Robert M. Cook
Partner
Experience
Robert M. Cook focuses his practice on counseling and defending product manufacturers, distributors, trucking and automobile companies, property owners and other clients in all aspects of litigation. His extensive litigation experience includes the defense of automobile, truck, bus, motorcycle, and watercraft manufacturers in product liability, warranty, and lemon law cases, as well as defending commercial vehicle companies and operators in catastrophic cases.
Rob is currently president-elect of the New Jersey Defense Association (NJDA). He was appointed to serve as a member of the District IIIA Ethics Committee by the New Jersey Supreme Court and was recently selected to be vice chair for the district. A thought leader on issues related to automotive product liability and trucking litigation, Rob has addressed audiences of industry executives, professionals, in-house counsel, and insurers on the topic.
Related Areas
Industries
Honors & Awards
Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review Rating: AV Preeminent
View peer-review methodology at martindale.com. No aspect of this advertisement has been approved by the Supreme Court of New Jersey.
Background
Admissions
- New Jersey
 - New York
 - Pennsylvania
 - U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey
 - U.S. District Courts for the Eastern and Southern Districts of New York
 - U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania
 - U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
 
Education
- Widener University School of Law, J.D., 1997
 - The College of New Jersey (Trenton State College), B.A., cum laude, 1994
 
Professional Affiliations
- New Jersey State Bar Association
- Past Chair, Product Liability and Toxic Torts Section
 
 - Defense Research Institute
- Trucking Law Committee and Product Liability Committee
 
 - New Jersey Defense Association
- President-Elect
 - Treasurer/Secretary, 2024-25
 - Vice Chair, Products Liability Committee
 
 - New Jersey District IIIA Ethics Committee, Vice Chair
 
News & Knowledge
Publications & Events
- Co-Author, “Concussion and Traumatic Brain Injury Litigation,” Medical Malpractice Depositions, Juris Publishing, 2013
 - Author, “The Defendant Manufacturer in Your Products Liability Case Just Declared Bankruptcy. Now What?” NJSBA PLTTS Newsletter and the NJDA Spring Newsletter, May 2012
 
- Panelist, “2023 Civil Case Law Update,” New Jersey Defense Association (NJDA) Annual Convention, Washington D.C., June 24, 2023
 - Presenter, “Litigation Management: What Works and What Does Not,” New Jersey Defense Association (NJDA) & Association of Corporate Counsel New Jersey (ACCNJ) Products Liability Seminar: Something For Everyone, Iselin, NJ, September 23, 2016
 - Presenter, “Advanced Investigation and Discovery Practices in the 21st Century,” ACI’s 6th National Forum on Defending & Managing Trucking Litigation, Chicago, IL, May 15, 2016
 - Presenter, “Litigating a Catastrophic Trucking Suit: Developing Strategies for Brain Injury Cases,” ACI’s 5th National Forum on Defending & Managing Trucking Litigation, Chicago, IL, March 24, 2015
 - Presenter, “The Bridge Expert — How a Biomechanic Can Tie Together Your Defense,” New Jersey Defense Association Products Liability Committee Seminar, Iselin, NJ, September 12, 2014
 - Presenter, “Practical Pointers on Experts in the Automotive Context,” American College Institute (ACI) 7th Annual Summit on Defending and Managing Automotive Product Liability Litigation, Chicago, June 4–5, 2014
 - Presenter, “Preparing Witnesses: Drivers and Experts — How Can a Biomechanic Help You?” American College Institute (ACI) 4th National Forum on Defending and Managing Trucking Litigation, Chicago, IL, March 31–April 1, 2014
 - Presenter, “Selecting and Retaining the Expert and Strategically Preparing Daubert Challenges,” NJICLE Trucking Accident Litigation, New Brunswick, NJ, February 21, 2014
 - Presenter, ACI’s Fourth National Forum on Defending and Managing Trucking Litigation, Chicago, IL, March 31–April 1, 2013
 - Presenter, “Distracted Driving — What Are Your Jurors Thinking, and What Will the Plaintiffs Come Up With Next?” ACI’s 6th Annual Summit on Defending and Managing Automotive Product Liability Litigation, June 6–7, 2013
 - Presenter, “Selecting and Retaining Experts and Strategically Preparing Daubert Challenges” ACI’s Third Annual Forum on Defending and Managing Trucking Litigation, November 29–30, 2012
 - Presenter, “Sudden Unintended Acceleration Claims: The Who What Why When and How,” ACI’s 5th Advanced Forum on Defending and Managing Automotive Product Liability Litigation, June 2012
 - Author, “The Defendant Manufacturer in Your Products Liability Case Just Declared Bankruptcy. Now What?” NJSBA PLTTS Newsletter and the NJDA Spring Newsletter, May 2012
 - Moderator, The Products Liability Toolbox, NJSBA Annual Convention — PLTTS Seminar, May 2012
 - Presenter, “Emerging Ethics Issues in Litigation,” Product Liability Defense: Updates and Strategy to Protect the Company, Iselin, New Jersey, March 23, 2012
 - Presenter, “Mastering the Key Elements of the Law: Workplace Setting Products Accidents — No Comparative Fault and the Effects of a Manufacturers’ Bankruptcy,” NJ ICLE Handling the Products Liability Case: Unleashing Skills for All Your Civil Trial Cases — CLEfest, October 2011
 - Presenter,“Defending Against Automotive Product Liability Claims in a Tumultuous Market: Impact of Bankruptcy on Plaintiffs, Manufacturers, Suppliers, and Dealerships,” ACI’s 4th Advanced Forum on Defending and Managing Automotive Product Liability Litigation, June 2011
 
RECENT INSIGHTS
February 20, 2024
April 18, 2019
April 17, 2019