Schedule/Sessions
Has the Price of Poker Gone Up? Alarming Trends in Dispute Resolution
- Speakers:
Larry Beemer, Suite 200 Solutions
Richard E. King, Melchiode Marks King LLC
Angela Kopet, Copeland, Stair, Valz & Lovell, LLP
Matt Morrison, American Family Insurance
What's inflating the demands made in dispute resolution?Our panel will discuss the current trends in dispute resolution and will break down their impressions of what is causing plaintiffs and even mediators to believe that injuries and/or damages once seen as nominal or routine have now become just the opposite. We will explore factors such as lawyer advertising, medical treatment, potential fraud, and their potential resolutions to this alarming trend. This session will assist attendees in understanding how to navigate negotiations.
Back to topPanel Counsel Checklist: A Guide to Quality Work and Navigating Ethical Quandaries
This panel will focus on the role of outside counsel in the tripartite relationship between carrier and insured. Insurance industry leaders will discuss how they evaluate outside counsel and what they look for in selecting and retaining panel counsel. Further, this session will explore the ethical issues outside counsel sometimes face in defending the insured in the context of the tri-partied relationship. Additionally, the presenters will focus on those extra steps that set counsel apart and establish counsel as a go-to firm.
Back to topDon’t Miss the Forest for the Trees: What is a "Win" and at What Cost?
- Speakers:
Donna MacConnell, IMA Financial Group
Jessica Schaber, Acuity, A Mutual Insurance Company
Wendy Testa, Wilson Elser
A Pyrrhic victory is one that comes with such a devastating toll on the victor that it is tantamount to a defeat. This session will provide all of the tools that claims professionals need to avoid these situations in litigation and effectively examine the cost versus benefit of a "win" while also learning how to be a more effective member of the litigation team.
Back to top3-D Printing Medical Devices and the Disruption of Product Liability Law and Regulation
Use of 3-D printing technology is growing around the world in many fields. It is already a billion dollar industry in the manufacture of medical devices. Join the discussion about how this new technology, when used to make medical devices in point-of-care settings like hospitals, will disrupt the use of standard strict liability product claims when a defective device is made. Also for consideration is that the traditional role of the FDA in regulating medical devices will be disrupted since point-of-care manufacturing eliminates the need for clearance to sell medical devices. The concepts of what is a product, what is a product design, and what constitutes manufacture of a product will all need to be reconsidered with the use of this new technology.
Back to topAbsence of Malice: It's Assignment of the Times
- Speakers:
Anne Jarrell, Markel Service, Inc.
Jessica O'Neill, Markel Service, Inc.
Kristen Perkins, Kennedys
Jeffrey Trimarchi, Kennedys
Let's explore the current state of coverage for murky claims of defamation, malicious prosecution, false imprisonment, and other torts that confound claims professionals and policyholders across the US. Also, we will discuss what rights the carrier may have to prevent the assignment of policy benefits to aggressive plaintiffs' attorneys.
Back to topBuilding Diverse Teams and Cultures in the Workplace
- Speakers:
Julie Buonocore, Self Employed
Schuyler A. Smith, Hamilton, Miller & Birthisel LLP
Diane Stephens, Triton Claims Management, LLC
Nicolette Strydom, Amerisure Mutual Insurance Company
If there was one thing 2020 taught us, it's the importance of being creative, flexible, and open to unique ways of getting the job done—and that means having a team that is up to the challenge. What does a successful and diverse team look like in 2021, and how do you maintain it once it's built? Get the answers you need to build, create, and maintain diversity in the workplace.
Back to topDanger Danger: Anticipating New Kratom and Vaping Claims and Litigation
Although the public is aware of the dangers of meth, heroin, and opioids, the criminal nature of their distribution may dissuade some from using these drugs, which can be difficult to obtain to many but the most hardened drug users. But neighborhood stores and strip mall shops have proliferated with the development of e-cigarettes and vaping equipment, as well as stores selling Kratom, a sort of knock off marijuana, since these products are not yet illegal. Advertisements for these substances and devices are prolific, and seem to target a younger audience, who may see the use of these products as cool. As more and more users of these substances become ill, however, and with startling and increasing reports of deaths as well, claims and lawsuits are likely forthcoming. Insurance carriers need to be prepared for a likely increase in product and general liability claims. Prepare to explore the nature of these substances, how the governmental ban on certain types of vaping devices will impact sales and lead to other claims, and what the future may hold.
Back to topDialing It In: Remote Working Strategies That Maintain Diversity and Inclusion Efforts
- Speakers:
Anne-Marie Foster, Nyhan, Bambrick, Kinzie & Lowry, P.C.
Yvonne Hill-Planter, Ascot Group
Kevin Korte, Amerisure Mutual Insurance Company
Ozie Lewis, Old Republic Risk Management
One of the biggest impacts of COVID-19 on claims professionals was the sudden move to remote working situations. How are insurers continuing to adapt to this hastily established model a year later? What are some of the biggest leadership challenges for those operating in this new environment? Furthermore, how are companies maintaining a focus on diversity and inclusion in order to not lose valuable gains in this area? This presentation will dispel myths about remote working while also offering strategies for how to navigate the virtual world, especially as it relates to diversity and inclusion efforts when traditional means like in-person meetings, meet and greets, and elevator-speech opportunities are no longer options.
Back to topEmployee Witnesses: They Are Ours, and We Have to Embrace Them!
- Speakers:
Craig Derrig, Wood Smith Henning & Berman LLP
Joseph P. Menello, Wicker, Smith, O'Hara, McCoy & Ford, P.A.
Sanjay Shivpuri, Markel Service, Inc.
Together we will address the various issues faced when preparing employee witnesses for deposition and trial. Many are hourly, some are former employees, but all of them can be the keys to our defense. We will discuss the common pitfalls in communicating with employees, getting them to buy into the defense, and the importance of interviewing them early and keeping track of them often. This session will go beyond deposition and trial preparation, giving the attendees an opportunity to roundtable on how each specific type of employee is handled from the initiation of a claim, depending on the circumstances of each case.
Back to topFreight Brokers: Upending Traditional Assumptions
- Speakers:
Jamie Cannon, CIC, Reliance Partners
Timothy Fletcher, General Re
Mike McColley, Forge Insurance
Laurence J. Rabinovich, Barclay Damon, LLP
Federal and state transportation statutes and regulations do not define the term "Third Party Logistics" companies. The concept did not exist when the 1935 Motor Carrier Act was passed, and no definition has been created, nor is there a category recognized in the statutes for 3PLs. Most logistics companies register with USDOT as brokers. Yet, there is an ongoing tension between the limited role that the statutes imagined for brokers (and resulting limited exposure that the law traditionally imposed upon them) and the expansive role that brokers and third party logistics companies assume in today's business environment. The changing role of logistics brokers has created major new challenges for underwriters who try to understand and untangle the business model of both truckers, for brokers advising their clients seeking coverage, and for claims professionals seeking to understand why the names of four or five intermediaries (truckers, brokers, forwarders) are listed on documents found in their files. Guidelines and proposals from the various perspectives of the panelists will be shared.
Back to topHey Google: How Do I Handle Digital Evidence in Claims and Litigation?
- Speakers:
Lars Daniel, Rimkus
Elizabeth Fitch, Righi Fitch Law Group
Richard Gatz, Arch Insurance Group Inc.
Shiraz Saeed, Arch Insurance Group Inc.
Theodore Schaer, Zarwin, Baum, DeVito, Kaplan, Schaer & Toddy
From wearable technology and smart home assistants, to internet-connected medical ingestibles and social credit scores, more data is being collected about claimants than ever, and this data can and is being used in litigation. This session will explain how this ubiquitous data is collected from devices, where to find it, and how to use it effectively throughout the life of the claim or litigation matter.
Back to topHot Topics Involving the Right to Independent Counsel
- Speakers:
Linda Bondi Morrison, Tressler, LLP
Karen Moore, Great American Insurance Group
Scott Pfeiffer, Cray Huber Horstman Heil & VanAusdal LLC
Tamika White, Sedgwick
Peak behind the curtain and explore how a claims professional determines how its insured's defense is to be provided and develop strategies to achieve an economical and successful outcome in the event independent counsel is required. Attendees will receive updates in the law concerning an insured's right to independent counsel and the impact of the new Restatement of the Law of Liability Insurance, as well as a 50-state survey on the right to independent counsel. Discussion will include strategies to work cooperatively with independent counsel, receive proper reporting, and navigate fee disputes. Our experts also will address how COVID-19 may impact the duty to provide independent counsel.
Back to topIn the Eye of the Storm: Lessons Learned
- Speakers:
Juan Carlos Araiza, EFI Global, Inc.
Lawrence Bowman, Grotefeld Hoffmann
Linda King, Sompo International Insurance
Danny Miller, Sedgwick
Business owners constantly wrestle with the question of how to effectively mitigate property losses and return to business as usual following a catastrophe or even routine property damage. Negotiation and placement of well-defined property coverages and astute knowledge of contract language are essential. The need for preparation and effective loss prevention plans prior to events cannot be overemphasized. Deploying and managing the right resources at the right time is not only a science, but an art. Weather trends show the threat of natural disasters continues to grow and businesses must be prepared to deploy at a moment’s notice when the next storm event occurs. This includes understanding business exposures and creating a disaster response plan designed to address specific business needs. Businesses should be armed with the latest technology to expedite the evaluation and assessment process. Business owners should be able to communicate quickly with other stakeholders to coordinate remediation, repair, and recovery resources. It is important to build and establish relationships with these experts and negotiate service agreements prior to any occurrence. This session will address elements of proper planning to ensure businesses are prepared to weather and recover from virtually any storm.
Back to topIs Your Claim File an Open Book? Protecting Your Work From Changing Rules of Discovery
- Speakers:
J. Ryan Johnson, Hub Group
Bradley Levien, Murphy Sanchez, PLLC
Jacob A. Moreno, Ally Financial Inc.
More and more states and courts are loosening rules related to the discoverability of claims files, which is resulting in previously privileged material being opened for review by plaintiffs' attorneys. Learn where the law is going, how federal and state courts are ruling, and how to protect your files as best as possible.
Back to topIt Ain’t Me Babe: Risk Transfer from the Claims Professional’s Perspective
- Speakers:
Mike Melendez, Kennedys
Lorraine Merritt, Skyward Specialty Insurance
Robin Miller, FrankCrum General Agency, Inc.
Business involves risks and relationships. A business’s success will often turn on how effectively it can transfer those risks. The main vehicles used for transferring risks are contracts and contractual provisions. Risk transfer is often complicated by the inter-relationship of such contracts and how it can affect who ultimately bears the risk. This session will explore, from the claims professional’s perspective, the practical aspects of risk transfer, including shifting risks to other parties and insurers, and practically managing the risks under the claims professional’s own policy.
Back to topLeveling the Bad-Faith Playing Field: How to Seek Discovery of Plaintiffs' Counsel's Privileged Communications and Work Product
- Speakers:
Melissa Bailey Brooks, Copeland, Stair, Valz & Lovell, LLP
David Brown, Goldberg Segalla LLP
Edward Currie, Currie Johnson & Myers P.A.
Mark DiGiovanni, Global Indemnity
Shouldn’t insurers have the same rights as plaintiffs to discover the same type of information from the plaintiff-policyholder when the policyholder or their counsel commits acts of bad faith during the claims process? Currently, that is not the case. However, by utilizing the same factors and legal principles used against them, insurers can employ reverse bad-faith techniques to successfully discover policyholders’ communications with their legal counsel, including counsel’s work product. Find out how during this session.
Back to topMorphing Mass Tort Litigation: What Monsanto's Roundup Litigation Portends for Future Coverage and Claims Handling
- Speakers:
Melissa Anderson, Old Republic Insurance Group
Linda Hicks, ECC Horizon
Suzanne Karapashev, Westfield Insurance
Richard Ranieri, Weber Gallagher Simpson Stapleton Fires & Newby LLP
Ever-expanding litigation against Monsanto's Roundup product is morphing into class-action litigation, direct claims against distributors, and false-advertising claims, creating new case law and regulatory positions that have the potential to impact many other lines of business. The roundtable will address insurance coverage and claims handling issues implicated by this continually evolving area of mass tort litigation.
Back to topOh No You Didn't: Social Media Strategies for the Professional
- Speakers:
Robert Blasio, GB Specialty (Division of Gallagher Bassett)
Constance Endelicato, Theodora Oringher
Benjamin Haftel, Self Employed
A nurse takes a photograph of an unsuspecting patient in the ER who just attempted suicide and posts it on social media resulting in termination, licensure suspension, and a multimillion-dollar lawsuit for HIPAA violation and various intentional torts and punitive damages. Another healthcare provider takes a selfie next to a patient who is in a coma and posts it with an offensive caption while smiling and making a peace sign, also resulting in similar litigation and ramifications. A lawyer gets into a Yelp war over his client's comments of dissatisfaction, only to place him in a more unfavorable light and unwittingly causing him to violate the attorney-client privilege. This session will address the pitfalls of any professional who falls prey to making self-indulging posts on social media or arguing with clients in a public forum. Plan to discuss litigation and licensure issues that may be impacted by social media blunders, best practices for the professional in handling negative posts or reviews, and better uses of social media for enhancement of personal career or an organization overall.
Back to topShades of Gray: Ethical Considerations in Multi-State Claims Handling
- Speakers:
Rebecca Appelbaum, Gartner + Bloom PC
Donna Hunt, Risk Strategies Company
Eileen Jenkins, Eileen Jenkins Consulting LLC
Scott Rembold, Rembold Hirschman
Jannea Rogers, Adams and Reese, LLP
Today, claims professionals and attorneys handling coverage, litigation, and transactions must work across state lines and in multiple states at once. This raises a number of ethical and professional responsibility considerations, including codes of conduct, bar rules, and ethical canons in the various states. This session discusses the rules of the road for inter- and intra-state matters, even when those rules fall into murkier gray areas.
Back to topNo Learning Objectives Available
