Joseph J. Giacalone

Joseph Giacalone is a civil litigator with the Southfield office of Foster Swift. His litigation experience includes:

• First-party No-Fault (PIP) and third-party automobile negligence
• Mass transit and trucking accidents
• Premises liability
• Products liability
• Insurance coverage disputes
• Breach of contract litigation
• Municipal litigation
• Workers' Compensation litigation
• Civil Rights and Employment litigation

Mr. Giacalone is admitted to practice in Michigan state courts, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, and the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Michigan. He was previously an assistant city attorney for multiple Oakland County cities, where both prosecuted and defended cases for the cities and their entities. He has trial experience in both PIP and municipal matters. He has also successfully obtained complete dismissals in a variety of contexts, notably including

• A multiple plaintiff mass transit accident, in which facing demands of $500,000 per plaintiff, Mr. Giacalone successfully defended the case on grounds of governmental immunity for the mass transit authority and its employee operator.
• A former employee plaintiff suing his former employer on claims of breach of contract, negligence, and conversion, for which Mr. Giacalone obtained court-ordered attorney fees for the plaintiff’s frivolous claims.
• In representing a national chain retail store, dismissal of a premises liability lawsuit against a $1 million demand successfully defended on grounds of no actual or constructive notice of an allegedly defective condition on his client’s premises.

Mr. Giacalone attended Michigan State University College of Law and graduated with a Certificate from its Trial Practice Institute. Prior to that, he attended Kalamazoo College, receiving a dual B.A. in Economics and Political Science and was a four-year varsity student-athlete for the Kalamazoo College Baseball Team.

Outside of his practice, Joe is actively involved in his Knights of Columbus (Council 13319), the Orchard Lake St. Mary’s Preparatory Alumni Association, and local bar associations. He is also a men’s league baseball, softball, and hockey player, and was previously a youth baseball coach in Metro Detroit.

Professional Affiliations

• State Bar of Michigan
• Oakland County Bar Association
• Michigan Defense Trial Counsel
• Italian American Bar Association of Michigan
• The Federalist Society for Law and Public Policy Studies

Community Affiliations

• St. Mary's Preparatory Alumni Association
  • Class Representative, Executive Secretary
• Knights of Columbus (Council 13319)
  • Member, Council Advocate