Ben Gastel
Benjamin Gastel maintains a robust litigation practice representing clients in mass tort cases, consumer fraud litigation and medical malpractice cases. He represents consumers in consumer class action cases, as well as injured individuals and their loved ones in personal injury and wrongful death lawsuits filed across the country. He also represents public utilities in federal and state court on a wide variety of litigation matters, including condemnations, territorial disputes and property disputes. He has litigated in numerous federal and state courts, and has appeared before the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals and the Tennessee Court of Appeals.
Mr. Gastel has taken a leading role in state election law, advising numerous clients on elections, election finance and lobbying requirements. He serves on the board of many nonprofits, and regularly advises non-profits on compliance with IRS requirements related to electioneering and lobbying activities.
He has robust experience in the world of mass torts, including being part of the team that sought to hold New England Compounding Clinic, its vendors, affiliates and customers responsible for the tragic 2012 fungal meningitis outbreak, and he regularly appeared in federal court in In re New England Compounding Pharmacy, Inc. Products Liability Litigation, MDL 2419 (D. Mass) on behalf of the victims. His work along with the many other lawyers involved in this MDL led to the creation of settlement funds in excess of $200 million.
Prior to joining the Firm, Mr. Gastel practiced in Atlanta, Georgia, where he represented utility and technology companies in transactional, litigation and regulatory matters. He received his undergraduate degree from Dayton University in Ohio, where he graduated summa cum laude, and his legal degree from Vanderbilt University Law School.
Mr. Gastel lives in Franklin, Tennessee, with his wife and three children, where he tends to a large garden, lots of trees and a small beehive.
Areas of Practice
- Antitrust litigation
- Consumer and Securities Fraud
- Labor and employment
- Public utility and municipalities
Education
- Vanderbilt University Law School, J.D., 2007
- University of Dayton, B.A., summa cum laude, 2004
Languages
- English
Bar Admissions
- Georgia, 2007
- Tennessee, 2010
- U.S. District Court Northern District of Georgia, 2008
- Georgia Court of Appeals, 2008
- Supreme Court of Georgia, 2010>
- U.S. District Court Middle District of Tennessee, 2009
- U.S. District Court Eastern District of Tennessee, 2008
- U.S. District Court Western District of Tennessee, 2010
- U.S. Court of Appeals 6th Circuit, 2012
Experience
Related Experience:
- Worked, along with many other lawyers, on behalf of victims in Tennessee and throughout the nation to hold New England Compounding Clinic, its vendors, affiliates and customers responsible for the tragic 2012 fungal meningitis outbreak in In re New England Compounding Pharmacy, Inc. Products Liability Litigation, MDL 2419 (D. Mass). This lead to the creation of settlement funds in excess of $200 million.
- Successfully overturned a dismissal in an antitrust case involving a small telecommunications company, which led to a new Sixth Circuit law on what can constitute an unlawful tying arrangement for purposes of a establishing a federal antitrust violation. Cates v. Crystal Clear Techs., LLC, 874 F.3d 530, 532 (6th Cir. 2017).
- Defended President Obama’s right to appear on the 2012 Ballot for President in Tennessee, and secured sanctions against the conspiracy theorists “birthers” falsely claiming that President Obama was not a “natural born” citizen entitled to hold the Office of the President of the United States. Liberty Legal Found. v. Democratic Nat. Comm., No. 12-2143-STA, 2012 WL 6026856, at *1 (W.D. Tenn. Dec. 4, 2012), aff’d sub nom. Liberty Legal Found. v. Nat’l Democratic Party, 575 F. App’x 662 (6th Cir. 2014).
- Obtained summary judgment on behalf of a rural water supplier to serve industrial customers in a disputed service territory, which established rural water providers’ rights to continue to serve customers, even if a territory is annexed by a larger provider. City of Cowan, Tenn. v. City of Winchester, Tenn., 121 F. Supp. 3d 795 (E.D. Tenn. 2015)
Professional Honors and Activities
Memberships:
- Nashville Bar Association, 2011
- Tennessee Bar Association, 2010
- Georgia Bar Association, 2007