One hundred years ago today, the Tennessee General Assembly voted to ratify the 19th Amendment, becoming the 36th state to do so and the last required to make the amendment the law of the land. This 1917 cartoon puts the …
The History and Use of the Defense Production Act
To fully understand the current relevance and application of the Defense Production Act (DPA) to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) public health emergency, it helps to remember the two extraordinary wartime crises faced by Americans in the space of 10 …
Environmental Compliance with CERCLA
The term “Superfund” refers to contaminated sites identified by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for cleanup. While this term captures the essence of the Superfund designation, the laws and regulations associated with environmental compliance and the identification, cleanup, and …
Slavery Disclosure Research
A city ordinance requires that all financial institutions disclose historical investments or profits from slavery. Client Challenge A major U.S. financial institution was entering into a service contract with the City of Chicago, but a city ordinance required that the …
Tracing Holocaust Assets
HAI | Legal investigators determine the rightful ownership of Holocaust-era looted art. Client Challenge When questions arose surrounding the rightful ownership of a painting sold at auction, a law firm representing a claimant contacted HAI | Legal for assistance in …
Product Liability Cases
The reconstruction of the fact record is critical in product liability cases. Client Challenge In an asbestos exposure case brought before a state court in South Carolina, plaintiff’s alleged that the North American manufacturer of commercial and residential building materials …
Durable Legacy: A History of Morris, Nichols, Arsht & Tunnell
Durable Legacy: A History of Morris, Nichols, Arsht & Tunnell (2005) Produced for the seventy-fifth anniversary of the noted Wilmington law firm, Durable Legacy chronicles the construction of a firm that enjoys an international reputation, yet retains its deep roots in the …
Common Knowledge Investigations
How do you score a touchdown when documenting “common knowledge” for a statute of limitation case? Client Challenge Counsel at a national law firm sought to obtain a summary judgment in a high-profile antitrust suit against the National Football League. …
Product Liability and Asbestos Research
How do you prove a historical negative—and do so within an extremely tight legal deadline? Client Challenge Like many companies with a long manufacturing history, TKD, Inc. found itself facing a potentially costly, but poorly documented, asbestos exposure claim in …
Manufactured Gas Plant Investigations
Where do insurers and reinsurers go when they need historical research in support of a long-tail liability claim dispute? When outside counsel for several national insurers and reinsurers found themselves in a complex long-tail insurance liability case involving ten former …
Corporate Genealogy Research
How corporate genealogy research can reduce a client’s liability in toxic tort litigation. Client Challenge A well-known agricultural equipment company reached out to HAI | Legal for help when it was named as a defendant in a lawsuit filed by …
Investigating Environmental Claims
Using forensic historical research to determine the allocation of environmental cleanup costs. Client Challenge A major chemical manufacturer had been the “contractor-operator” for two government-owned, contractor-operated (GOCO) plants in St. Louis, Missouri, during the Second World War. At the time, …