TaCara Harris

• Counsel for Boehringer Ingelheim in litigation alleging that the heartburn medication Zantac causes cancer—securing four complete defense verdicts and one deadlocked jury (11-1 in Boehringer’s favor). My successes at trial have been recognized as follows: Bloomberg’s They’ve Got Next: The 40 Under 40, Law360 “Rising Star” in Product Liability, Chambers Up and Coming (Nationwide and in Georgia), Atlanta Business Chronicle’s “40 Under 40,” and finalist for the American Lawyer’s prestigious “Young Lawyer of the Year” award.
• Counsel to TikTok in nationwide litigation in which personal injuries and school districts plaintiffs allege harms arising from adolescent use of social media and entertainment platforms, including in the Social Media MDL pending in N.D. Cal. and JCCP pending in Los Angeles Superior Court. Runner-up for Litigator of the Week for obtaining dismissal of school district suits in the JCCP proceeding.
• Counsel to Activision Blizzard in connection with nationwide lawsuits alleging a variety of harms arising from the purported addiction to video games.
• Counsel for multinational pharmaceutical manufacturer in product liability litigation in which the plaintiffs contend that an antipsychotic medication caused their cancer
• Counsel for worldwide medical device manufacturer in litigation alleging that spinal cord stimulators cause various injuries
• Served as a member of the trial team representing GlaxoSmithKline in federal court in Chicago in the matter of Wendy Dolin v. GlaxoSmithKline (N.D. Illinois 2017), for the first-ever tried "innovator liability" case.
• Member of team serving as national coordinating counsel for international pharmaceutical company in Proton Pump Inhibitors Product Liability Litigation involving allegations of acute and chronic kidney disease.
• Member of team serving as national coordinating and trial counsel for an international medical device company in female pelvic mesh litigation.
• Representing an SEC university in a putative class action pending in an MDL before the Northern District of Illinois that alleges the university failed to protect football players from concussion-related injuries.
• Member of the team serving as national coordinating and trial counsel for GlaxoSmithKline in Paxil®-birth defect litigation.
• Member of the trial team representing R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company in numerous Engle progeny personal injury/wrongful death cases pending in Florida.

TaCara Harris is a nationally-recognized trial lawyer and trusted advisor in King & Spalding’s Atlanta office. She serves as Chair of the firm’s Pharmaceutical and Medical Device Litigation practice within the Product Liability and Mass Torts group, and her practice focuses on representing clients in the life sciences, pharmaceutical, medical device, consumer products, and technology industries in complex, high-stakes mass tort and product liability matters, both in federal multidistrict litigation and coordinated state court proceedings. She develops defense strategy across the full life cycle of these matters — from early risk assessment and case evaluation, through discovery and dispositive motion practice, and on to trial. 

In just over a decade of practice, TaCara has served on thirteen trial teams through verdict in state and federal courts across the country.  Most recently, TaCara served as trial counsel for Boehringer Ingelheim in litigation involving allegations that the heartburn medication Zantac causes cancer, securing four complete defense verdicts and one deadlocked jury (11-1 in Boehringer’s favor).  These trials, under intense public and industry scrutiny, occurred in Cook County, Illinois — a jurisdiction that recently ranked Number 3 on the American Tort Reform Association’s list of “Judicial Hellholes” for corporate defendants and is often described as “Ground Zero for Nuclear Verdicts. Her courtroom successes have earned her recognition as Bloomberg’s They’ve Got Next: The 40 Under 40,  a Law360 “Rising Star” in Product Liability, Chambers Up and Coming Nationwide and in Georgia, Atlanta Business Chronicle’s “40 Under 40," and Finalist for the American Lawyer’s prestigious “Young Lawyer of the Year” award.  

A client recently commented that she "was constantly impressed by [TaCara's] strategic mindset, collaboration, and poise under pressure." Jurors post-trial often describe her as “a natural,” noting her ability to keep them engaged, communicate complex issues clearly, and deliver persuasive narratives that meaningfully influence deliberations and significantly contribute to defense verdicts.

TaCara also conducts internal investigations and risk assessments, advising clients on liability avoidance and proactive risk mitigation strategies. TaCara is  a frequent author and speaker on emerging issues in product liability and trial practice. She serves as an Adjunct Professor teaching Product Liability at Vanderbilt Law School. She was recently elected Vice-Chair of the Litigation Section of the Atlanta Bar Association.