Morgan Branch

MORGAN BRANCH is a trial lawyer and litigation strategist who represents clients in their most important trial-level litigation matters and arbitrations. Morgan has a diverse range of experience representing and advising pharmaceutical, medical device, food and beverage, manufacturing, commercial, and other consumer goods clients in complex product liability cases, commercial litigation, and consumer class actions in state and federal courts, as well as domestic and international arbitration matters. She served as national counsel and/or trial counsel in numerous federal and state courts across the country; has taken/defended critical fact and expert witness depositions all over the world; and has briefed and argued successful dispositive, evidentiary, and discovery motions in both state and federal court. She also has significant experience managing and developing bellwether trial strategy in coordinated proceedings.

Within these areas, Morgan counsels clients at every stage of the litigation process, from case management and discovery strategy through fact and expert witness depositions, mediation, jury exercises, arbitrations and trial.

Representative trial work:

• Represented Monsanto as part of a winning trial team in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas in a jury trial involving allegations that Monsanto’s weedkiller, Roundup, caused the plaintiff’s cancer.
• Trial counsel representing plaintiff in Section 1983 civil rights action—Wyatt v. Owens (W.D. Va.)—alleging use of unconstitutionally excessive force in effecting arrest. Jury returned a plaintiff’s verdict and awarded substantial compensatory and punitive damages.
• Selected as trial team member in first bellwether case defending a major medical device company in high-profile product liability litigation concerning a Class III medical device.
• Represented an Alabama Death Row inmate as part of Sidley’s Capital Litigation Project. She was recently a lead member of the trial team in support of the client’s petition for post-conviction relief at a week-long evidentiary hearing in July 2021.

Representative litigation matters:

• National counsel rigorously defending a major medical device company in high-profile product liability litigation concerning a Class III medical device. Morgan was a trial team member for the first bellwether case, which resolved shortly before trial. 
• National counsel for a pharmaceutical company in a series of product liability actions in state and Federal court involving challenges to a life-saving medication, including failure to warn, fraud, and design defect claims. 
• Counsel for pharmaceutical company in consumer class action involving allegations of deceptive labeling.

• SidleyWomen
• Women’s Bar Association of D.C.