Gwyn Williams

Ms. Williams’ experience includes representing:

Retail and Consumer Products

• Philip Morris International and Philip Morris USA in tobacco litigation defense, including: 
  • Class actions under consumer protection statutes seeking damages for alleged marketing misrepresentations (US and Canada)
  • Consumer class actions for personal injury, seeking damages (Canada) and/or medical monitoring (US)
  • Personal injury and/or wrongful death claims by individual smokers (US)
  • Aggregated smoking and health claims brought by union health funds (US)
• Philip Morris International, Philip Morris USA, Altria Group, and Rothmans, Benson & Hedges in healthcare cost recoupment cases brought by each of the ten provincial governments in Canada, seeking C$100s of billions in smoking and health-related damages

• Colgate-Palmolive and its subsidiary, Tom’s of Maine, in two separate class actions in federal district courts, the District of Massachusetts and the Central District of California, regarding Tom’s of Maine’s “natural” claims for its toothpastes and deodorants
• Lands’ End in its defense against a consolidated class action, filed in federal court in Wisconsin, brought on behalf of Delta employees alleging uniforms made by Lands’ End caused personal injury and property damage
• Juul Labs in connection with the development of the company’s new Code of Conduct and Global Compliance Policies

 Pharmaceuticals and Life Sciences 

• Endo International in opioid cost recovery litigation, including:

• MDL in Ohio federal district court with plaintiffs alleging deceptive marketing and oversupply of opioids leading to current crisis of opioid addiction and resulting costs to municipalities
• 14 Massachusetts state court cases as lead counsel, coordinated for pre-trial purposes before the Superior Court’s Business Litigation Session, including cases by Massachusetts’ two largest cities as bellwether cases seeking damages for myriad costs associated with opioid addiction

• Teva Pharmaceuticals as trial and coordinating counsel in significant product liability and consumer class action litigation involving the drug propofol*

• A major pharmacy chain as national mass tort counsel (including in federal multidistrict litigation and multiple state courts), defending the issue of pharmacy liability for allegedly defective drugs such as “fen-phen,” OxyContin, and hormone replacement therapy*

Complex Commercial Litigation

• One of the largest airline companies in the world in multiple class action lawsuits regarding baggage fees 
• Caesars Entertainment and its subsidiaries in connection with COVID-19 related matters, including developing company protocols and communications for Caesars’ reopening after closing in March 2020 due to COVID-19
• A multinational chemical company in a series of regulatory and litigation matters concerning the company’s alleged connection to certain per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS, or so-called “forever chemicals”); matters include:
  • A nationwide class action filed in federal district court in Ohio seeking creation of a “science panel” and medical monitoring relief for virtually all US residents
  • MDL ongoing in the District of South Carolina regarding aqueous film-forming foams and PFAS-related claims
  • A suit filed by the State of Michigan to recoup damages for all harm allegedly caused by PFAS to the State’s natural resources
• A major nuclear power producer in defense of citizen suits, rule-making challenges, and administrative law proceedings, including arguing appeals to the highest courts of Massachusetts and Vermont*

*Matters handled prior to joining Latham