Z. Ileana Martinez

Practices

• Business Litigation
• Life Sciences
• Product Liability Litigation

Professional Experience

Ileana is a partner in the firm's Business Litigation, Product Liability Litigation and Life Sciences practice groups. She is a senior member of the Drug and Medical Device Litigation Group, the Atlanta office chair of the Women's Initiative and the Atlanta office co-chair of the Diversity and Inclusion Initiative. She focuses her practice on product liability litigation, including litigation for pharmaceutical and medical device companies and many other consumer and commercial product manufacturers. Ileana also handles cases involving business and commercial litigation, insurance defense, professional malpractice, and premises liability. She has served as national, regional, and local counsel for product manufacturers and distributors involved in multi-district litigation and has extensive experience with mass torts, class actions and complex litigation. Ileana routinely handles cases which involve intricate and cutting-edge medical, scientific and/or engineering issues, are document-intensive, often high-profile, and allege serious permanent injuries or death.

Ileana is admitted to practice in the states of Georgia, Florida and Connecticut. She is fluent in Spanish.

Education

• University of Miami School of Law, J.D., 1986
• Florida International University, B.S., 1983

• Drugs and Pharmaceuticals
  
  
• Bowel Prep Solution - Represented product manufacturer in cases alleging plaintiffs suffered permanent kidney damage.
• Diet Drugs - Represented diet drug manufacturer in multi-district litigation in hundreds of cases wherein plaintiffs alleged heart valve damage and primary pulmonary hypertension.
• Eye Care Products - Represented manufacturer of eye care products in cases involving allegations of permanent corneal damage and corneal transplants.
• Clinical Drug Studies - Represented manufacturers of anti-depressants and thrombolytic agents in lawsuits alleging that drugs involved in clinical studies injured and/or caused plaintiff's death.
• Anti-Hypertensives/ACE Inhibitors - Defended manufacturers of antihypertensive medication in lawsuit alleging permanent injuries.
• Antihistamines - Defended foreign manufacturer and domestic distributor of antihistamines in wrongful death suit.
• Contrast Dye - Represented pharmaceutical company in cases alleging contrast dye solution caused painful and life threatening disease in patients.
  
  
• Medical Devices and Equipment
  
  
• Latex Gloves – Served as national counsel for distributor in multi-district litigation involving hundreds of lawsuits throughout the country wherein plaintiffs—nurses and medical professionals—alleged that latex gloves caused them life- and career-altering allergies.
• Medical Ventilators, Apnea Monitors and Pulse Oximeters – Represented product manufacturers in lawsuits alleging that defectively designed and malfunctioning product caused deaths of children and adults.
• Gynecological Lasers – Represented manufacturer of gynecological laser in case where plaintiff claimed she was burned and scarred during surgical procedure. Obtained a defense verdict for client at trial.
• Pain Relief Delivery – Represented various manufacturers of pain relief patches/pumps in lawsuits alleging wrongful death or permanent injuries.
• EKG Back Pad – Defended claims of alleged permanent psychological and physical injury and scarring following use of EKG back pad during surgery.
• Ambulation/Lift Devices – Represented manufacturer of canes, other ambulation assistance devices, and bed/chair/toilet lift equipment in cases alleging design defects and product failure caused plaintiffs' falls and permanent injuries.
• Blood Warmer – Represented manufacturer of blood warmer used during back surgery on teenager that suffered permanent paraplegia.
• Breast Implants – Represented Japanese manufacturer of breast implants in class actions and multi-district litigation.
• Urological Devices – Defended cases involving cystoscopes and penile implants.
• Orthopedic Devices – Represented manufacturers of internal fixation devices and intramedullary rods.
  
  
• Consumer Products
  
  
• Electric heating pads; butane lighters; power tools; bucket trucks/lifts; manufacturing equipment; playground equipment; automobiles; cooking products; cleaning fluids; all terrain vehicles; exercise equipment; body piercing devices; contact lenses; asbestos; food products; building materials; tires.
  
  
• Business and General Tort Litigation
  
  
• Professional negligence - Represented professionals, including attorneys, doctors and accountants, in the defense of professional malpractice claims seeking multi-million dollar damages.
• Business disputes - Represented businesses in disputes with other businesses or individuals involving allegations of breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duties, fraud, interference with contractual relations, civil conspiracy, breach of non-compete and non-solicitation covenants.
• Transportation accidents - Defended various transportation companies in lawsuits arising from accidents involving catastrophic injuries or deaths.
• Premises liability - Handled premises liability cases including slip and falls, assault & battery, false imprisonment, inadequate security, and malicious prosecution.
• Insurance coverage - Represented insurance companies in coverage disputes, bad faith, and subrogation cases; handled disability and life insurance benefits cases.
• Paternity action – Represented plaintiff in paternity action related to wrongful death suit arising out of trucking accident.
  
  
• Appellate Practice
  
  
• Waldrep Brothers Beauty Supply, Inc. v. Wynn Beauty Supply Co., Inc., 992 F.2d 59, 63 (4th Cir.1993)
• Pacrim Associates v. Turner Home Entertainment, Inc., 235 Ga.App. 761, 510 S.E.2d 52 (1998)
• Johnson & Johnson v. Kaufman, 226 Ga.App. 77, 485 S.E.2d 525 (1997)
• Connecticut Genl. Life Ins. Co. v. SVA, Inc., 743 F.Supp. 107 (D.Conn.1990)
• Haynes v. Cyberonics, Inc., No. 1:09-CV-2700-JEC, 2011 WL 3903238 (N.D. Ga. Sept. 6, 2011)
• Selene RMOF REO Acquisition II, LLC, et al. v. Vandiver & Kaufman, LLC, No. 3:10-cv-109 (CAR), 2011 WL 1833204 (M.D. Ga. May 12, 2011)

• "FDA Issues Draft Guidance on Benefit-Risk Determinations in Medical Device Premarket Review" · Thompson Hine Product Liability Update, August 2011
• Co-author, "Alice In Pharmaland: The 'Curiouser And Curiouser' Case Of Conte v. Wyeth" · Rx for the Defense, Winter 2009

• “FDA Unique Device Identifiers”, Southeastern Medical Device Association Conference, 2013
• “Preparing and Defending “Bet the Company” Case”, Hispanic Bar Association Corporate Counsel Conference, 2013
• Medmarc: "Legal Ethics and Social Media", 24th Annual Drug and Medical Device Seminar - California, June 5 - 8, 2011
• Medical Device Registry: Implications for the Drug & Medical Device Industry, 22nd Annual Drug & Medical Device Seminar - Charleston, South Carolina, June 7, 2010
• "Investigate the Investigator: Detecting Fraud and Abuse in Clinical Trials", Center for Business Intelligence, 3rd Annual Limiting Exposure to Liability in Clinical Trials Conference; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, November 2006
• "Nuts and Bolts of Product Liability Law", State Bar of Georgia, November 2000
• "Navigating the Seas of Discovery; Plaintiffs Gone Fishing for Default", The Tenth Annual Medical Device Seminar, Medmarc Insurance, Alberta, Canada, and 16th Annual Corporate Counsel Institute, Atlanta, Georgia, June & December 1997
• Defense Attorney in Mock Trial - "Davis v. Warehouse Store", Closed Head Injury Case, Atlanta Claims Association, Annual Convention, 1995
• "Current Trends in Medical Malpractice Litigation and Risk Management for Physicians: How to Minimize the Chance of Finding Your Name on the Other Side of a 'v' and What To Do if You Find It There Anyway", National Medical Association, 100th Annual Convention and Scientific Assembly, Atlanta, Georgia, 1995
• Conducted in-house presentations for clients on varied litigation topics
• Presented on the value of education, Boys and Girls Club/ Girl Scouts Awards Ceremony, April 2010

• AV® rated by Martindale-Hubbell
• Voted one of Top Ten Defense Counsel by Medmarc Insurance
• selected for inclusion in Georgia Trend magazine as one of "The 2008 Legal Elite: Georgia's Most Effective Lawyers"

• Spanish