Jerome A. Murphy is a partner with Crowell & Moring's Antitrust and Complex Litigation Groups. Jerry is an experienced litigator and trial lawyer whose practice focuses on complex antitrust and other business litigation. He currently defends companies facing antitrust claims and represents several groups of Fortune 100 companies in federal litigation brought to recover damages from antitrust cartels. He is a leader of the firm's Antitrust Recovery Practice, assisting corporate clients to recover hundreds of millions of dollars in damages in cartel cases. In coordination with competition lawyers in the firm's international offices, Jerry has also assisted multinational clients seeking global recoveries from worldwide price-fixing cartels. He was invited by the United Kingdom's Competition Appeal Tribunal to serve as an advocate in one of the first follow-on private damages actions brought in Europe. His private damages practice was featured in the Global Competition Review.
He regularly handles matters at both the trial and appellate levels in federal and state courts throughout the country. In addition, he has served as national coordinating counsel and has represented clients before arbitration panels and in other ADR proceedings. Jerry also has an interest in legal issues related to nanotechnology and is a member of the firm's nanotechnology practice, focusing on issues related to regulatory standards, product safety, and potential tort liability.
Jerry is a member of the firm's Public Service Committee and maintains an active pro bono docket. While he has represented clients in a wide variety of pro bono matters, he has a particular focus on housing rights issues. He currently represents a class of African-American public housing residents in Baltimore City seeking to enforce a consent decree against HUD and Baltimore's Housing Authority. Representative matters include:
- Represents corporate clients in actions to recover damages from antitrust price-fixing cartels. Currently represents groups of clients in litigation arising from cartels in DRAM, LCD panels, electrical carbon products, and diamonds.
- Defends automotive filter manufacturers in putative class actions alleging price-fixing, in In re Aftermarket Automotive Filters Antitrust Litigation.
- Obtained summary judgment dismissing all claims against major equipment manufacturer in over 1,000 actions in a federal MDL proceeding in which plaintiffs claimed that client conspired to conceal the alleged health hazards of manganese in welding fumes.
- Defended major railroad in and served as coordinating counsel for complex toxic tort litigation.
- Defended brokerage in NASD arbitration involving contract and business tort claims.
- Represented a semiconductor manufacturer in federal court in a suit involving business tort and contract claims.
- Defended major airline in antitrust suit brought by U.S. Department of Justice.
- Represented major railroad in series of arbitrations involving complex commercial contract disputes.
- Represented a federal government corporation in federal court in suit involving the financing of a large commercial project overseas.
- Represented the estate and family members of a U.S. service member killed in terrorist bombing in suit against foreign government, brought in federal court under an exception to the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act.
- Represented more than 50 corporate clients as plaintiffs' counsel in complex antitrust suit brought in California state court.
Jerry joined the firm in 1998. A 1985 graduate of Georgetown University, Jerry received his law degree in 1992 from the University of Maryland, where he graduated with honors and was executive editor of the Law Review and a member of Order of the Coif. Prior to joining the firm, Jerry served on active duty in the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General's Corps as a prosecutor and senior criminal defense attorney. In the JAG Corps, Jerry tried dozens of cases to verdict as both prosecutor and defense counsel. He served as lead counsel in cases ranging from premeditated murder to complex fraud, and defended senior officers and high-profile cases.