We have put together a team of
attorneys and staff who thrive on
fighting the good fight.

Authors
Daniel K. Bryson

Daniel K. Bryson

Founding Partner

Whitfield Bryson & Mason LLP

900 W. Morgan Street

Raleigh, NC 27603

work Main Telephone: 919-600-5000
pref Direct Telephone: 919-600-5002
fax Fax: 919-600-5035
E-mail:
Download V-Card

@

Follow

Dan is one of the nation's most respected and experienced attorneys in the areas of construction defects involving mass torts, class actions or individual lawsuits.

For over 20 years, Dan has focused his practice on complex civil litigation, successfully representing thousands of homeowners in a wide variety of defective construction product suits, class actions, and various mass torts and recovering more than $1.25 billion for his clients in numerous states throughout the country.

Dan frequently collaborates with other attorneys in order to assemble the most effective team possible. He is a frequent lecturer on a variety of defective construction products and consumer mass tort related disputes. Dan has been quoted by a variety of media outlets including the Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, and New York Times. He has been named as a member of the Legal Elite and Super Lawyers in North Carolina on numerous occasions. Dan is the past chair of the NC Bar Association, Construction Law Section.

He has also been involved with a number of AAJ litigation groups and committees through the years and is currently the Co-Chair of the AAJ Chinese Drywall Litigation Group and a member of the Plaintiffs' Steering Committee for the Multi-District Litigation involving Chinese Drywall. A settlement approaching $1 billion was recently announced involving one of the primary defendants, Knauf Plasterboard Tianjin. Dan served on the trial team in Federal Court in Louisiana for the first two Chinese Drywall bellwether cases. 

Dan was recently assigned to the Science Committee of the DePuy MDL matter "In re: DePuy Orthopaedics, Inc., ASR Hip Implant Products Liability Litigation.”

Recent Practice Highlights 

  • Named as one of the Top 100 North Carolina Super Lawyers 2013
  • February 2013: Co-lead Counsel on a three week jury trial in Madisonville, Kentucky resulting in a $1.39 million verdict in favor of a church and a business against two coal companies for causing subsidence to their properties  
  • July 2012: Named Lead Counsel in MI Windows MDL No. 2333, consolidated to Federal Court in Charleston, SC before the Honorable Judge Norton. The case involves the consolidation of multiple class actions filed in states around the country regarding alleged defects in certain series of windows manufactured by MI Windows
  • June 2012:  Lead Counsel on a three week jury trial in Wilmington, North Carolina resulting in a verdict and judgment of over $3 million for a contractor's defective construction of marine bulkhead
  • February 2011:  Lead Counsel on a two week jury trial in Bryson City, North Carolina resulting in a verdict and judgment in excess of $3.5 million for a developer’s deceptive advertising and shoddy construction of subdivision roads in the mountains of Western North Carolina 

Selected papers (partial list)

Bar Admissions

  • North Carolina, 1988
  • Kentucky, 2008
  • U.S. District Court Eastern District of North Carolina, 1988
  • U.S. District Court Middle District of North Carolina, 1993
  • U.S. District Court Western District of North Carolina, 1993
  • U.S. District Court Western District of Kentucky, 2008
  • U.S. Court of Appeals 4th Circuit, 1992
  • U.S. Court of Appeals 6th Circuit, 2007

Professional Associations and Memberships

  • North Carolina Bar Association, Construction Law Section, 2001 - 2002 (Council and Chair)
  • North Carolina Bar Association, Construction Law Section, 2001 - 2002 (Member)
  • American Bar Association, Construction Law Section, 1994 (Member, Tort & Insurance Practice and Litigation Committees)
  • American Association for Justice, 2010 (Member, Oil Spill Litigation Group)
  • American Association for Justice, 2009 (Member, Class Action Litigation Group)
  • American Association for Justice, 2009 (Member, Wage & Hour Litigation Group)
  • American Association for Justice, 2009 (Member, Chinese Drywall Litigation Group)
  • American Association for Justice, 2002 (Member, Mold Litigation, Construction Defects, and Cox-2 Groups)
  • North Carolina Advocates for Justice, 1988 (Member)
  • Wake County Bar Association, 1998 (Member)
  • Kentucky Bar Association, 2008 (Member)

Honors and Awards

  • Named one of the Top 100 North Carolina Super Lawyers 2013
  • Named to North Carolina Super Lawyers list 2006, 2009-2013
  • Named as a Member of "North Carolina's Legal Elite," Business North Carolina Magazine
  • Named to The Best Lawyers in America
  • Martindale-Hubbell "AV" (Highest) Rated
  • Member, Wake Forest Law Review, 1987 - 1988

Classes and Seminars (partial listing)

  • Speaker/Faculty, "Complex Construction Litigation:  Deconstructing Myths", Louisiana State Bar Association, 12th Annual Class Action/Mass Tort Symposium, New Orleans, Louisiana, November 30, 2012
  • Speaker/Faculty, "Commercial General Liability Insurance Coverage for Contractors:  Mirage versus Reality", North Carolina Bar Association, 2012 Construction Law Annual Meeting, Concord, North Carolina, September 28, 2012 - September 29, 2012
  • National Plaintiffs' Co-Chair, Harris Martin Chinese Drywall Conference, Miami, FL, Oct. 2011
  • Speaker, Mass Torts Made Perfect, "There's Gold in Them Thar Houses," Bellagio, Las Vegas, NV, Oct. 2011
  • Speaker--Analysis of the DePuy Hip Implant-Update on Causation and Design Defect, HB Litigation Conference "Orthopedic Litigation Conference-DePuy and Zimmer Implant Updates—Plaintiffs Only," January 19, 2011
  • Speaker/Faculty, "Perspectives for the Construction Lawyer: Where Have We Been? Where Are We Going?", North Carolina Bar Association, 2010 Construction Law Section Annual Meeting, Cary, North Carolina, September 24, 2010 - September 25, 2010
  • Speaker in Chinese Drywall Litigation, AAJ, Vancouver, Canada, July 10, 2010
  • Speaker, "Legal Issues in Chinese Drywall Litigation", North Carolina Advocates for Justice, October 24, 2009
  • Speaker/Faculty, "How to Deal with Assignments and Releases from Builders", AAJ Chinese Drywall Seminar, August 11, 2009
  • Conference Chair, Chinese Drywall Litigation Conference, HarrisMartin Publishing, June 4-5, 2009
  • Speaker, "The Growing Importance of Unfair Trade Practices Claims Under Chapter 75", 31st NCADA Annual Spring Program & Meeting, June 12, 2008 - June 15, 2008
  • Moderator and Speaker, "Condominium Construction Issues in North Carolina", Lorman CLE Seminar, Raleigh, North Carolina, 2008
  • Speaker, "What You Need To Know About General Liability Insurance Coverage" Contracts for Construction Lawyers: How to Get the Party Started, NCBA Foundation, Greensboro, North Carolina, 2006
  • Panelist and Speaker, "Critical Issues in Construction Defects Litigation - Insurance Coverage in the Trenches," Judicial Education Program - AEI-Brookings Joint Center, Washington, DC
  • Panelist and Speaker, "Cutting-Edge Issues in Construction Defects Litigation, Selected Evidentiary Issues from Recent Cases,”Judicial Education Program - AEI-Brookings Joint Center, Washington, DC
  • Speaker, "What You Need To Know About General Liability Insurance Coverage" We Can Work It Out-Real Estate Rights and Remedies, NCBA Foundation, Cary, North Carolina, 2006
  • National Co-Chair, "Mealey's Construction Defect & Mold Litigation Conference,” Mealey's Annual Convention, Phoenix, Arizona, 2005
  • Speaker, "Emerging Issues in Construction Defect Class Actions" Plaintiffs Counsel Mold Summit, Chicago, Illinois, 2005
  • Speaker, "Litigating Construction Defects as Mass Torts: EIFS, Mold, Concrete, and More,” 2005 ATLA Convention, Toronto, Canada, 2005
  • National Co-Chair, "Mealey's Construction Defect & Mold Litigation Conference,” Mealey's Annual Convention, Las Vegas, Nevada, 2004
  • Moderator & Speaker, "The Future of Mold Litigation,” ATLA Annual Convention, Construction Defects-Property Damages Litigation Group, Boston, Massachusetts, 2004
  • Speaker, Current Status of EIFS Litigation, Mealeys: National Mold Litigation Conference, Orlando, Florida, 2004
  • Speaker, "Toxic Mold: A Legal Primer,” CAI: 2004 Community Association Law Seminar, Las Vegas, Nevada, 2004
  • Speaker, "M5: Mold, Moisture, Misery and Money - Plus Myth,” NCATL, San Diego, California, 2003
  • Speaker, "What You Really Need to Know About Mold and Legal Liabilities,” Lorman, Greenville, North Carolina, 2003
  • Speaker, "Bad Buildings, Bad Products, Toxic Mold - A Primer,” ATLA Annual Convention, ATLA Annual Convention, 2003
  • Speaker, "Solving Water Intrusion and Mold Problems in North Carolina,” Lorman, Raleigh, North Carolina, 2003
  • Speaker, "Harris-Martin: Mold Litigation-Beyond the Basics II,” Harris-Martin, New Orleans. Louisiana, 2003
  • Speaker, "Toxic Mold: A Legal Primer,” CAI National Conference and Exposition, Dallas, Texas, 2003
  • Panelist and Speaker, "Why Are We Moldy Now,” Mississippi Trial Lawyers Association, 2003
  • Speaker, "Solving Water Intrusion and Mold Problems in North Carolina,” Lorman , Greenville, North Carolina, 2003
  • Speaker, "Solving Water Intrusion and Mold Problems in North Carolina,” Lorman , Raleigh, North Carolina, 2003
  • Panelist, "Mold-The Construction Industry's Newest Four-Letter Word"  --The "Contractor's" Construction Super conference, San Francisco, California, 2002
  • Plaintiff Leader, "Strategies on Mold Litigation,” Mealey's Construction Defects in 2002: EIFS, CCA Treated Wood and Mold, Atlanta, Georgia, 2002
  • Plaintiff Leader, "The Business of Mold: Breakout Sessions,” Harris Martin's Mold Litigation: Beyond the Basics, San Antonio, Texas, 2002
  • Speaker, "Solving Water Intrusion and Mold Problems in North Carolina,” Lorman , Raleigh, North Carolina, 2002

Education

  • Wake Forest University School of Law, Winston Salem, North Carolina, 1988
    Doctor of Jurisprudence, J.D.
    Honors: cum laude
    Honors: With Honors
    Law Review: Wake Forest Law Review, Member, 1987 - 1988
  • University of North Carolina, Greensboro, North Carolina, 1986
    M.B.A.
  • University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, 1983
    B.A.
Dan and his wife of 25 years, Lynda, have two sons, Hunter (21) who recently graduated from UNC-Chapel Hill and Davis (19) who attends UNC-Wilmington. Dan is a member of the Executive Committee of NC Theatre, and the past President and Chairman of the Board of the Occoneechee Boy Scout Council. In his free time, Dan enjoys playing basketball, weightlifting, and golfing.
 

You can reach Dan at 919-600-5002 or by emailing him at dan@wbmllp.com