Andrew Sacks is the managing partner of Sacks Weston LLC.
Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Mr. Sacks received his Bachelor of Arts from Grinnell College (1981) and his Juris Doctor from Dickinson School of Law (1984).
Previous Experience
Mr. Sacks began his legal career practicing personal injury law in Philadelphia. Soon he was also administrating several legal service plans for large labor unions (including Lodge 5 of the Fraternal Order of Police), servicing a collective membership of more than 50,000 members and their families.
In 1994, Mr. Sacks purchased his employer’s assets and launched the present firm. The firm continued to handle personal injury, medical malpractice, and maritime matters. In addition, significant efforts were now devoted to representing plaintiffs in toxic tort and environmental contamination litigation. The direction of the practice changed immediately, as the firm diversified in order to represent a broader client base.
A satellite firm was formed in New Orleans, closer to the clients whose land had been contaminated by oil spills and other catastrophes. The firm rapidly pioneered N.O.R.M. radiation contamination litigation, eventually resulting in the largest, single-landowner verdict in the nation’s history – a $1.06 billion verdict. The firm is still one of the country’s leading plaintiffs’ law firms in N.O.R.M. litigation.
Get started on your consultation today!
Notable Achievements
Mr. Sacks is one of the few U.S. attorneys who has handled two cases resulting recoveries that exceed $1 billion, including the landmark 2001 $1.06 billion verdict against ExxonMobil (see here and here). As managing partner, Mr. Sacks has led the firm through recoveries of nearly $3 billion in total. On account of these achievements, Attorney Sacks is a member of the exclusive Billion Dollar Lawyers Association.
In recent years, Mr. Sacks has represented the EU and 25 member countries and Colombia and all its Departments. The litigation spanned 22 years as they sued all of the major tobacco companies for smuggling tobacco products into the EU and member countries. The case was heard by the Supreme Court 3 times. The end result were settlements with most of the major tobacco companies for over $2 billion (https://www.forbes.com/sites/danielfisher/2016/03/18/vast-conspiracy-theory-takes-back-seat-to-technical-arguments-in-rj-reynolds-case/?sh=243f1f376406).
Contributions to Medical Marijuana Legislation
In recent years, Andrew Sacks was heavily involved in forming Pennsylvania’s regulatory system for medical marijuana and industrial hemp He was often considered the leading legal professional in the state for these matters.
Mr. Sacks lobbied state senators and agencies to help move Pennsylvania’s medical marijuana regulations forward. It is no exaggeration to say that his own efforts have helped Pennsylvania create the current medical marijuana program.
He played an integral part in founding the Pennsylvania and Philadelphia Bar Associations' Medical Marijuana and Hemp Law Committees and in helping the Pennsylvania Bar Association gain an understanding of the complexities inherent to medical marijuana law. He was the co-chair of the Pennsylvania Bar Association Medical Marijuana and Hemp Law Committee, as well as the Philadelphia Bar Association Business Law Section: Medical Marijuana and Hemp Committee.
After receiving the Philadelphia Bar Association’s Committee of the Year Award in 2018 and the Pennsylvania Bar Association’s Special Achievement Award in 2020, Mr. Sacks has decided to focus on areas outside of medical marijuana and hemp law.
Involvement in the National Lupus Organization
Perhaps his best contribution was to get the National Lupus Organization to recognize the benefits of medical marijuana and to change its policy to reflect it. In addition to pursuing his law-related interests, Mr. Sacks served on the Board of Directors of the Philadelphia Tri-State Chapter of the Lupus Foundation of America. He held this position for six years until he was retired from the seat, as is policy at the foundation.
Andrew’s book he published to benefit the Lupus Foundation can be found at andrewsacksphotos.com
