Joan M. Bannan

Joan Bannan is Counsel at Porzio Bromberg & Newman and a member of the Personal Injury and Medical Malpractice Team. She is a trial attorney and thoughtful, strategic advocate whose diverse background enables her to effectively evaluate and anticipate factual and legal issues in representing her clients.

Prior to joining Porzio, Joan's experience included criminal prosecution as a Morris County Assistant Prosecutor, civil litigation, and professional medical liability claims management. As a medical malpractice defense attorney, Joan gained extensive jury trial experience litigating cases involving catastrophic injuries, including neurological brain damage, loss of limbs, loss of vision, and death. During her tenure with a national medical professional liability insurer, Joan managed claims and a claims unit; prepared presentations to claims review committees, oversaw complex accounts, collaborated with panel counsel, negotiated multi-million dollar settlements, and monitored jury trials. Her experience and knowledge representing healthcare providers and assessing and valuing claims as a liability insurance representative give her an edge in representing plaintiffs bringing claims against healthcare providers.

Outside the office, Joan is committed to public service and volunteerism. She was elected as a Bernards Township Committeewoman in 2018 and served on several municipal boards and commissions. Presently, she serves on the Bernards Township Planning Board. She has volunteered as a speaker at community and school events concerning adolescent substance use disorder. Joan was also certified by the National Council for Behavioral Health as a Youth Mental Health First Aid Instructor and trained over 100 members of her community, including administrators and teachers from local school districts. Today, she is a volunteer for the firm’s pro bono efforts in the Morris County Battered Women’s Legal Advocacy Program and has been appointed as pro bono counsel by Federal Courts in various matters.

• Trial Attorneys of New Jersey
• New Jersey State Bar Association

• Scafidi v. Seiler, 119 N.J. 93 (1990)
• Olah v. Slobodian, 119 N.J. 119 (1990)
• Williamson v. Waldman, 150 N.J. 232 (1997)
• Grasser v. Kitzis, 230 N.J. Super. 216 (App. Div. 1988)