, and Loryna); Eliquis, Elmiron; Ethicon Surgical Hooks; Fen-Phen Diet Drugs; FinPlus Compound Finasteride; Fosomax and Other Bisphosphonates; Gadolinium; Gulf Coast Oil Spill; Medtronic and Guidant and Medtronic Leads, Pacemakers, and Defibrillators; Heparin; Hormone Replacement Therapy; Bard Kugel and Ethicon Hernia Mesh; Invokana; IVC Filters; JUUL Smoking Pod; Levaquin; Mirena; NuvaRing; Ortho Evra; Pain Pumps; PPA; Power Morcellator Device; Pradaxa; Propulsid; Proton Inhibitor Pumps; Provigil and Nuvigil; Reglan; Smith & Nephew Birmingham, R3, SMF, and REDAPT Hip Implants; SSRI Birth Defect Cases for Depression; Stocker 3T Heat/Cold Devices; Stryker Rejuvenate, ABG II, Accolade, and LFIT V40 Modular Hip Implants; Sulzer Hip and Knee Implants; tobacco; Intrauterine Mesh and Bladder Slings (including products sold by Bard, Caldera, Coloplast, Johnson & Johnson/Ethicon, Mentor, Boston Scientific, Cook Medical, Neomedic, Covidien, AMS, ARIS, Sofradim, and ProteGen), Trasylol; Viagra; Vioxx; Wright Metal-on-Metal Hip Implants; Xarelto; Zantac; Zimmer-Biomet Reverse Shoulder Implants; Zimmer Durom Hip Implant Cup; Zimmer M/L Taper and VerSys Hip Implants; Zimmer NexGen and Zofran Knee Implants.
For several years, she has been named one of the Top 100 Trial Lawyers by the National Trial Lawyers Association, selected as a Florida Super Lawyer, listed as one of Florida’s Legal Elite by Florida Trend, and included in The Best Lawyers in America. She has received the “AV Preeminent” rating from Martindale-Hubbell. She has also been named a Fellow of Trial Lawyers of America and recognized multiple times as one of Lawdragon’s Top 500 Consumer Plaintiff Attorneys.
She serves on the Board of Directors of AAJ and the Florida Association for Justice and works annually as a federal and state lobbyist on drug and medical device cases. She is also active in the Palm Beach County Bar Association, Palm Beach County Justice Association, Florida Bar Association, Florida Justice Association (FJA), American Association for Justice (AAJ), Workers Injury Law & Attorneys Group (WILG), Women In Mass (WEM), Women Lawyers Association of Florida, American Bar Association, Duke and Emory Conferences on Serial Tort Litigation, and various group and consortium serial tort litigation proceedings.
She has served in several leadership positions with the American Association for Justice: Executive Committee, Evergreen Funds Committee, PAC Board, Marketing, Practice and Development Committee, Trial Lawyer Care Committee, Compliance Committee, Law School Committee, Diversity Committee, AAJ Leadership Academy Selection Committee, Leading Trial Lawyers Group, and Consultation Exchange Committee. She also serves in leadership positions with the Florida Association for Justice Women’s Caucus, American Association for Justice Women’s Caucus, and the Executive Committee for the National Trial Lawyers Association. She also serves on the Florida Association for Justice Members and CLE Committee. Most recently, she served as co-leader of the AAJ Pradaxa Litigation Group and currently, she serves as co-leader of the AAJ Biomet Litigation Group.
She has been appointed to serve as co-lead counsel in the Biomet Hip Implant MDL Litigation pending in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Indiana in South Bend as a member of Plaintiffs’ Leadership Committee #2 and previously served on Plaintiffs’ Leadership Committee #1 in the Biomet MDL. She has also been appointed to the Plaintiffs’ Leadership Committee in the Zimmer M/L Taper and VerSys Hip Implant MDL Litigation in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York in Manhattan. Previously, she served on the Plaintiffs’ Leadership Committee in the Pradaxa MDL Litigation in East Saint Louis, Illinois. She has been involved in state and federal multi-district courts in litigation research and on the common employee benefits settlement committee for over 25 years for several national pharmaceutical and medical device serial tort projects including: Breast Implants, Diet Drugs; Yaz, Yasmin and Ocella; ProTeGen Bladder Slings; Vioxx; Mentor ObTape; DePuy ASR Hip Implants; Stryker Rejuvenate & ABG II Hip Implants; Stryker Accolade and LFIT V40 Hip Implants; and BP Gulf Coast Oil Spill lawsuits.
Ms. Fulner is a frequent speaker on serial tort marketing, legal office management, drug litigation, medical devices, and consumer drug safety issues. She has received the Bronze Eagle, Shoe Leather, and Cornerstone Awards from the Florida Association for Justice for her efforts in membership recruitment, funding, and advocacy. She is also a multiple recipient of the American Association for Justice’s President’s Distinguished Service and Above and Beyond Awards for membership recruitment and fundraising work for the National Trial Lawyers Organization. In 2016, she received the Marie Lambert Award in recognition of exemplary leadership to her profession and community, to AAJ and the AAJ Women Trial Lawyers Caucus. She is proud to be a graduate of the AAJ Academy’s inaugural Leadership Program and continues to support the diversity and leadership development program through her family foundation.
She is a published author and co-author of the serial tort litigation section of Anatomy of the Personal Injury Claim , published by Trial Guides, and several articles in AAJ’s Trial Journal. She also served as Team Leader involved in writing and publishing Guidelines and Best Practices for a major Serial Torts MDL with the Bolch Judicial Institute at Duke Law School. She is a multiple recipient of the JD Supra Reader’s Choice Award for her online legal publications.
Ms. Fulmer graduated from the University of South Florida with a Bachelor of Arts in Finance in 1990 and received her J.D. cum laude from Stetson College of Law in 1993. She was an Assistant Editor of the Stetson Law Review and was twice recognized as a Law Review Outstanding Member. She served as a Federal Judicial Intern for Judge Kovachevich and worked on pro bono projects as a Florida Bar Foundation Public Service Fellow and as an Intern at Gulf Coast Legal Services.
A native of Indiana, Ms. Fulmer has been an active volunteer with a number of charitable organizations: Take Stock in Children; Coastal Boxer Rescue; Feed the Hungry; Special Olympics of Palm Beach County; Seagull Industries; Supporters of the Pre-Law Magnet, Inc. of Palm Beach Lakes High School; Buddy Break (providing care for children with autism and physical needs); Special Olympics; Girls Scouts; Trail Lawyers Care (providing free legal services to 911 victims and those impacted by disasters). She has also volunteered for several years with the orphan children’s shelter, homeless dog shelter, and student exchange programs.
- October 2009 – Workers Injury Law & Advocacy Group (WILG) Meeting
- June 2010 – Moderator and speaker at the Florida Association for Justice Annual Convention
- 2010 – Florida Alliance Meeting
- October 2010 – Central Florida UAW Retirees and FLARA Members
- December 2010 – Knights of Columbus, United Retired Carpenters and UAW, Central Florida
- February 2011 – FJA Workhorse Seminar – “Mass Torts of Mention”
- October 2011 – “Mass Torts Made Perfect, Competing with the High Rollers on a Penny Slot Budget”
- October 2011 – WILG Convention – “Leveraging Client Databases, Marketing, Resources & Intake to Identify Mass Tort Cases”
- December 2011 – Florida Alliance Meeting
- December 2011 – Martin County Paralegals Association
- January 2012 – Martin County Bar Association – “What is a Mass Tort?”
- April 2012 – American Association for Justice – “Screening the Case and Representing the Elderly” for the Pradaxa program
- July 2012 – American Association for Justice – “Leveraging Your Workers’ Compensation Practice into Mass Torts”
- July 2012 – American Association for Justice – Co-Moderator of “Toxic, Environmental, and Pharmaceutical Torts (STEP)”
- August 2012 – American Association for Justice – Stryker Rejuvenate Hip Implant Stem Failure Teleseminar: “Metallosis with No Metal on Metal Articulation” – “FDA Adverse Reaction Reports”
- August 2012 – Manasota Justice Association – “Mass Tort Litigation Basics”
- September 2012 – Harris Martin Publishing – Biomet Hip Implant Litigation and Metal on Metal – Stryker Rejuvenate Litigation Presentation
- December 2012 – American Association for Justice – “Nuts and Bolts of Stryker Rejuvenate and ABG II Hip Implant Litigation”
- January 2013 – Trial Lawyers Summit 2013 – “Witness Preparation: Old School No Longer Works with Both Fact and Expert Witnesses”
- February 2013 – American Association for Justice – Presentation on the Pradaxa litigation on the Sunrise program
- February 2013 – Florida Association for Justice – “Women and Pharmaceutical and Medical Device Cases”
- March 2013 – Southeast Florida Retired Teachers Unit – “An Informed Patient is a Safe Patient – Protecting Yourself from Dangerous Drugs and Defective Medical Devices”
- July 2013 – American Association for Justice – Chair and Moderator of the Pradaxa Litigation Group CLE Program
- Julio de 2013 – Asociación Americana para la Justicia – Presentación sobre el litigio de Yaz, Yasmin y Ocella para el
- programa Litigation at Sunrise
- Diciembre de 2013 – Asociación Americana para la Justicia – Moderadora de demandantes – Conferencia de Solo Drogas y Dispositivos Médicos
- Febrero de 2014 – Asociación Americana para la Justicia – Moderadora de “Holding Corporations and the Insurance Industry Accountable”
- Abril de 2014 – Harris Martin – Quinta Conferencia Anual de Agravio Público con la presentación de eventos adversos y la Jueza Maria Corodemus
- Julio de 2014 – Asociación Americana para la Justicia – Moderadora del programa CLE de Actos
- Julio de 2014 – Asociación Americana para la Justicia – Presentación “Professional Conduct Rules on Advertising: What You Need to Know About What Is On Your Web Site and What You are Blogging”
- Septiembre de 2014 – Conferencia Legal Anual de Mujeres de 360 Advocacy Institute, Copresidenta y oradora: “Thinking Outside the Box: Women in the Courtroom”
- Octubre de 2014 – Workers’ Injury Law & Advocacy Group – Presentación de Conferencia Web sobre “Searching for Mass Tort Cases Hiding in Your File Cabinet”
- Diciembre de 2014 – Asociación Americana para la Justicia, Seminario Educativo, Seminario de los acuerdos sobre los implantes de caderas Stryker Rejuvenate y ABG II – Presentación sobre el litigio de Stryker “Enhanced Benefits Program and Future Enhanced Benefits Program”
- Diciembre de 2014 – Reunión Trimestral de la Junta de The Florida Alliance for Retired Americans, Inc., – “Drug and Medical Device Safety for Consumers”
- Abril de 2015 – Vigésima cuarta Conferencia Anual de Testigos Expertos SEAK, Inc., – “How to Survive and Thrive at Your Deposition”
- Septiembre de 2015 – The Florida Alliance for Retired Americans, Inc. y United Auto Workers of Pinellas County – “Drug and Medical Device Safety for Consumers”
- Octubre de 2015 – 360 Advocacy, “Trial Skills from the Woman’s Perspective Lean In” – “Managing Your Law Practice”
- Enero de 2016 – Reunión de mediados de invierno de Inner Circle, 2016 – “Managing the People in Your Practice”
- Abril de 2016 – Harris Martin – Conferencia Anual de Agravio Público con la Jueza Maria Corodemus – “Off Label Use Warnings”
- Mayo de 2016 – Asociación para la Justicia de Ohio – “Views from Leadership: How to Utilize Lead Counsel in a Mass Tort Case”
- Junio de 2016 – 360 Advocacy – “Hard Firm Management Decisions You Need to Make for Larger Verdicts and Settlements”
- Julio de 2016 – Asociación Americana para la Justicia – “Metal-on-Metal (MoM) Litigation Update – Biomet”
- Julio de 2016 – Asociación Americana para la Justicia – “Marketing and Obtaining Litigation Leads Ethically”
- Febrero de 2017 – Asociación del Colegio de Abogados del Condado Palm Beach – “Ethics in Advertising – How to Ethically Cast the Net”
- Febrero de 2017 – Entrevista radial sobre noticias y revisiones legales en iHeart Radio Network – “Mass Tort Cases for Consumers”
- March 2017 – Florida Association for Justice Workhorse Conference – “Identifying and Handling Defective Drug Cases”
- April 2017 – HB Litigation Conferences – Public Torts Judicial Forum – “The Media and Mass Torts”
- Admitted to practice before the United States Supreme Court and all United States District Courts in Florida
- Full admission or permission to practice on certain occasions in:
- United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama
- United States District Court for the Eastern and Western Districts of Arkansas
- United States District Court for the District of Arizona
- United States District Court for the Northern District of California
- United States District Court for the Eastern and Western Districts of Louisiana
- United States District Court for the Southern District of Illinois
- United States District Court for the Northern District of Indiana
- United States District Court for the Western District of Kentucky
- United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana
- United States District Court for the District of Maryland
- United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan
- Tribunal de Distrito de Estados Unidos para el Distrito de Minnesota
- Tribunal de Distrito de Estados Unidos para el Distrito de Nueva Jersey
- Tribunal de Distrito de Estados Unidos para el Distrito Sur de Nueva York
- Tribunal de Distrito de Estados Unidos para el Distrito Norte de Ohio
- Tribunal de Distrito de Estados Unidos para el Distrito Este de Pensilvania
- Tribunal de Distrito de Estados Unidos para el Distrito de Rhode Island
- Tribunal Superior de Nueva Jersey
- División de derecho para los condados Bergen y Atlantic
- Abogada de enlace con demandantes
- Casos de tabaco Post-Engle Progeny, Tribunal de Circuito del Condado Hillsborough (y relacionados con la creación de procesos judiciales coordinados a nivel estatal)
- En relación con: Litigio de implantes de seno, Tribunal de Circuito del Condado Hillsborough
- En relación con: Litigio de drogas dietéticas, Tribunal de Circuito del Condado Hillsborough (y relacionados con la creación de procesos judiciales coordinados a nivel estatal)
- Miembro del Comité Gobernador
- En relación con: Litigio de terapia de reemplazo hormonal, MDL No. 1507, Little Rock
- Miembro del Comité de Descubrimiento
- En relación con: Drogas dietéticas, MDL No.1203; Filadelfia
- En relación con: Litigio por responsabilidad de productos ProteGen Sling y Vesica System, MDL No. 1387, Baltimore
- En relación con: Vioxx, MDL No. 1657, Nueva Orleans
- En relación con: Litigio por responsabilidad de productos Mentor Corp. ObTape Transobturator Sling Products, MDL No. 2004, Columbus, Georgia
- En relación con: Litigio por responsabilidad de productos, mercadeo y prácticas de ventas de Yasmin y Yaz (Drospirenona), MDL No. 2100, East St. Louis Environmental
- En relación con: Litigio por responsabilidad de productos DePuy Orthopaedics, Inc, por implantes de caderas, MDL No. 2197, Toledo
- Miembro del Comité de Descubrimiento, en relación con: Stryker Rejuvenate y el litigio de reemplazo de caderas ABG II, Tribunal Superior de Nueva Jersey, División Legal, Condado Bergen
- Miembro del Comité de Daños, en relación con “Oil Spill by the Oil Rig Deepwater Horizon”, MDL No. 2179, Nueva Orleans
- Comité de Guía para el Demandante, En relación con: Pradaxa (Dabigatran Etexilate) Litigio por responsabilidad de productos, MDL No. 2385, East St. Louis
- Codirectora del Grupo de Litigio Pradaxa de la Asociación Americana para la Justicia
- Codirectora del grupo de litigio de implantes de caderas Biomet, de la Asociación Americana para la Justicia
- Miembro de los Grupos de Litigio de la AAJ para Digitek, Heparin, Bausch & Lomb Contact Lens Solution, PPA, Inhibidores Cox 2, Baycol, Drogas dietéticas, Implantes de seno, Kugel Hernia Mesh, Dispositivos para el corazón, Hydroxycut, Terapia de Reemplazo Hormonal, Rezulin, Implantes de Caderas y Rodillas Sulzer, Ortho Evra, AMO Contact Lens Solution, Propulsid, Bombas para el dolor — Chondrolysis, Fosamax, Fentanyl, Parches para el dolor, Fosfatos de sodio oral, Cremas para las Dentaduras, Gadolinio, Nuvaring Yaz/Yasmin/Ocella, Levaquin, Trasylol (Aprotinin), Chantix, Heparin, Reglan (metoclopramida), malla transvaginal, Implantes de caderas Wright Medical, implantes de caderas Biomet, implantes de caderas DePuy, Pradaxa, y Stryker Rejuvenate, ABG II e implantes de caderas Accolade
- Miembro EAGLE, Asociación de Justicia de la Florida (antes AFTL)
- Miembro colaborador, Asociación Americana de Justicia (antes ATLA)
- Miembro, Asociación de Abogados Litigantes de Agravio Público
- Miembro, Asociación Nacional de Abogados Litigantes
- Comité Ejecutivo, Abogados Litigantes de la Nación: Mejores 10 de la Asociación Nacional de Abogadas Litigantes
- Miembro, Asociación de Justicia del Condado Palm Beach
- Miembro, Asociación del Colegio de Abogados del Condado Palm Beach
- Miembro, Comité Nominador de la Asociación de Justicia de la Florida
- Junta de Gobernadores, Asociación de Justicia de la Florida (FJA, por sus siglas en inglés)
- Miembro de la Junta, Women’s Caucus de la FJA
- Junta de Gobernadores, Asociación Americana para la Justicia (AAJ, por sus siglas en inglés)
- Miembro de la Junta, Workers’ Injury Law & Advocacy Group (WILG)
- Copresidenta del Subcomité, Women Trial Lawyers’ Caucus de la AAJ
- Miembro, Foro de Líderes de la AAJ
- Miembro, Preemption Task Force de la AAJ
- Miembro, Comité Trial Lawyers Care de la AAJ (2014 – 2017)
- Miembro, Comité Marketing & Practice Development de la AAJ (2014 – 2017)
- Vicepresidenta, Comité de Supervisión de Membresía de la AAJ (2015 – 2017)
- Miembro, Comité de Acción Política de la AAJ (2012 – 2014)
- Miembro, Comité de Cumplimiento de la AAJ (2015-2018)
- Miembro, Comité Exchange Advisory de la AAJ (2014 – 2017)
- Miembro, Junta Asesora Evergreen de la AAJ (2016 – 2017)
- Miembro, Asociación del Colegio de Abogados del Condado Palm Beach, Comité de Muerte por Negligencia/Lesiones Personales
- Miembro, Fundación de Justicia Pública
- Miembro, Comité de Comunicaciones y Mercadeo de la Fundación de Justicia Pública
- Miembro, Voluntaria de Roscoe Pound Institute, Trial Lawyers Care (mediante la AAJ) – donó más de 400 horas para representar a dos familias que perdieron seres queridos el 11 de septiembre y a aquellas familias que han sufrido el impacto de desastres naturales
- Voluntaria, Bay Area Legal Services, Asociación para Mujeres Abogadas de Hillsborough – brindándoles ayuda a las víctimas de violencia doméstica
- Volunteer, Florida Association for Women Lawyers (FAWL) Nominated for Super Lawyers (2012, 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2016) for class action and public tort litigation
- Member, Florida Bar Committee on Continuing Education in the Field of Law (2014-2017)
- Committee Member, Selection Committee for the American Association of Justice Leadership Academy
- Named among the Best Lawyers in America (2012, 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2016) and Plaintiffs Public Torts Lawyer of the Year (2013) by US News and World Report
- Featured in Florida Trend’s Florida Legal Elite (July 2014)
- She received the FJA Shoe Leather Award (June 2012) for her work as a lobbyist in the Florida Legislature in 2012, the FJA Bronze Eagle Award (June 2012), and the Membership Cornerstone Award (June 2014).
- Received the President’s Award from the American Association for Justice (July 2014), for his efforts in recruiting members
- Full member of the Honorary Society of Trial Lawyers (2014)
- Martindale-Hubbell “AV Preeminent” Rating
- Marie Lambert Award from the Women Trial Lawyers Caucus of the American Association for Justice – awarded in recognition of exemplary leadership in the profession, her community, the AAJ, and the Women Trial Lawyers Caucus (July 2016)
- JD Supra Senior Author on Medical Device and Product Liability Issues (February 2017)
Academic Activities and Honors
- Stetson College of Law, J.D., Cum Laude (Graduated December 1993)
- Graduated seventh in her class with a grade point average of 3.408
- Honor Roll
- Assistant Editor, Stetson Law Review
- Law Review Outstanding Member Award
- Finalist for Best Speaker, First-Year Moot Court
- Florida Bar Foundation Public Service Fellow
- Federal Judicial Intern with Judge Elizabeth A. Kovachevich, Executive Committee, Stetson Public Interest Law Association Legal Intern, Civil Poverty Legal Law Center – Gulfcoast Legal Services Legal Services Research Assistant, Professor Jayma Meyer
- He received academic scholarships for Law I, II and III
- University of South Florida, Bachelor of Science, Finance (Graduated December 1990)
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Mariano García
Mariano Garcia: Latinos In Action College Scholarship
