John P. Freedenberg

As a Certified Fire and Explosion Investigator (CFEI), Jack provides Goldberg Segalla clients with a strong competitive advantage in litigation involving damage and injury from fires. He is actively and deeply involved in the investigation phase of each fire case, and in the courtroom, he brings the weight of fire investigation credentials that often match or exceed those of opposing expert witnesses. He has participated in dozens of fire scene inspections and more than 100 laboratory inspections of fire scene artifacts, and he has conducted hundreds of depositions and dozens of trials in fire-related cases. Administered by the National Association of Fire Investigators through its National Certification Board, CFEI is the largest fire investigator certification program in the world.

• Co-Editor-in-Chief, Preparing for and Trying the Civil Lawsuit, 2d Ed., 2016 Rev., New York State Bar Association; Co-Author, “Expert Discovery, Depositions, and Motions to Exclude Experts”
• Mentioned in “Nonprofit Notes: A New Foundation, Outside Exhibit and STEM Programs,” Buffalo Business First, October 28, 2019
• Quoted in “Have a Cow: Lessons Learned as a Litigator,”Buffalo Law Journal, July 18, 2011
• Presenter and Author, “Optional Features for the Safely-Designed Product – Defeating Claims Against the Manufacturer and Dealer,” Defense Research Institute, 2010
• Co-Author, “Frye ‘Em: Jury Psychology Can Undermine Plaintiffs’ Expert Witnesses,”For the Defense, Defense Research Institute, December 2007
• Presenter and Author, “Using Combustion Toxicology in the Defense of Fire Cases,” Defense Research Institute, 2006
• Co-Author, “Expert Discovery, Depositions and Motions to Exclude Experts,” Chapter 6, Preparing For and Trying the Civil Lawsuit, second edition, New York State Bar Association, 2004
• Co-Author, “Expert Depositions and Motions to Exclude Experts,” For the Defense, Defense Research Institute, 2003
• Chair and Co-Author, “Defending the Catastrophic Burn Injury Case,” Defense Research Institute, 2002
• Chair and Co-Author, “Products Liability Post-Kuhmo Tire: Strategy and Practice,” New York State Bar Association Seminar, 1999
• Chair and Author, “Products Liability in New York: Strategy and Practice,” New York State Bar Association Seminar, 1997
• Co-Author, “Defense Counsel’s Approach to Cross-Examination in the Post-Daubert Era,” For The Defense, Defense Research Institute, 1996
• Co-Author, “Finding the Facts in Products Liability Litigation,” For The Defense, Defense Research Institute, 1996

• Co-Presenter, “Lessons Learned,” DRI Trial Tactics Appellate Advocacy, Las Vegas, NV, March 15, 2018
• Presenter, “Defending Product  Liability Claims: For Appliance Manufacturers,” Charlotte, NC, November 15, 2017
• Co-Presenter, “Strategies for Containing Liability Cases and What You Need to Know About Jury Behavior to Do So,” Catastrophic Injury Joint Seminar, Chicago, IL; New York, NY, November 7, 2017
• Co-Presenter, “Defending Product Liability Claims: For Appliance Manufacturers,” Charlotte, NC, November 2, 2017
• Presenter, “Advanced Fire Science: Applying the Scientific Method to Fire Scene and Evidence Investigations,” Fighting Fire With Fire, Chicago, June 22, 2016
• Presenter, “Beaded Wire Crossfire,” DRI Fire Science and Litigation Seminar, Scottsdale, AZ, November 6-7, 2014
• Presenter, “Lift Truck Design Litigation: Manufacturer’s Role in Developing Methodologies and Legal Strategies,” DRI Product Liability Plan and Prepare Conference, Phoenix, AZ, April 11, 2014
• Presenter, “2014 Fire Loss and Fire Code Litigation — Civil and Criminal Implications,” International Association of Arson Investigators 2014 Conference — Ontario Chapter, Niagara Falls, ON, April 1, 2014
• Presenter, “Flash! Tackling Questionable Origin and Cause Determinations in Flammable Vapor Fires,” DRI Fire Science and Litigation Seminar, January 2013
• Presenter and Author, “Optional Features for the Safely-Designed Product – Defeating Claims Against the Manufacturer and Dealer,” Defense Research Institute, 2010
• Presenter and Author, “Using Combustion Toxicology in the Defense of Fire Cases,” Defense Research Institute, 2006
• Presenter, “Daubert v. Merrell Dow: A Decade of Developments in the Admissibility of Expert Testimony,” Defense Research Institute, 2004
• Presenter, The Rhode Island Nightclub Fire: Mass Tort and Federal Jurisdiction Implications, Defense Research Institute, 2004
• Presenter, “Effective Strategies for Excluding Plaintiffs’ Experts,” Defense Research Institute, 2003