We Are Northeast
Georgia’s Personal
Injury Lawyers
David Alan Sleppy
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Practice Areas:
- Products Liability
- Personal Injury
- Wrongful Death
- Mediation
Biography
David Sleppy is an AV rated attorney with plaintiff’s civil trial and appellate experience, admitted to practice in Georgia and the District of Columbia. He graduated from the George Washington University National Law Center in 1981 and summa cum laude from Gettysburg College in 1978. Prior to joining Cathey & Strain, Mr. Sleppy was a partner at Herman & Sleppy for ten years and worked as a sole practitioner in Atlanta for three years. He has also served as an adjunct law professor and has been invited to speak at the Center for International Legal Studies.
Mr. Sleppy has been selected as a Georgia “Super Lawyer.” His practice places an emphasis on catastrophic product liability cases, construction/industrial equipment, medical devices, pharmaceuticals and consumer products with a particular focus on automotive defects/crashworthiness cases. Mr. Sleppy also handles trucking/motor carrier, railroad, sovereign immunity cases and complex insurance/coverage disputes. He has represented both plaintiffs and defendants in commercial, contractual, and real estate matters. With over thirty years experience as lead counsel in cases filed in state and federal courts around the country, Mr. Sleppy has handled all aspects of trial practice including complex discovery, depositions, expert development, motions, hearings, alternative dispute resolution, Daubert challenges, trial preparation, trials and appeals. He has tried dozens of cases to verdict as first and second chair counsel.
Education
- George Washington University National Law Center, Washington, District of Columbia
- J.D. - 1981
- Gettysburg College
- B.A. - 1978
- Honors: summa cum laude
Bar Admissions
- Georgia, 1982
- District of Columbia, 1982
- U.S. Court of Appeals 11th Circuit, 1994
- U.S. Court of Appeals 7th Circuit, 1996
- U.S. District Court Northern District of Georgia
- U.S. District Court Middle District of Georgia
Representative Cases
- Co-counsel in wrongful death of minor case resulting from amusement park accident which settled for record amount in Georgia. Case also resulted directly in the enactment of The Carnival Ride Safety Act by the Georgia legislature. (O.C.G.A. § 34-13-1 et seq).
- Numerous cases highlighted in the Fulton County Daily Report, the Georgia legal newspaper, including carnival ride, tire, hospital negligence and police chase cases.
- Participated in numerous multi-district litigations around the country including L-tryptophan, Gamma guard, the Swissair crash, FenPhen and VIOXX cases.
- Represented the family of AMTRAC conductor killed following a barge collision with a railroad bridge causing the train to plunge into a bayou.
- Co-counsel representing Rodney Culver (running back for the San Diego Chargers) and his wife, who were killed in the Value Jet crash in the Florida Everglades. Eight figure settlement was the highest for all passengers.
- Successfully arbitrated to binding decision, through the International Chamber of Commerce, Paris, France an international commercial case involving payment of sales commissions in Australia.
- Co-lead trial counsel in a Pirelli tire case which received national media attention from the Wall Street Journal, ABC, NBC, CNN, and USA Today.
- Wrote student transportation policy for county school board, adopted and implemented as part of wrongful death settlement.
- Appeared on the PBS television show, Layman’s Lawyer, discussing sovereign immunity and lawsuits against government entities.
- Regularly selected to mediate personal injury, commercial and insurance coverage cases.
Published Works
- Who’s Where at the FDA, FDC Reports, Inc., Chevy Chase, MD (1982). Assistant Editor
- Admissibility of Evidence in Civil Cases, Herman & Mclaughlin, 1st ed., Harrison Co., (1984), Editorial Assistant
- “Relief from Judgment; Enforcement of Judgments” Georgia Procedure-Verdicts and Judgments, Volume 5, Lawyers Cooperative Publishing (1995)
- “The Open and Obvious Defense – Is it Alive and Well?”, Georgia Bar Journal, Vol. 2, No. 3, D. Sleppy, E. Strain, (December 1996)
- “Closing Argument”, Trial Practice Manual, D. Cathey, D. Sleppy, GTLA (revised eds, 2000-2007)
- “Annual Survey of Georgia Law-Torts”, Mercer Law Review, D. Sleppy, L. Bucko, Vol. 54, No. 1 (Fall 2002)
- “ADR/Practical Mediation Tips”, Calendar Call, General Practice And Trial Section, State Bar of Georgia, D. Sleppy, Vol, XVII, No. 1 (Fall/Winter 2010/11). Co-Editor (2011-12)
Honors
- Selected as a Georgia “Super Lawyer"
Professional Associations
- Georgia Trial Lawyers Association
- American Bar Association
- American Association of Justice
- Mountain Circuit Bar Association
- Association for Conflict Resolution
- American Board of Trial Advocates
- Center for International Legal Studies
Current Employment Position
- Member
Past Positions
- Herman & Sleppy, Partner