Randy has earned a national reputation for products liability and medical negligence trial law. He began by taking on A.H. Robins on behalf of women afflicted with pelvic inflammatory disease and infertility as a result of using the Dalkon Shield contraceptive IUD. Robins' assets and liabilities were purchased by American Home Products, which in turn funded a $2.47 billion trust fund against which victims across the country were able to make claims.
He took on many of the major pharmaceutical companies on behalf of women with cervical cancer as a result of their mothers having ingested Diethylstilbestrol to prevent miscarriages. The litigation nationally culminated in the case of Sindell v. Abbott Laboratories imposing market share liability on those companies.
Randy was the Maine liaison to the steering committee of the Silicone Breast Implant Litigation Group which implemented a $4.2 billion settlement of those cases.
He generated millions of dollars for dozens of paralyzed and brain damaged children injured by the negligently designed three-wheeled All Terrain Vehicle.
Violette v. Smith & Nephew Dyonics, one of a number of cases he tried involving endoscopic surgical equipment, made its way to the United States Supreme Court where as a companion to the case of Lohr v. Medtronic, Inc. the Court held that state tort claims were not preempted by the provisions of the federal Medical Devices Act of 1976.
Randy successfully defended J.P. Stevens and Co. in over 300 cases that claimed its products caused asbestosis and mesothelioma in shipyard workers.
He defended Wyeth Laboratories against claims that its influenza vaccines caused the paralysis, Guillain Barre Syndrome, in persons vaccinated. After 1995, when influenza vaccines were included in the National Vaccine Compensation Act, he appeared in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims on behalf of children and adults who have experienced adverse events following vaccination.
He has represented people injured by defective heart valves, pacemakers, diving boards, swimming pool slides, automobile seat backs, airbags and door latches, pedicle screws, prosthetic knees and hips, paints and solvents and a number of pharmaceuticals. In the field of medical negligence, he has successfully prosecuted cases involving birth injuries, surgical errors, poor nursing home care, anesthesia errors, medication mistakes and misdiagnoses and delayed diagnoses of cancer and infections.
Randy has been selected for membership in the American Board of Trial Advocates and serves on the national Board of Directors for the organization. He was selected for membership in the International Academy of Trial Lawyers (IATL). Membership in IATL is restricted to the top 500 trial lawyers in the United States and a select international contingent representing 70 countries. He has participated in legal programs in Italy, Spain, Ireland and Portugal. He has been selected as a New England Super Lawyer and designated by America's Best Lawyers as the 2015 Plaintiff's Lawyer of the year for Personal Injury and Medical Malpractice in Portland, Maine.
Randy has taken an active leadership role in the Maine bar. He has served on the Board of Governors of both the Maine Bar Association and the Maine Trial Lawyers Association Executive Committee. He was the President of the MTLA in 2014-2015 and currently serves on the Executive Committee for that organization. He has served on the Civil Rules Committee, the Judicial Evaluation Committee, the Judicial Liaison Committee and the Fee Arbitration Committee.
Married for 50 years, Randy and his wife Jean have 2 children; Lisa, a school teacher in Biddeford and Randy, a financial planner in Portland, and 4 grandchildren. They enjoy competitive golf, racquetball and running as well as hiking, boating, and fishing along the Maine coast and cooking and traveling with family and friends.
Admissions
- Maine State Bar
- Iowa State Bar
- Maryland State Bar
- U.S. District Court, District of Maine
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit
- U.S. Supreme Court
Career
- Of Counsel, Shaheen & Gordon, P.A.
Professional Associations
- Maine Bar Association, Former Board of Governors
- AAJ Counsel of Presidents, 2014-2016
- President of the Maine Trial Lawyers Association, 2014-2015
- American Board of Trial Advocates, National Board of Directors, 2015-2016
Awards & Honors
- Named Lawyer of the Year by Best Lawyers for Personal Injury Litigation – Plaintiffs, Portland ME 2019, 2021, 2024
- Named Lawyer of the Year by Best Lawyers for Medical Malpractice Law – Plaintiffs, Portland ME 2015, 2020
- Recognized in The Best Lawyers in America 2011-2024 for work in Medical Malpractice Law – Plaintiffs and Personal Injury Litigation - Plaintiffs
- Selected to Super Lawyers 2009-2019
- Martindale-Hubbell AV Preeminent Rating
Education
- B.A., University of Iowa, 1968
- J.D., University of Iowa College of Law, 1971
