Jan R. Schlichtmann is one of the country's most notable plaintiff's attorneys. Mr. Schlichtmann specializes in the area of complex civil litigation including consumer, environmental, product, toxic, and mass tort litigation. In 1973, Mr. Schlichtmann graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and in 1977 earned his law degree from Cornell. While at law school, he clerked for the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee and after graduation joined the staff of the U.S. House Special Select Committee on Assassinations as special counsel. In 1978, Mr. Schlichtmann began private practice in Massachusetts as a trial lawyer earning recognition for obtaining some of that state's highest verdicts and settlements in civil torts.
In 1986, Mr. Schlichtmann received national recognition for his representation of eight Woburn, Massachusetts families against W.R. Grace and Beatrice Foods for the contamination of the Woburn City water supply. The groundbreaking nature of the Woburn case and Mr. Schlichtmann's work in it has been the subject of a number of national and international television and radio shows, press reports, and magazine stories including "60 Minutes" and "Nova," as well as articles in legal and scientific journals and books. Mr. Schlichtmann's career and involvement in the Woburn case was chronicled in the national bestseller, "A Civil Action" that became a major motion picture starring John Travolta as Mr. Schlichtmann.
Mr. Schlichtmann has served on the faculty of the New England School of Law and Suffolk Law School's continuing legal education program, and has been on the faculty of the National Judicial College in Reno, Nevada. He has lectured at many of the nation's law schools and colleges and spoken before numerous national and regional professional and civic groups, has appeared on a number of the country's major radio and television shows, and has participated in an array of public forums on issues of law, public policy and the environment. In addition, Mr. Schlichtmann has consulted with and testified before several governmental agencies and legislative committees on issues of toxic waste liability and the civil justice system.