Joe P. Leniski, Jr.
Email: joey@hsglawgroup.com
Phone: 615-800-6225
Mr. Leniski is a founding member of HSGLaW, and is Co-Chair of HSGLaW’s Complex Litigation Practice Group. During his career, Mr. Leniski has litigated all manner of complex and class action matters, recovering millions on behalf of individual and institutional investors, purchasers, and consumers. Mr. Leniski was Co-Lead Counsel in In re Wellbutrin XL Antitrust Litigation, an antitrust class action alleging that pharmaceutical companies colluded to illegally suppress a cheaper generic form of the blockbuster drug Wellbutrin XL from reaching the market, which ultimately resulted in a $11.5 million settlement for the class and garnered praise from the judge for “effectively and efficiently prosecut[ing] this difficult and complex action on behalf of the members of the Class.” Mr. Leniski also represented consumers in In re Volkswagen “Clean Diesel” MDL (nationwide class action which generated settlements worth over $11.2 billion); pensioners in In re Xcel Energy, Inc. ERISA Litigation (resulted in $8 million cash payment to the Plan for participants and lifted stock restrictions in the Plan with a value between $38 million and $94 million); and drug purchasers in In re Prograf Indirect Purchaser Litigation (resulted in class-wide settlement award of $13.25 million).
Mr. Leniski is also very active in litigation involving privacy rights under the federal Telephone Consumer Protection Act, on behalf of individuals with non-compete, non-solicitation agreements and workers facing all manner of workplace harassment and discrimination. He also represents Union-side clients in NLRB and in collective bargaining matters, and advises employee pension and health funds and their trustees. For their work on the Tennessee opioids litigation on behalf of cities and counties in Upper East Tennessee, Mr. Leniski and the members of his team were awarded the 2022 Outstanding Trial Lawyer of the Year Award from the Tennessee Trial Lawyers Association.
Mr. Leniski graduated cum laude from the University of Notre Dame in 2000, and from Vanderbilt University Law School in 2003, where he served as president of the Vanderbilt Bar Association and received the Jordan A. Quick Memorial Award for Outstanding Leadership. He is also an Eagle Scout. Mr. Leniski is a member of the AFL-CIO Union Lawyers Alliance, served on the Tennessee Bar Association’s Committee to revise the Tennessee Business Corporations Act, and was named to Super Lawyers “Rising Star” list, Class Action Trial Lawyers Top 25, Mass Tort Trial Lawyers Top 25, and The National Trial Lawyers Top 100 for Civil Plaintiffs practice.
Areas of Practice
- Complex Litigation
- Civil Litigation
- Class Actions
- ERISA
- Labor and Employment
Education
- Vanderbilt University Law School, J.D., 2003
- University of Notre Dame, B.A., cum laude, 2000
Languages
- English
- Spanish
Bar Admissions
- Tennessee, 2003
- U.S. District Court Middle District of Tennessee, 2004
- U.S. District Court Eastern District of Tennessee, 2005
- U.S. Court of Appeals 6th Circuit, 2005
- U.S. District Court Western District of Tennessee, 2008
- U.S. Court of Appeals 1st Circuit, 2014
- U.S. Court of Appeals 3rd Circuit, 2015
- U.S. District Court Eastern and Western Districts of Arkansas, 2016
- U.S. District Court Northern District of Oklahoma, 2017
- U.S. District Court Eastern District of Wisconsin, 2019
Experience
Representative Experience:
Notable Cases where Mr. Leniski served as Lead or Co-Lead Counsel include:
- In re: Wellbutrin XL Antitrust Litigation (E.D. Penn.)
- In re: Reciprocal of America (ROA) Sales Practices Litigation (W.D. Tenn.)
- Davis Neurology, P.A. v. Dental Equities LLC, d/b/a Peer United (E.D. Ark.)
- Skeete et al. v. RePublic Schools Nashville (M.D. Tenn.)
- Davis Neurology, P.A. v. DoctorDirectory et al. (E.D. Ark.)
- M.S. Wholesale v. Western Financial et al. (Pope County, Arkansas)
Mr. Leniski’s other notable complex litigation cases include:
- In re: Volkswagen “Clean Diesel” MDL (C.D. Cal.) (J. Breyer)
- Staubus v. Purdue Pharma, Inc. et al. (Sullivan County., Tenn.)
- In re: Loestrin 24 FE Antitrust Litigation (D.R.I.)
- In re: Nortel Networks Corp. “ERISA” Litigation (M.D. Tenn.)
- In re: Xcel Energy, Inc. ERISA Litigation Civ. (D. Minn.)>
- In re Prograf Indirect Purchaser Litigation Case No. 1:2011-md-02242(D. Mass)
- In re: Skelaxin (Metaxalone) Antitrust Litigation, No. 1:12-cv-194 (E.D. Tenn.)
- In re: King Pharmaceuticals Inc. Derivative Litigation (Sullivan County, Tenn.)
- In re: Caremark RX, Inc. Stock Option Litigation (Davidson County, Tenn.)
- Sherwood et al. v. Microsoft Corporation (Davidson County, Tennessee)
Community Involvement
- Vanderbilt Juvenile Practice Clinic, 2001-2002
- Cub Scouts of America, Den Leader
- University of Notre Dame, ND Loyal program ambassador
Professional Honors and Activities
Memberships
- Public Justice
- Vanderbilt Bar Association, President, 2002-2003
- Nashville Bar Association, 2003 – present
- Tennessee Bar Association, 2003 – present
- American Bar Association, 2003 – present
- Harry Phillips American Inn of Court, 2005-2006
- AFL-CIO Lawyers Coordinating Committee, 2004 – present
- American Association for Justice, 2018 – present
Awards
2018-2019
Super-lawyer, Antitrust Law
2012-2018
Mid-South Rising Star in Antitrust by Super Lawyers
2017-2018
Class Action Trial Lawyers Top 25
2017-2018
Mass Tort Trial Lawyers Top 25
2017-present
The National Trial Lawyers Top 100 for Civil Plaintiffs practice
2000
Indiana Collegiate Press Association Award for Journalism
2003
Jordan A. Quick Memorial Award for Outstanding Leadership