John Kane is a partner in the firm's Stamford, Connecticut, office and a member of the Litigation Section, where he practices primarily in the areas of insurance, products liability, fire and explosion, construction, and complex commercial litigation. He currently serves as the cochair of both the firm's Products Liability Group and Fire and Explosion Group. He has successfully litigated multimillion-dollar cases for large, publicly held corporations in federal and state courts throughout the country. He has represented businesses involved in nationwide retailing, manufacturing, distribution, importing, and construction.
In the insurance area, his focus is on large loss subrogation, arson, and fraud cases. His products liability practice focuses primarily on fire and explosion cases, but he has also defended numerous other manufacturers, distributors, and retailers in more traditional wrongful death or personal injury products liability suits.
In the construction area, he has represented major contractors, owners, and municipalities and procured multimillion-dollar settlements in construction/design disputes. The complex commercial matters he has handled often involve claims of fraud and requests for exemplary damages and fees. In addition to his trial experience, he has extensive alternative dispute resolution experience and has served as both a mediator and arbitrator in a variety of disputes.
Professional Associations
- American Bar Association, Tort and Insurance Practice, Construction, and Litigation Sections; Property Insurance Committee, Vice Chair
- Connecticut Bar Association, Litigation, Insurance (Executive Committee), and Construction Sections
- National Fire Protection Association, alternate on NFPA 921 Technical Committee
- National Association of Subrogation Professionals
- Connecticut Defense Lawyers Association
- Defense Research Institute, Insurance and Construction Sections
- New York State Bar Association
- International Association of Arson Investigators
- National Association of Fire Investigators
Honors and Awards
- AV® Preeminent™ Peer Review Rated in Martindale-Hubbell™ in the areas of Fire Loss; Complex and Multi-District Litigation; Construction Law; Fire Insurance Subrogation; Insurance Coverage; Property Insurance and Subrogation; Explosions; and Products Liability (Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review Ratings is a trademark. AV Preeminent is a certification mark of Reed Elsevier Properties, Inc.)
- Listed in Connecticut Super Lawyers® in the area of Personal Injury Defense: Products for 2011 (Super Lawyers is a registered trademark of Key Professional Media, Inc.)
- Listed in The Best Lawyers in America® in the area of Insurance Law since 2006 (Copyright 2011 by Woodward/White, Inc., Aiken, SC)
Experience
- Representing a Fortune 10 company that had a chemical explosion at one of its facilities in California, resulting in a fatality as well as property damage in excess of $100 million.
- Representing an owner of a power plant in Texas that had an explosion, resulting in property damage in excess of $30 million.
- Serves as national counsel for a large manufacturer of food service equipment in various fire cases throughout the country.
- Representing the owner of a Rhode Island wire mill facility and its insurance carrier in pursuing a $60-million claim against a utility company resulting from a high voltage electrical fire.
- Representing a Fortune 5 company in the largest fire in New Hampshire in the past 40 years.
- Selected as preferred counsel in commercial litigation for GE in the Northeast region, responsible for handling complex commercial litigation matters in excess of $2 million.
- Representing an owner of real property in New York City in which a fire caused three buildings to collapse resulting in property damage in excess of $18 million and personal injuries.
- Representing numerous insurers in pursuing claims arising out of fires caused by halogen lamps, including several high profile fires that received considerable publicity.
- Handled a variety of matters involving building and fire code violations, including the defense of an HVAC contractor who installed an allegedly defective sprinkler system which caused $3 million in property damage.
- Representation of a personal finance and small business financial services company in a Connecticut state case pertaining to unfair debt collection practices.
- Representation of General Electric in an action filed in federal court in California sounding in contract and business torts. The action was filed by a Singapore manufacturer that supplied parts and services to a Malaysian subcontractor to General Electric. The plaintiff contended that General Electric had formed and breached a contract to purchase goods and services directly from the plaintiff, rather than through the subcontractor, which had become financially unstable. The plaintiff claimed damages exceeding $110 million. Robinson & Cole successfully transferred the matter to Connecticut federal court and obtained a dismissal on jurisdictional grounds. On appeal, however, the Second Circuit reversed and reinstated the action. Robinson & Cole prepared the matter for trial, handling depositions of witnesses in the United States and Asia, and the significant document production demanded by the plaintiff. As a result of those efforts, the matter was settled for less than nine percent of the demand.
Publications & Presentations
Articles
- "CPSC Launches New Database on Product Safety," coauthored with Jeffrey J. White (4/2011), published in Connecticut Business & Industry Association News, analyzes the significant legal and business implications for manufacturers and others that exist as a result of the launching of a product safety database by the Consumer Product Safety Commission
News
5.04.11, What Businesses Need to Know About the New Product Safety Database