Peter M. Durney

Practice Areas

High Exposure Jury Trials

General Business, Product Liability, Professional Liability, and Medical Malpractice Litigation

Federal and State Appeals

Career

Beginning his career with GE’s product liability insurance division, Peter joined Cornell & Gollub in Boston, becoming a partner in 1987. He has represented hundreds of domestic and foreign corporations and individuals in state and federal courts in Massachusetts and New England and has recently tried six cases in New York. He joined Smith Duggan Cornell & Gollub as a senior partner in 2023.

Recent Accomplishments:

Fields v BMW, et al. (U.S.D.C for the Eastern District of New York) (Defense verdict in door defect case) (2022)

Rella v BMW, et al. (U.S.D.C for the Southern District of New York) (Defense verdict in automobile fire case (2022)

Costa et al. v. FCA US LLC et al., (U.S.D.C. for the Massachusetts) (Represented FCA US in successfully defending a class action brought on behalf of 93,000 Dodge, Jeep, and Chrysler owners; a federal court jury returned a defense verdict (2023).

Personal

J.D., Suffolk University Law School, 1980; Phi Delta Phi

B.A., Boston College, 1976 (cum laude)

Institute of European Studies, La Sorbonne Paris, France (1974-1975)

“Lawyer of the Year” by the Massachusetts Defense Lawyers Association (2018)