For our clients, we offer guidance, empathy and support. Litigation is not always the answer. But when it is, we are aggressive and will not resolve a case for anything less than fair value.
Biography
Kathleen “Katie” Kerner became a Partner with Jenner Law, P.C. in 2021. Prior to that time, she served as the firm’s Senior Associate Attorney. Katie focuses her practice on personal injury litigation, including dangerous drugs, defective medical devices, and sexual abuse claims. Katie has worked in the legal industry for more than 10 years. She always wanted to be a lawyer, which stems from her desire to right wrongs and use her training and skills to help people and make the world safer and better. She has a true passion for helping injury victims and survivors of sexual abuse who are not able to obtain meaningful justice without legal counsel and finds it rewarding to see their lives change for the better.
Clients find Katie to be someone who will always listen to them, is considerate of their goals when pursuing a case, and focuses on the full picture of what a good resolution means to each individual client. It is important for her to speak from a place of empathy and to develop a deep understanding of what her clients want out of their claims and to transparently explain to prospective clients what they should expect as part of the litigation process. After working with Katie, other attorneys say, “Rob and his partner Katie Kerner are incredibly intelligent, gifted, responsive, civil, and very effective. Cannot recommend them or Jenner Law enough.”
Katie is a trial lawyer who has experience at every stage of litigation, from resolving cases before filing suit, to litigating cases and participating in trials. She recently won a $1.2 million bench verdict on behalf of a survivor of psychotherapy abuse, a niche practice Katie leads within the firm.
She graduated from Salisbury University with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science in 2009, magna cum laude. Subsequently, she earned her law degree from the University of Baltimore School of Law, magna cum laude, in 2013. During law school, Katie served as Managing Editor of the University of Baltimore Journal of Land & Development, as a Student Attorney with the Civil Advocacy Clinic, and as a Teaching Assistant for Criminal Law.
Katie has been selected by her peers for inclusion in Maryland Super Lawyers Rising Stars every year since 2020, selected to the Top 100 Trial Lawyers by The National Trial Lawyers every year since 2020, selected to the Top 40 Under 40 by The National Trial Lawyers every year since 2020, and selected to Maryland Top 40 Under 40 Trial Lawyers every year since 2018. Katie was also selected to the 2023 edition of Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch ® in America.
She is Chair of the newly formed Sexual Abuse Section of the Maryland Association for Justice (MAJ), and the former Co-Chair of MAJ’s Products Liability Section. Katie is also a Leader’s Forum Member of the American Association for Justice, and an active member of the American Association for Justice Women Trial Lawyers Caucus, Women’s Bar Association of Maryland, and Women En Mass.
Katie takes a lot of pride in being a Maryland native. She grew up in Rockville, lived on the eastern shore for a time, lived in Baltimore for a time, and now calls Olney, Maryland her hometown. Katie’s hobbies include traveling, sports (especially college basketball), dogs, and family. Outside of work, she enjoys spending time with her husband and their Labrador retriever, Emma.
Practice Areas
- Psychotherapy Sexual Abuse
- Clergy Sexual Abuse
- Mass Torts
- Defective Pharmaceutical Drugs and Medical Devices
- Personal Injury
Employment History
Jenner Law, P.C.
Partner (2021-present)
Senior Associate Attorney (2018-2021)
May 2018 – present
Janet, Jenner & Suggs, LLC
Associate Attorney
January 2013 – May 2018
Civil Advocacy Clinic
University of Baltimore School of Law
Student Attorney
August 2012 – December 2012
Verderaime & DuBois, PA
Law Clerk
January 2012 – August 2012
Education
University of Baltimore School of Law, Juris Doctorate, magna cum laude, 2013
- University of Baltimore Journal of Land & Development, Managing Editor
- Civil Advocacy Clinic, Student Attorney
- Senatorial Scholarship
- Delegate Scholarship
- Teaching Assistant for Criminal Law
- Highest grade in Torts I course
Salisbury University, Bachelor of Arts in Political Science, magna cum laude, 2009
- Thomas E. Bellavance Honors Program graduate
- Dean’s List (Spring 2006 – Spring 2009)
- Justin Shen Award for Most Outstanding Graduate in Political Science, 2009
- Who’s Who Among Students in American Colleges and Universities
Bar and Court Admissions
Maryland, 2013
United States District Court for the District of Maryland, 2014
Litigation Leadership
- Plaintiffs’ Steering Committee, In Re Smith & Nephew Birmingham Hip Resurfacing (BHR) Hip Implant Product Liability Litigation, MDL No. 2775 (2017).
- Bellwether Committee Chair
- Bellwether Committee Member, In Re Gilead Tenofovir Cases, Superior Court for the State of California in San Francisco, JCCP No. 5043 (2019).
- Bellwether Committee Member, In Re Zofran (Ondansetron) Products Liability Litigation, MDL No. 2657 (2015).
Professional Affiliations
- Maryland Association for Justice
- Products Liability Section Co-Chair
- New Lawyers Section
- Former Co-Chair
- American Association for Justice
- Leader’s Forum Member
- AAJ PAC Donor
- Women Trial Lawyers Caucus
- Medical Malpractice Section Member
- Products Liability Section Member
- Women’s Bar Association of Maryland
- Women En Mass
Professional Awards
- Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch ® in America, 2023.
- Maryland Super Lawyers Rising Stars, 2020 – present
- Top 100 Trial Lawyers, The National Trial Lawyers, 2020 – present
- Top 40 Under 40, The National Trial Lawyers, 2020 – present
- Maryland Top 40 Under 40 Trial Lawyers, 2018 – present
Speaking Engagements
- “Bellwether Programs and Strategies,” American Association for Justice Mass Torts Seminar, July 2022.
- “Emerging Mass Torts: CPAP Litigation,” Maryland Association for Justice, 2022.
- “Practical Application of Daubert Challenges: Protecting Your Witness,” Maryland Association for Justice, 2021.
- Gadolinium II: Case Background & Intake Criteria, American Association for Justice, March 2018.
Publications
- “Tips and Best Practices for Litigation and Trial Prep: A New Lawyer Perspective,” Journal of the Maryland Association for Justice, Special Issue 2020.
- “Fracturing The Environment?: Exploring Potential Problems Posed By Horizontal Drilling Methods,” University of Baltimore Journal of Land & Development 1.2 (Spring 2012).