What began in 2015 as a bold initiative by three Miami-based law firms – Podhurst Orseck, Kozyak Tropin & Throckmorton, and Harke Law LLP – is now a decade-long institution. The Miami Class Action & Complex Litigation Forum at the University of Miami was founded to bring together top judges, academics, and practitioners from across the country. The Forum was designed to foster robust discussion and continuing legal education around class actions, multi-district litigation, mass torts, and other complex litigation matters.
Over the past ten years, the Forum has evolved significantly into one of the nation’s most respected events devoted to class actions. The Forum has grown in scale and influence, drawing nationally recognized judges, scholars, and litigators while remaining true to its founding purpose while offering thoughtful content in a setting that encourages candid conversation and real-world problem-solving.
As the Forum heads into its 2026 session, that mission continues.
Peter Prieto, head of Class Action and Complex Litigation at Podhurst Orseck, and one of the attorneys involved in the Forum’s origination, notes that this year’s agenda remains “substantive, practical, as well as cutting-edge.”
For Prieto – who has served as court-appointed lead counsel in multiple major MDLs and is widely regarded as one of the country’s preeminent complex-litigation practitioners – the Forum’s value lies in its accessibility. Whether an attendee is “a junior lawyer or a senior partner,” he says, the discussions and speakers “remain informative and stimulating.”
Dayron Silverio, the former Assistant US Attorney who rejoined Podhurst Orseck to further his practice on class actions, products liability, and complex commercial litigation, underscores the event’s unique energy. The Forum, he says, is “one of the most exciting legal events of the year,” distinguished by its ability to bring together leading scholars, jurists, and top-tier practitioners for forward-looking conversations about the issues shaping the field.
As a longtime participant, Matt Weinshall, also a partner at Podhurst Orseck and a former Forum panelist, has seen firsthand how the programming continues to evolve alongside the practice.
“The Class Action Forum is a wonderful annual event that we are proud to support,” he says. “It provides a unique opportunity to interact with and learn from leading members of the class action bar, the judiciary, and academia.”
Looking ahead to January 2026, organizers have assembled a distinguished and tightly focused slate of panels that will tackle developments in class certification, mass-tort litigation, multidistrict coordination, global class actions, and emerging issues associated with technology and litigation funding. As it has for a decade, the Forum will continue offering a space where legal thought leaders exchange insights and help shape the future of complex litigation.
For the full agenda and registration information click here.
