Defense Counsel Journal

Editor's Page - Volume 92, Number 3

November 24, 2025

Craig T. Liljestrand

Craig T. Liljestrand

Craig Liljestrand is a partner at Hinshaw and Culbertson’s Chicago office. He has extensive experience in the areas of toxic tort, product liability, and environmental litigation. He is recognized nationally for his litigation and trial skills in the areas of asbestos, chemicals, PFAS, silica, welding fumes, lead paint, and occupational disease claims. A special thank you goes out to Sara Jesser for her hard work in support of this article.

While the United States government just went through its longest shut-down in American history, the IADC is proud to report that the Defense Counsel Journal (DCJ) is open for business, ever so vibrant, and forging ahead with some fantastic new articles for its Fall 2025 edition! 

Leading off the pack has the DCJ going “intergalactic” with its first article entitled “A Defense Attorney’s Guide to the Galaxy – Space Debris Claims in the United States” by Mica Nguyen Worthy.  Blasting off into new legal worlds, this article is a first of its kind and takes a cutting edge look at space garbage liability now and into the future. 

The mass media’s impact and influence on our society seems to be growing. But what happens when the media publishes less than truthful material? Carmen I. Abrazado will answer this question with her article entitled “You Can’t Unring the Bell: No Duty in Negligence to Remove a Defamatory Statement Published by Mass Media.” Media beware - Carmen’s analysis will surely surprise many avid readers on this exciting one!

Class action litigation seems to be growing and evolving all around the country, even as both federal and state laws are adjusting. Richik Sarkar has some key tips of the trade to share for defense practitioners in his article entitled “A New Paradigm: Leveraging Defense-Side Class Actions In the New Legal Landscape.” Check out this new article to further leverage your class action practice no matter where you hang your legal shingle.

Equal work and equal pay can be the calling card heard in the Great Northwest. Mary Haddad and Nicole Demmon drill down on the Washington Supreme Court’s analysis on the definition of “Applicant” in the context of Washington State Pay Transparency Law.  Their article entitled “Washington State Pay Transparency Class Actions – A Wild Ride” will certainly settle the score on the state’s financial payment issues.

Last but certainly not least, Jim Shelson will take an interesting and quite unique look at how the rule of law in this country is perceived, followed, and sometimes rejected. Jim’s article “The Rule of Law” is a must-read that will create a lot of buzz in the legal community. 

- Craig J. Liljestrand, Editor and Chair of the Board of Editors of the IADC Defense Counsel Journal

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