An accomplished attorney and national food safety expert, William Marler, will present “How the Food Safety Modernization Act Came About: Food Safety and Forces of Change” at 9 a.m. Monday, Nov. 14, in room 339 of the Leflar Law Center. The presentation is free and open to the public, and is approved for 1.5 hours of general continuing legal education.

The Food Safety Modernization Act became law in January 2011. The act represents the first major reform of the Food & Drug Administration’s food safety regime in 70 years. It shifts the administration’s focus from reactive to preventative, expands its powers to inspect and recall, establishes risk-based priorities, and addresses major weaknesses in import safety assurances. Marler was a strong proponent for the legislation, writing about the need for better consumer protection, testifying before Congress, and working in the media, advocating for stronger food safety regulation. In his presentation, he will discuss how the legislation came about.

Marler is recognized as the most prominent foodborne illness lawyer in America and a major force in food policy. His firm, Marler Clark, has represented thousands of individuals in claims against food companies whose products have caused serious illness or death, securing more than $600,000,000 for victims of E. coli, Salmonella, and other foodborne illnesses. The 2011 book, Poisoned: The True Story of the Deadly E. Coli Outbreak That Changed the Way Americans Eat, by Jeff Benedict, chronicles Marler’s first food safety case, the historic Jack in the Box E. coli O157:H7 outbreak in 1993.