Steve Swisdak

Steve Swisdak provides historical and technical expertise in numerous environmental areas for FTI Consulting’s Environmental Solutions practice. With more than 20 years of experience as a consulting forensic historian, Mr. Swisdak assists clients by using primary source historical research and analysis to understand present-day environmental contamination and product liability issues.

Over the course of Mr. Swisdak’s career, he has managed the execution of hundreds of environmental, product liability and litigation support matters involving a wide variety of topics, including site history reconstruction; sources of contamination to groundwater contaminant plumes and urban waterway sites; potentially responsible party (“PRP”) investigations; the use and regulation of chlorinated solvents; product- and chemical-specific histories; state-of-knowledge and standard-of care studies; and federal government involvement studies, especially those related to the government’s wartime activities at private industrial facilities.

Mr. Swisdak has industry-specific experience in several sectors, including oil and gas, chemicals, aviation and aerospace. Through his work, he has developed particular knowledge in the history of various chemicals (e.g., PCBs, PFAS, and chlorinated solvents such as TCE and TCA); petroleum refining and distribution processes; manufactured gas production and by-products; and municipal and industrial waste management practices. He also has expertise in researching historical activities at World War I-, World War II- and Cold War-era military and private industrial facilities in support of federal government involvement studies. Clients particularly value his ability to develop and implement work plans to conduct research at the National Archives and at federal-, state- and local-level records repositories across the country.

Mr. Swisdak has worked on matters domestically and internationally for a diverse group of private and public companies, law firms and joint defense groups. He has testifying experience and has produced expert reports, sworn depositions and affidavits for several matters. He has also written several articles and given presentations on the use of historical research in support of environmental litigation and product liability matters.

Relevant Experience:

• Served as a forensic history expert concerning the historical operations of a chemical manufacturing facility, including potential use and disposal of radiological and other hazardous materials
• Directed an investigation to analyze the nature and extent of the federal government’s historical control of operations at a former rocket manufacturing and assembly facility
• Served as a corporate representative and Rule 30(b)(6) witness on behalf of a semiconductor manufacturer related to the alleged use and disposal of chlorinated solvents and PFAS at one of its legacy facilities
• Managed an extensive effort to research and analyze the federal government’s involvement at 12 petroleum refineries during World War II on behalf of a major petroleum company; involved in-depth primary source research at the National Archives and other records repositories across the country and the analysis of tens of thousands of collected records
• Managed an extensive public records and archival research effort to document the historical operations of an East Coast petroleum refinery during the 19th and 20th centuries