Carly Celmer

Full Profile

Carly Celmer focuses her practice primarily on products liability and premises liability. She represents several global manufacturers in often catastrophic personal injury and wrongful death matters involving manufacturing defect and/or design defect claims. Her clients include tire manufacturers, computer and lithium-ion battery manufacturers, restaurants, retailers, airlines, banks and insurers. Carly's work for Hewlett-Packard has resulted in multiple favorable settlements in cases involving alleged lithium-ion battery fires and a defense verdict in the US District Court for the Middle District of Florida.

Carly was selected as a finalist in the Outside Counsel category of the 2018 CLM Professionals of the Year awards. The finalists represent the best of the best in the claims and litigation management industry.

Admissions

• US Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
• US District Courts for the Southern, Middle and Northern Districts of Florida
• The Supreme Court of Florida
• All Florida state courts

Education

• J.D., University of Miami, 2006
• B.S., Florida State University, 2003

Memberships

• Claims & Litigation Management Alliance (CLM)
  • President of CLM Southern Florida Chapter, Miami
  • Chairwoman of the Product Liability Committee
    • Co-Chair of the Product Liability Conference Subcommittee
• National Retail and Restaurant Defense Association

Experience

• Order from the District Court of Appeal of Florida, Second District, (PCA after Oral Argument) affirming trial court’s order granting final summary judgment in favor of defendant (insured convenience store owner) in a wrongful death negligent security case and finding that plaintiff’s own negligent conduct constituted an intervening cause of plaintiff’s injuries, thus, barring the negligence claim against the convenience store owner.
• Defense verdict for Hewlett-Packard in massive building fire allegedly caused by a defective laptop/lithium ion battery.
• Summary judgment for Bank of America in a premises liability case involving a plaintiff with substantial personal injuries.
• Summary judgment for Stiles Construction in a wrongful death case involving sub-contractors building a luxury condominium.
• Summary judgment for convenience store in negligent security case involving armed robbery and shooting of alleged invitee resulting in paralyzing injuries.
• Favorable settlement obtained on the eve of jury trial in an alleged laptop fire case wherein a young woman sustained 2nd and 3rd degree burns in an apartment fire.
• Favorable settlement for airline in a property damage case wherein a tornado caused airline's baggage cart to fly into, and substantially damage, a private jet.
• Reduction of a life-care plan from USD 7.9 million to USD 2.1 million in catastrophic injury case following deposition of Plaintiff's economist. The case settled favorably two weeks later.
• Order striking the opinions of two neurology experts in an alleged brain damage case seeking in excess of USD 5.7 million in future medical damages and lost wages and resulting in a favorable settlement for Fortune 500 automotive manufacturer.
• Favorable settlements in dozens of death and catastrophic injury cases on behalf of several global product manufacturers.
• Multiple voluntary dismissals for large computer manufacturer in alleged laptop fire cases.
• Reduction of a cost award from USD 800,000 to USD 134,000 for manufacturer after a two-day evidentiary hearing involving the testimony of expert witnesses in a catastrophic injury product liability case.
• Summary judgment for commercial auto insurer on an underinsured/uninsured motorist claim involving coverage dispute for USD 500,000 policy limits.
• Favorable settlement in Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) Collective Action in the United States District Court, Southern District of Florida.

Presentations

• "Electric Scooters and Bicycles: Micro-Mobility, Macro Exposure?" CLM Annual Conference, Atlanta, Georgia, June 2021

• "Venues: Where It is the Hottest!" CLM Product Liability Webinar, December 2020

• "The Roaring 2020s: What's Trending in Product Liability Law," CLM Focus Conference, June 2020
• "Venues: Where It is the Hottest!" CLM Product Liability Webinar, April 2020
• "It's a Bird! It's a Plane! It's a Drone?" CLM Product Liability Webinar, January 2020
• "It’s a Small World: The Implications of a Single Case," CLM Midwest Conference, Product Liability Track, June 2019
• "Actual Cash Value – The Trojan Horse of Inflated Claims," CLM Annual Conference, March 2019
• "Narrowing the Scope of Discovery: Tales from the Battlefield," CLM Midwest Conference, June 2018
• "What's Hot Now: Product Liability Cases to Watch in 2018!" CLM Annual Conference, March 2018
• "Portion Control: Putting Your Litigation Costs on a Diet," National Retail and Restaurant Defense Association Annual Conference, February 2018
• "Rain, Sleet, Hail, Snow: Forecasting Liability and Defenses When Weather Causes Plaintiffs to Go Slip Slidin’ at Restaurant and Retail Establishments," 2018 CLM & Business Insurance Retail Restaurant & Hospitality Conference, February 2018
• "Preserving Evidence: What You Need To Know Before the Accident," CLM Southern Florida Chapter Educational & Networking Event, November 2017
• "It's a Twister: Navigating Foreseeability in Property Loss Claims Resulting From Extreme Weather," CLM Southeast Conference, November 2017
• "Cookie Cutter Defense Strategies: When Litigation 'Cost Savings' Recipes May Have Gone Stale," CLM Webinar, November 2017
• "We Didn't Start the Fire: Lesson 101 on How to Defend a Product When It Goes Up in Flames," CLM Midwest Conference, Product Liability Track, June 2017
• "Preserving Evidence: What Restaurants and Retail Establishments Need to Know Before the Accident Happens," CLM National Retail, Restaurant and Hospitality Conference, February 2017
• "Simplifying through Storytelling: Interactive Use of Animations and Exhibits in Complex Product Liability Claims," CLM Atlanta Conference, Product Liability Track, May 2016

Publications

• "We the People: A Civic Experience," The Florida Bar Journal, January 2000