Eldon E. Fallon

Eldon E. Fallon
Judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana
Incumbent
Assumed office May 10, 1995
Appointed by	Bill Clinton
Preceded by	Adrian Guy Duplantier
Personal details
Born	1939 (age 76–77) New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S.
Alma mater	Tulane University (B.A.) Tulane University Law School (J.D.) Yale Law School (LL.M.)

Eldon E. Fallon (born 1939) is a United States federal judge.

Early life and education

Born in New Orleans, Louisiana, Fallon received a B.A. from Tulane University in 1959, a J.D. from Tulane University Law School in 1962, and an LL.M. from Yale Law School in 1963.

Career

Fallon was in private practice in New Orleans, Louisiana from 1962 to 1995, and was also an adjunct professor at Tulane Law School from 1975 to 1993.

He has authored Trial Handbook for Louisiana Lawyers, Lawyers Co-Operative Publishing Co., Offshore Oil Field Litigation-Cases and Materials, Tulane University School of Law; and voluminous law review and law journal articles on multidistrict litigation, and numerous presentations at continuing legal education seminars.^[1]

Fallon has also received numerous awards in his legal career, including the President's Award, 1980 and 1988, and Lifetime Achievement Award, 1987, all from LA State Bar Association; LA Medaille de la Ville de Paris, 1983; Nat'l Pro Bono Publico Award, American Bar Association, 1987; Distinguished Attorney, LA Bar Foundation, 1989; American Judicature Society, Herbert Harley Award, 2005; American Bar Association, Tort, Trial & Insurance Practice Section, Pursuit of Justice Award, 2005; American Board of Trial Advocates, The Thomas Jefferson Award, 2008.^[2]

Judicial service

On February 3, 1995, Fallon was nominated by President Bill Clinton to a seat on the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana vacated by Adrian Guy Duplantier. He was confirmed by the United States Senate on May 8, 1995, and received his commission on May 10, 1995.

Referred as a “pioneer in the creative use of MDLs and bellwether trials,”^[3] Fallon has overseen several high-profile multidistrict litigation cases in recent years, including the Xarelto Products Liability Litigation, Chinese-Manufactured Drywall Products Liability Litigation, and Vioxx Marketing, Sales Practices and Products Liability Litigation.

Notable cases

In National Trust for Historic Preservation in the United States v. United States Department of Veterans Affairs, et al., Fallon ruled against two preservationists who did not want the U.S. Department of Veteran's Affairs and the State of Louisiana to build two new hospitals near the French Quarter in New Orleans. On March 31, 2010, Fallon found no reason to prevent the building project valued at $2 billion to move forward. Fallon's ruling found that there were enough environmental impact studies completed before moving the project forward, a main objection by the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

In Fernandez v. Knauf, et.al, Fallon presided over a trial for many homeowners who sued Knauf Plasterboard because the drywall has a sulfur type substance that deteriorated the drywall causing concerns that their homes may be unlivable. Fallon heard the case as part of 600 different cases that were consolidated into a special multi-district litigation case that would allow many other home owners to settle their cases out of court. In December 2011, Knauf proposed an unlimited settlement to repair the homes with the defective drywall. In addition, the company offered $30 million for those who reported health problems because of the material.

References

1. http://www.raisingthebar.org/gala2013/Honorees.asp
2. http://www.raisingthebar.org/gala2013/Honorees.asp
3. http://www.bna.com/judge-fallon-works-n57982070383/

Sources

• Eldon E. Fallon at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a public domain publication of the Federal Judicial Center.