Eric Gotting represents Keller and Heckman’s clients in litigation and related matters, specializing in complex civil and appellate matters, internal investigations, and regulatory compliance. With an extensive background in environmental law, he has expanded his practice over the years to cover many of Keller and Heckman’s industry sectors and regulatory areas. Eric is a former Am Law 50 litigation partner and U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Division, Trial Attorney.
Eric’s practice spans a broad range of legal issues, including administrative and constitutional law, agency enforcement actions, toxic torts, product liability, general business litigation, and regulatory advice. He works with a diverse set of industries, including chemicals, plastics, pesticides, fuels and pipelines, food and packaging, consumer goods, telecommunications, and e-cigarettes.
As a litigator, Eric has tried cases to verdict and argued appeals before federal and state courts across the country. His experience includes class actions, mass tort litigation, AAA arbitrations, and agency proceedings. Eric has also litigated challenges to federal and state statutes, regulations, and orders. He has particular knowledge involving the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), the Dormant Commerce Clause, the First Amendment, the Due Process Clause, and federal preemption. He has also filed amicus briefs in litigation involving regulatory issues facing a variety of industry sectors.
Outside the courtroom, Eric has assisted clients in federal and state enforcement actions, internal investigations, and regulatory compliance. Relevant matters have involved chemical and pesticide control, hazardous waste, pipeline safety, the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, occupational safety and health, Superfund cost-recovery actions, the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, the Chemical Weapons Convention, and the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). He has also conducted extensive internal corporate investigations regarding potential regulatory compliance and litigation-related liabilities, including toxic torts, product liability, consumer fraud, and commercial contract disputes.
For his toxic tort clients, Eric has defended claims involving all environmental media, including drinking water, soil, groundwater, and air. He has worked with, and defended against, experts in numerous scientific and business-related fields, including toxicology, geochemistry, hydrogeology, structural engineering, neuropsychology, health physics, survey techniques, statistics, real estate appraisal, and environmental remediation. He has extensive experience litigating toxic tort cases involving claims of personal injury and property damage from alleged exposures to volatile and semi-volatile compounds, specialty chemicals, pesticides, gasoline, radioactive waste, and heavy metals.
Eric has provided pro bono services throughout his career, working with groups such as the Legal Counsel for the Elderly and serving as appointed counsel in federal habeas and 1983 prisoner cases.