For more than four decades, Raynes McCarty has been called upon to represent clients who were injured around the world in air crashes, by toxic drugs, in car or bus accidents, or in recreational activities.

We at Raynes McCarty have guided clients and their cases through the complex maze of international law that include questions such as: where can the claim be brought?; who can be held accountable?; what country's laws apply for damages?; who will tax my recovery?  Raynes McCarty lawyers have been called upon by families who have had disaster strike around the world, including in Africa, France, Spain, the Indian Ocean, the North Sea, England, the North Atlantic, the Cayman Islands and South America.  With a number of our attorneys being Fellows of the International Academy of Trial Lawyers, we have access to a network of some of the most respected trial lawyers around the world.

Oftentimes when advocating for international clients, Raynes lawyers rely upon legal precedents that they have established over the decades.  In Haddad vs. Richardson-Merrell, Inc., 588 F.Supp. 1158 (N.D., Ohio, 1984), Raynes McCarty secured U.S. jurisdiction for Canadian children injured by their mothers taking thalidomide that was manufactured by a U.S. company.  In Zemp v. Boeing Vertol Company, 1987 WL 14851 (E.D.Pa.), Raynes attorneys, filing suit for the families of 46 oil rig workers killed in a helicopter crash in the North Sea, established that the U.S. Death on the High Seas Act did not deprive the families of the opportunity to try their case in state court.

A few examples of our clients' international cases are:

• Sikorsky S-92 Crash off the Coast of Newfoundland On March 12, 2009, sixteen workers were being flown on a Sikorsky S-92 helicopter to oil platforms stationed off the coast of Newfoundland. A titanium bolt cracked, releasing all of the oil in the gear box, causing the transmission to seize, and the helicopter to plummet into the North Atlantic.  Fifteen of the passengers perished as the helicopter sank; the lone survivor suffered lifetime injuries.  Because Sikorsky had recently moved its headquarters for S-92 helicopters to the Delaware Valley, Canadian counsel asked Raynes McCarty to represent the sole survivor and all of the families of the passengers killed.  Investigation showed that Sikorsky knew long before the accident about the vulnerability of its titanium bolt and that its helicopter could not stay aloft for 30 minutes after complete oil loss, a safety feature standard in other helicopters.  Raynes McCarty filed suit in Philadelphia state court, and then entered into mediation with Sikorsky.  In order to document each family's loss, Raynes attorneys, working with their Canadian co-counsel, videotaped hundreds of hours of interviews that were then edited into sixteen settlement presentations, one for each client.  Through two weeks of mediation, and in less than a year after the accident, every client's case was resolved for amounts -- made confidential to protect the clients -- that ensured their financial security and honored those that they had lost.

• Recovery for 1,350 Spanish Hemophiliacs Infected with HIV virus An international pharmaceutical company distributed to hemophiliacs in Spain a blood factor concentrate that was contaminated with the HIV virus.  Because of our success in the thalidomide cases, Raynes McCarty was retained to represent all of the infected Spaniards.  After assembling a team of top Spanish legal and medical experts, we were able to compel a substantial settlement.

• Chinook Helicopter Crash off the Coast of Scotland When a Chinook helicopter went down off the coast of Scotland, all 46 oil riggers on board perished.  Because of severely low limits for wrongful death damages under Scottish law, the families retained Raynes McCarty to advise them about their potential claims under U.S. law.  Detailed investigation of the crash revealed a defect in the helicopter, which had been manufactured by Delaware Valley based Boeing Vertol.  Raynes McCarty filed suit in Philadelphia.  When we won the years-long battles over the choice of what country's law would apply and where the cases would be heard, the cases settled in the tens of millions of dollars.

• Lockerbie, Scotland crash When terrorists destroyed Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland, the family of Philadelphia rare stamp dealer Martin Apfelbaum turned to Jerry McHugh to vindicate their rights. Working with the Kreindler & Kreindler firm in New York, the center of the litigation, Jerry secured a confidential multimillion dollar settlement for compensatory damages from Pan Am, and an additional $4 million punitive recovery against Libya and its terrorists, holding both accountable for the family's loss.

• Boeing Vertol Helicopter Crash in British Columbia, Canada Two pilots, with young families, were killed when a Boeing Vertol helicopter broke apart in mid-air and crashed to the ground during logging operations in Bella Bella, British Columbia.  The helicopter, a large dual-rotor model designed to carry over 26 people, crashed because a part that controlled the tilt of the rear rotors fractured, permitting the rotors to tilt so far forward that they literally chopped the fuselage to pieces.  The helicopter was operated out of British Columbia, maintained in Oregon, and equipped with parts made in California that were designed in Connecticut.  The helicopter, however, was originally designed and manufactured at The Boeing Company's Pennsylvania facility.  Working with a team of lawyers, including Canadian counsel -- Camp, Fiorante and Matthews -- and aviation counsel -- Podhurst Orseck --  Raynes McCarty filed suit in Philadelphia, and through mediation, supported by compelling video interviews of the families and co-workers, obtained a settlement that secured the families' financial future.

• Confidential settlement for Paris Airport Disaster A talented young doctor flying home to New York after her wedding was killed in the collapse of Terminal 2E of the Charles de Gaulle Airport in France. Her widower, living in New York, believed he should not have to cross the Atlantic to vindicate his wife's memory, and sought relief in American Courts.  Jerry McHugh and Stephen Raynes coordinated a sophisticated legal strategy under the Foreign Sovereign Immunity Act and the Warsaw Convention, demonstrating that the defendants generated substantial revenues from business activities in the United States.  Arthur Raynes and Marty Brigham produced a compelling settlement video, contrasting the joy and hope of the wedding with the despair and pain caused by this tragic death.  Faced with the likelihood that American courts would sustain jurisdiction, the defendants settled the case through mediation ordered by the court.

• Recovery for Fifty Quebec Families with Children Injured by Thalidomide In trying to expand their market from Europe to the United States and Canada, an international drug company claimed that thalidomide was safe and would help women cope with the symptoms of pregnancy. Evidence, however, was mounting that the drug caused severe birth defects, including deformed limbs.  When the families of Quebec children born with thalidomide-related birth defects were told that all of their claims were barred under Quebec law, they turned to Arthur Raynes, who had tried the first thalidomide case in the U.S.  Commencing a coordinated legal battle in multiple states where the U.S. drug company had significant business interests, Raynes McCarty overcame the procedural hurdles thrown up time and time again by the multinational drug conglomerate.  When it became clear that a jury would hear in detail about the egregious misconduct of the company, it settled the claim of every family.  Mr. Raynes met with more than 50 affected families and earned Canadian and American court approval of what he had accomplished.

• Confidential Multimillion Dollar Recovery for Kenyan Air Crash Four Pennsylvanians on a trip to Kenya, Africa, died when the aircraft they were traveling in failed to climb over a mountain range and crashed, killing all on board.  To secure a needed financial recovery for the families, jurisdiction over the foreign travel companies needed to be established in the United States. When American law did not appear to provide a remedy for the families, the applicable Kenyan law was researched in the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C.  Once U.S. jurisdiction was established, one of our attorneys set about proving our clients' case in a Philadelphia courtroom under the principles of Kenyan law.  A confidential multimillion dollar settlement was then reached.

• Prompt Multimillion Dollar Settlement for South African airline crash in Indian Ocean When South African Airways flight 295 was lost in the Indian Ocean, the widow of the sole American victim of the accident turned to a team of lawyers which included Raynes partner Jerry McHugh.  Preliminary investigation revealed that fire might have been the cause of the crash and that the plane had an unusual design which allowed both passengers and cargo on the same deck.  In response to counsel's initial inquiries, rather than face discovery in American courts, the companies involved in building and operating the plane immediately entered into negotiations, resulting in a settlement that assured financial security for the family.

• Demand Paid by Tour Operators for Tragic Death While on tour in Canterbury, England, a tour bus careened off the highway.  A mother from the Delaware Valley was severely injured and watched her daughter's death.  Raynes McCarty sued British Airlines, the English bus company and the Philadelphia travel agent in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas.  The companies tried to move the case to the federal court in Philadelphia, a first step in trying to send this case, as well as the case of everyone else hurt in the accident, to Little Rock, Arkansas.  Stephen Raynes fought the transfer all the way to the Third Circuit and then through appeals to the Pennsylvania Superior and Supreme Courts. We were able to keep the case in the Philadelphia state court rather than in Arkansas or England.  After the Raynes McCarty win, the companies settled the case for plaintiffs’ demand.

• Confidential Settlement for Spanish Airlines Crash A Pennsylvania woman perished in a crash of a Spantex Airline plane as it took off from Malaga, Spain.  The family came to Raynes McCarty and asked that they investigate the cause of the crash and secure fair compensation.  We filed suit in Pennsylvania.  When Spantex lost its battle to avoid the U.S. court system, the case was resolved for the family.

• Policy Limits Recovery for South American Boating Accident While touring on a South American island, a businessman suffered a severe injury while engaging in a water sport.  Raynes McCarty filed suit in Miami, Florida, arguing that the tour company conducted sufficient business there to give the court power over it.  When Raynes McCarty won this battle, the insurance carrier for the tour company was compelled to pay its entire liability insurance policy.

• Scuba Diving Accident in Cayman Islands A southern New Jersey businessman went scuba diving in the Cayman Islands and drowned after his "buddy" left him during a dive.  The family retained Raynes McCarty to investigate potential claims against the "buddy" as well as the Cayman Islands scuba operator.  After years of fighting the case in the Cayman Islands, Raynes McCarty achieved the policy limits recovery from the "buddy's" homeowners insurance and a substantial settlement from the tour operator.

• Parasailing Accident off the Island of Aruba A physician from New Jersey went parasailing while on vacation in Aruba, and suffered disabling injuries when he was dropped into the water and struck by the boat's propeller as it ran over him.  His trip was booked through a major adventure sports travel provider.  Although the agency marketed extensively in the United States, it objected to being sued in an American court.  Raynes partner Jerry McHugh undertook an extensive investigation of the defendant's activities in soliciting business from American citizens, and a U.S. federal court refused to dismiss the case.  Fair compensation for the injuries soon followed.