Susan Troxell is a shareholder in the Business Litigation and Professional Liability Practice Groups in the Philadelphia office of Lavin O’Neil Ricci Cedrone & DiSipio. She has served as national, regional and in-house counsel for clinical laboratories, and pharmaceutical, and consumer product manufacturers. She has successfully defended to trial claims of medical malpractice and laboratory negligence, and her 16-year history as an active litigator in state and federal courts has given her a depth of experience in litigating complex medical and laboratory operation issues.
Ms. Troxell’s defense of all professionals within the laboratory science field, from the medical director to the anatomic pathologist to the lab technician,has allowed her a unique perspective as litigator. She has served as in-house counsel to a large commercial laboratory, an experience that brought with it the responsibilities of reporting to risk managers, senior management, and medical quality personnel. She has worked with internationally- and nationally-known experts in the laboratory and healthcare sciences.
As an example of her experience in defending claims of laboratory negligence, Ms. Troxell served as second-chair in two jury trials brought to verdict in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas, both involving the reporting of laboratory tests and charges of serious personal injury and death. Despite the extreme emotional testimony brought by plaintiffs, one of whom underwent a late-term termination of her pregnancy in the face of a cancer diagnosis, the defense team was able to neutralize the impact by carefully educating the jury with expert testimony in a sensitive and effective manner. The juries in both cases entered verdicts in favor of her clients, finding no negligence.
Aside from her trial experience, Ms. Troxell has effectively served as a negotiator, and achieved a high rate of success in bringing early resolution to complex claims, saving her clients the expense and potential adverse publicity of trial.
Ms. Troxell graduated, magna cum laude, from the University of Rochester/Eastman School of Music, and the DePaul University College of Law in Chicago, Illinois, where she served on Law Review and was an Editor of its Arts and Entertainment Law Journal.
Personal
Prior to becoming a lawyer, Ms. Troxell was a classical pianist, and studied at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York. Her appreciation and support of the arts has led her to be active in community service. In 2008, she became president of the board of directors of the Susan Hess Modern Dance Company in Philadelphia, a non profit organization that sponsors and nurtures young emerging choreographers. She and her spouse, a physician, also enjoy competitive ballroom dancing when their schedules permit.
