Ashley Hardin focuses on complex civil litigation, including representing companies in mass torts and multi-district litigation. Most recently, Ashley, along with a team of Williams & Connolly lawyers, defended a pharmaceutical distributor in state and federal trials as part of the nation’s complex opioid litigation. The American Lawyer Litigation Daily named the team “Litigators of the Week,” recognizing the team’s victory in obtaining a complete defense verdict after the landmark 3-month-long, 70-witness federal bench trial in West Virginia—one of the most closely-watched litigation matters over the past year.
In addition to her trial work, a portion of Ashley’s practice focuses on the health care industry and includes representing corporations and individuals in False Claims Act cases and other fraud cases, including in state and federal government investigations.
Benchmark Litigation named Ashley among their “Future Stars” list for 2023 and 2024. In 2020, Ashley was recognized by Who’s Who Legal in their global guide to recommended healthcare lawyers, Who’s Who Legal: Healthcare. In 2016, she was named a Law360 “Rising Star” for health care law. Ashley also is an active member of the International Association of Defense Counsel (IADC).
A native of North Carolina, Ashley graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1999, where she was inducted as a member of Phi Beta Kappa. Ashley graduated magna cum laude with a J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center in 2004, where she was the winner of the 2002 Leahy Moot Court Competition and an editor of the Georgetown Law Journal. She joined Williams & Connolly in 2004. Ashley is co-chair of the firm’s Women’s Initiative and a member of the Associate Evaluation Committee.
Representative Experience
Though all cases vary and none is predictive, Ashley’s experience includes:
- Defending Cardinal Health in state and federal trials relating to the Company’s distribution of opioid medications, including obtaining a complete defense verdict after a landmark 3-month-long bench trial in West Virginia.
- Representing Cardinal Health as national counsel in the nationwide opioid litigation in federal multi-district litigation and state court proceedings.
- Representing a medical device company in federal multi-district litigation and coordinated state court product liability litigation.
- Winning summary judgment on behalf of Omnicare, in False Claims Act and Anti-Kickback Statute litigation concerning procedures for accounts receivable collections for prescription drug services and winning the appeal of the judgment in the Fifth Circuit.
- Securing dismissal of a False Claims Act case against Liberty Medical Supply Inc. in a suit claiming Liberty failed to refund the government more than $60 million in alleged overpayments for medical supplies.
- Winning the first MDL trial in the hormone therapy litigation for Wyeth (now Pfizer) in a suit brought by a woman claiming that the medication caused her breast cancer.
- Representing students falsely accused of sexual assault in an appeal of civil rights litigation brought against public officials.