Experienced, Respected
Civil Litigation Attorneys

Location: New Orleans Office

Practice Areas

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Biography

Forrest Ren Wilkes is a partner in Cosmich Simmons & Brown’s New Orleans office. Since 1989, he has defended numerous clients in mass tort cases, both as local counsel and national trial counsel, in state and federal courts throughout the United States. He has tried cases to verdict in Arkansas, Louisiana, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Oregon, Texas, and Washington. He has been recognized by The Best Lawyers in America® in the field of Mass Tort Litigation, by Super Lawyers® in Class Action/Torts, and by New Orleans Magazine as a “Top Lawyer” in the fields of Mass Tort Litigation and Bet-the-Company Litigation.

Education

  • University of Mississippi School of Law, Mississippi
    • J.D., Doctor of Jurisprudence - 1988
  • Princeton University
    • A.B. - 1985

Bar Admissions

  • Mississippi, 1988
  • Texas, 2001
  • Louisiana, 1994
  • U.S. District Court Northern District of Mississippi, 1988
  • U.S. District Court Southern District of Mississippi, 1988
  • U.S. Court of Appeals 5th Circuit, 1988

Professional Associations

  • Louisiana State Bar, Member
  • American Bar Association, Member
  • Louisiana Association of Defense Counsel
  • Defense Research Institute
  • The Mississippi Bar
  • Louisiana Bar Association
  • New Orleans Bar Association
  • State Bar of Texas

Published Works

  • 1987 Mississippi Supreme Court Review: Civil Procedure, 57 Mississippi Law Journal 443, August, 1987

Honors

  • Martindale-Hubbell® Distinguished AV™ Peer Review Rated
  • Top Lawyers," 2009 - Present
  • New Orleans Magazine "Top Lawyers" 2012 Bet-the-Company Litigation
  • The Best Lawyers in America, 2012 - Present
  • New Orleans Magazine "Top Lawyers" 2009-2016 Mass Tort Litigation/Class Actions

Classes & Seminars

  • "Consumer Product Cases", HarrisMartin Asbestos Litigation Conference: Peripheral No More, Part II, 2007
  • "Equipment, Pump and Valve Cases" , HarrisMartin Asbestos Litigation Conference: Peripheral No More, Part II, 2008
  • Co-Chair, HarrisMartin's Louisiana Asbestos Litigation Conference, 2010
  • "Third Party Liability Under Louisiana Law", HarrisMartin's Louisiana Asbestos Litigation, 2010
  • HarrisMartin's Louisiana Asbestos Litigation Conference, 2011
  • The Evolution of Machinery and Equipment Cases, HB Litigation's 15th Annual National Asbestos Litigation Conference
  • "Voir Dire in Complex/Multi-Party Toxic Tort Litigation: The Defense Perspective" 2013 American Bar Association Tort Trial & Insurance Practice Section 22nd Annual Spring CLE Program: Fuel, Food, Fibers and More: Blazing New Trails in the Desert Sun"
  • "Bounced Verdicts - Brown v. Union Carbide and ConocoPhillips and Litigation Update - Key Rulings From Hot Jurisdictions" 2013 Defense Research Institute Asbestos Medicine Seminar

Fraternities or Sororities

  • Phi Alpha Delta