Jack defends catastrophic, high-profile, high-exposure cases against some of the country’s most formidable plaintiff firms. With a focus on construction, asbestos and toxic torts, transportation, fire casualty and product liability, he has taken to conclusion more than 60 jury trials, as well as hundreds of bench trials, arbitrations and mediations. Additionally, Jack represents clients in litigation involving fire and explosion claims, sexual assaults, negligent security, and hospitality and dram shop claims. He also handles specialty, high risk claims in the areas of amusements, entertainment, recreational, sports and specialty events. Additionally, Jack has represented venues, contractors and building managers to name a few, in wrongful death suits and personal injury litigation involving elevators, electronic door issues and escalators. This litigation dealt with leveling, door closing, malfunctions and prolonged elevators stuck between floors.
He represents many Fortune 500 companies directly and as insureds, and handles complex litigation matters at the federal and state levels and in administrative agencies and alternate dispute resolution forums. Jack also serves as national coordinating counsel for several product manufacturers.
Prior to joining the firm, Jack was the founding partner of the Delany Law firm and co-founded Delany & O’Brien, which operated for 24 years in Philadelphia. During his career, he also ran the Philadelphia office of a large New Jersey/New York firm and worked as assistant counsel for the Philadelphia Housing Authority.
Jack is a Certified Civil Trial Advocate by the National Board of Trial Advocacy and is certified by the Supreme Court of New Jersey as a Civil Trial Attorney. He is a member of the Federation of Defense and Corporate Counsel (FDCC), where he serves as Trial Masters Co-Chair, Technology Committee Co-Chair and Toxic Torts Co-Chair. He also enjoys serving pro bono as an adjunct professor in the Temple Law School Trial Advocacy Program, LLM and as a Judge Pro Tempore for the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas and is an author, editor and presenter on trial advocacy.
Honors & awards
The Best Lawyers in America , Personal Injury Litigation - Defendants
2026
Pennsylvania Super Lawyers
2004-2014, 2019-2025
Philadelphia Business Journal, Best of the Bar Award
2023
Year joined
2022
Results
Summary Judgment Secured in “Exploding” Wine Bottle Case
Product Liability
January 30, 2025
We successfully secured summary judgment in a product liability case involving an “exploding” wine bottle. Our client was the distributor of the bottle and was brought into the case as a third-party defendant. The plaintiff testified that on Thanksgiving Day, she attempted to open the bottle with the handle of a wooden spoon when the bottle unexpectedly and suddenly exploded in her hands. The plaintiff brought a product liability claim, asserting defects with the design of the bottle in using unusually thin glass prone to breakage.
Summary Judgment Obtained in Significant Workplace Injury Case
Catastrophic Claims Litigation
June 30, 2023
We secured a motion for summary judgment in a significant workplace injury case involving a Laidlow claim. The court ruled that the plaintiff had failed to establish that his employer had committed an intentional and malicious act sufficient to circumvent the workers’ compensation exclusivity provision.
Pennsylvania Appellate Courts Uphold Nonsuit Obtained By Jack Delany In $11.5 Million Construction Death Case
Appellate Advocacy & Post-Trial Practice
Catastrophic Claims Litigation
Construction Injury Litigation
April 5, 2023
By Order dated April 5, 2023, the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania refused to review the Superior Court’s affirmance of a 2021 nonsuit obtained by Jack Delany in hotly contested litigation stemming from the death of a construction worker. John Hare and Shane Haselbarth handled the appeal along with Jack.
Jury defense verdict in high-stakes catastrophic litigation case.
Catastrophic Claims Litigation
Property Litigation
January 27, 2023
We obtained a defense verdict in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania in a case where the plaintiff sought $24.1M for alleged property damages and lost revenue.
Thought Leadership
Marshall Dennehey Trial Lawyers and Appellate Chair Talk Nuclear Verdicts in A.M. Best’s Insurance Law Podcast
Catastrophic Claims Litigation
Health Care Liability
Appellate Advocacy & Post-Trial Practice
November 7, 2025
Three attorneys from Marshall Dennehey- John “Jack” Delany, III, Chair of Marshall Dennehey’s Catastrophic Claims Litigation Practice Group, veteran medical malpractice shareho
Combatting Nuclear Verdicts in Plaintiff-Friendly Jurisdictions
Philadelphia - Headquarters
Catastrophic Claims Litigation
Health Care Liability
October 30, 2025
98 Marshall Dennehey Attorneys Recognized in the 2026 Editions of The Best Lawyers in America and the Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch in America
August 20, 2025
Marshall Dennehey is proud to highlight the firm’s 98 attorneys who have been recognized in the 2026 editions of The Best Lawyers in America and the Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch in America. Less than 6% of all practicing lawyers in the U.S.
Are the Eyes a Window on One's Soul? American Mother - A Story of Grace, Humanity and Radical Empathy in the Law
Philadelphia - Headquarters
Catastrophic Claims Litigation
June 23, 2025
Marshall Dennehey Announces 2025 Pennsylvania Super Lawyers and Rising Stars
May 22, 2025
Thirty-three attorneys across Marshall Dennehey's five Pennsylvania offices have been selected to the 2025 edition of Pennsylvania Super Lawyers magazine.
Media Commentary
"New Juror Attitudes Call For New Defense Strategies, Experts Say," The Legal Intelligencer, April 10, 2023
Classes/Seminars Taught
Combatting Nuclear Verdicts in Plaintiff-Friendly Jurisdictions , A.M. Best Insurance Law Podcast, October 30, 2025
When Every Second Counts: Managing Catastrophic Claims , A.M. Best Insurance Law Podcast, November 29, 2023
Strategies to Deal with Plaintiffs’ Life Care Plans and How They Contribute to Nuclear Verdicts, Marshall Dennehey Client, August 29, 2023.
AV Preeminent®: The highest peer rating standard. This rating signifies a large number of the lawyer’s peers rank him
or her at the highest level of professional excellence for their legal knowledge, communication skills and ethical standards.
Distinguished: An excellent rating for a lawyer with some experience. This rating indicates the attorney is widely
respected by their peers for high professional achievement and ethical standards.
Notable: This rating indicates that the lawyer has been recognized by a large number of their peers for strong ethical standards.
