Our practice encompasses all aspects of insurance law, from complex coverage litigation to developing new products and wordings.  We represent insurers and reinsurers, combining top-tier talent and expertise with a practical focus on sound business solutions.  Our experience encompasses all types of commercial insurance, including general liability, property, directors and officers, fidelity, employers’ liability, marine, and reinsurance.  We serve as national coordinating counsel on major coverage matters, litigate and arbitrate ground-breaking areas of insurance law, and guide leaders in the industry through novel legal challenges.

How We Help Our Clients

Among many significant engagements, we:

• Are lead counsel for London and Bermuda insurers in responding to the largest set of property claims in insurance history, including the World Trade Center coverage litigation seeking a $7.2 billion recovery;
• Successfully tried the first case seeking coverage for exposure of railroad workers to chemical solvents;
• Obtained summary judgment on a $1 billion asbestos-in-buildings claim brought by a major building owner against its first-party property insurers;
• Obtained substantial interest recoveries from asbestos producers in ADR proceedings on behalf of Wellington and CCR insurers;
• Successfully defended sets of Y2K expense and environmental suits and claims in jurisdictions across the United States;
• Are national coordinating counsel for London- and Bermuda-based insurers on major property insurance claims and suits;
• Successfully defended the first case addressing coverage for hearing loss by railroad workers from on-the-job noise exposure, and currently defend the first cases seeking coverage for repetitive stress claims;
• Serve as nominated counsel to defend claims under director and officer policies issued by the leading D&O insurer in the United States;
• Prevailed in a leading reinsurance dispute involving missing policies, follow-the-futures clauses and aggregation issues; and
• Are lead counsel for certain insurers in connection with legal, commercial and political options for asbestos-related bodily injury.

Our Clients

During the last twenty-five years we have represented many leading domestic-based and foreign-based insurers in litigation, arbitration, or negotiated claim resolution.  We would be pleased to provide a detailed list of representative clients on request.  We regularly act for a number of foreign-based insurer groups, including for example:

ACE Group

• ACE Bermuda
• ACE Global Markets

Companies in the London Insurance Market

• CNA Re
• Stronghold
• Dominion
• Turegum
• Excess 
• Unionamerica
• Houston Casualty
• Winterthur Swiss

Underwriters at Lloyd’s of London

• Current Syndicates
• Subscribers via Equitas

XL Group

• XL Bermuda
• XL Europe
• XL Winterthur America

Contact

For further information on this area of practice, please contact:

• Matthew M. Burke

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