Dr. Zal Phiroz
Office: 619-940-4087
Dr. Zal Phiroz is an established global supply chain and operations specialist, having held numerous academic, executive, and senior management roles. In addition to an industry background at Proctor & Gamble (NYSE:PG) and TELUS (NYSE:T), Dr. Phiroz has held faculty appointments at University of Southern California and Harvard University. In 2023, he was appointed as a fellow at Harvard University (Inclusive Teaching Fellowship).
Having honed his expertise as a practitioner through senior appointments at Proctor & Gamble (NYSE:PG) and TELUS (NYSE:T), Dr. Phiroz has a background in analyzing complex supply chains. Supply chain optimization, consumer behavior analysis, and distribution innovation, focusing flagship P&G brands (Iams, Tide, Folgers) were a hallmark of Dr. Phiroz’s work. Dr. Phiroz’s portfolio also included analyzing the impact of product recalls and assessing distribution /manufacturing /supplier vulnerabilities.
As an expert witness, Dr. Phiroz has worked on mass tort and class action cases involving complex supply chains, as well as civil cases involving quality control, product recalls, personal injury, manufacturing, and distribution shortcomings. He has an established record of testifying at deposition, trial, arbitration, and has worked on cases involving notable parties (e.g. Pfizer, 3M, Home Depot), at various levels of federal and state court.
The following are some examples of supply chain cases involving product liability, quality control, product recall, packaging, and logistics in which Dr. Phiroz’s has opined on:
▪ Personal injury due to manufacturing and quality assurance flaws. Analysis of industry standard and expectation for product recalls, and product safety standards at the manufacturing, distribution, storage, transportation, packaging, and quality control phases of a supply chain. Examples include evaluation of ISO 9001 standards, cold chain protocol, Proposition 65 warnings.
▪ Determination of supply chain liability across all channels, and assessment of liability due to partnership performance, mis-labeling, product functionality and design. Examples include contract analysis and evaluation of supply chain partners, forecasting and projection through simulation.
In addition to Harvard University, Dr. Phiroz holds faculty appointments at University of California, San Diego, and Michigan State University, focusing on supply chain analytics and operations at all nodes (supplier, manufacturer, distributor, wholesaler, warehouse, 3PL, retail) at both graduate and undergraduate levels.
Dr. Phiroz has earned a PhD in Supply Chain Management from the University of Cape Town, an MBA, and two undergraduate degrees in Computer Science from the University of Windsor. He has published several articles on supply chain innovation (e.g. driverless technology) and has been featured on numerous forms of media; most recently on an ASCM supply chain documentary scheduled to be released on the Discovery Channel in 2026. His latest book titled ‘Perspectives of Supply Chain Competitiveness - A Handbook’ was released in 2020.
- Import/Export
- Logistics/Freight Forwarding
- Mass Torts
- Packaging
- Personal Injury
- Products Liability
- Retail Store Design & Operations
- Risk Management
- Supply Chain
- Warehouse Operations
- Q: Please list your professional accreditations, degrees, licenses, and certificates granted:
- A: - PhD, University of Cape Town (Supply Chain)
- MBA, Wayne State University (International Marketing)
- BS, University of Windsor (Honors, Computer Information Systems)
- BCS, University of Windsor (Computer Science) - Q: Please list your affiliations or memberships in any professional and/or industry organizations:
- A: - Inclusive Practice Fellow, Harvard University
- CIPM, International Purchasing and Supply Chain Management Institute
- CISCM, International Purchasing and Supply Chain Management Institute
- CISCPM, International Purchasing and Supply Chain Management Institute - Q: Please list any teaching or speaking experience you have had, including subject matter:
- A: Presentations and publications available upon request
- Q: Have any of your accreditations ever been investigated, suspended or removed? (if yes, explain)
- A: No.
- Q: On how many occasions have you been retained as an expert?
- A: 38
- Q: For what area(s) of expertise have you been retained as an expert?
- A: - Personal injury due to manufacturing and quality assurance flaws. Analysis of industry standard and expectation for product recalls, product design, and product safety at the manufacturing, distribution, storage, transportation, packaging and quality control phase of a supply chain.
- Supply chain ownership at various stages, and determination of which nodes bear responsibility for various instances of product liability. Determination of supply chain liability across channels, and assessment of liability as a result of functionality and design.
- Inventory and loss analysis. Inventory depreciation valuation and analysis due to product obsolescence, storage standards, improper customer behavior including forecasting and demand projection. - Q: In what percentage of your cases were you retained by the plaintiff?
- A: 55%
- Q: In what percentage of your cases were you retained by the defendant?
- A: 45%
- Q: On how many occasions have you had your deposition taken?
- A: 14
- Q: When was the last time you had your deposition taken?
- A: 2025
- Q: On how many occasions have you been qualified by a court to give expert testimony?
- A: 28
- Q: On how many occasions have you testified as an expert in court or before an arbitrator?
- A: 2
- Q: For how many years have you worked with the legal industry as an expert?
- A: 8
- Q: What services do you offer? (E.g.: consulting, testing, reports, site inspections etc.)
- A: - Consultation on specific areas of supply chain vulnerability
- Verbal and written expert reports.
- Site inspections, and operational analysis.
- Testimony at deposition, trial, arbitration, mediation. - Q: What is your hourly rate to consult with an attorney?
- A: Rates available upon request.
- Q: What is your hourly rate to review documents?
- A: Rates available upon request.
- Q: What is your hourly rate to provide deposition testimony?
- A: Rates available upon request.
- Q: What is your hourly rate to provide testimony at trial?
- A: Rates available upon request.
- Q: Please list any fees other than those stated above (E.g.: travel expenses, copy fees, etc.)
- A: Rates available upon request.
Andrew B. Goodman
Novian & Novian LLP
agoodman@novianlaw.com
(310) 553-1222
Andrew Danas
Grove, Jaskeiwicz and Cobert, LLP
adanas@gjcobert.com
(202) 416-0219
Mikalia M. Kott, Esq.
Herman, Herman & Katz, LLP
mkott@hhklawfirm.com
(504) 581-4892