Insurance Recovery

We are policyholder focused and results driven. With more than $2 billion in recovered assets, we convert insurance coverage into tangible financial outcomes. Our team exclusively represents policyholders, never insurers, emphasizing cost-efficient resolutions.

Organizations purchase insurance expecting it to respond when they face a significant loss or claim. Too often, insurers fall short when the stakes are highest and time is critical. Our insurance attorneys step in so that clients can focus on running their business instead of battling their insurance companies.

Our Insurance Recovery Group excels at offering practical strategies and decisive advocacy that yield measurable results. We navigate complex coverage disputes against major insurers in jurisdictions across the nation – spanning all commercial insurance policy lines, including commercial general liability, Directors & Officers and professional lines, fiduciary, environmental/pollution, property and business interruption, cyber and construction coverages and financial institution bonds. Our analysis is informed by a deep understanding of how insurers interpret policy language and how coverage issues are litigated in practice.

Chambers USA consistently recognizes our lawyers for their work on complex insurance recovery matters, praising them as “strategic and thoughtful” with “excellent” knowledge of insurance law, an “impressive track record” and lawyers who “deliver great results and service” and are “outstanding to work with.”

• Policyholders. Period. We exclusively represent policyholders—never insurance companies. This commitment ensures dedicated, uncompromised advocacy.
• Experienced Attention and Insight. Our partners have decades of experience with insurance disputes. We deliver senior-level engagement, ensuring responsive communications and informed expertise at every stage.
• Coast to Coast Coverage. Insurance disputes often cross state lines and depend on jurisdiction-specific outcomes. We handle matters nationwide, navigating choice-of-law and forum issues to maximize recoveries.
• Flexible, Predictable Fee Arrangements. Our depth of experience across insurance issues allows us to offer flexible types of fee arrangements, including hourly billing, partial contingency, or full contingency arrangements.
• Proven Public Sector Expertise. With a longstanding focus on public agency representation, we have advised more than 200 public entities. Our team understands the unique challenges public entities face and effectively protects their interests in high-stakes insurance matters.

Successes

We bring decades of experience helping clients secure insurance coverage when insurers delay or deny payment of valid claims. Our practice spans federal and state courts in 30+ jurisdictions nationwide. We represent clients across diverse industries, including manufacturing, financial services, construction, real estate and the public sector. From property and construction losses to D&O and professional liability disputes to cyber and financial institution bond claims, we navigate complex coverage challenges and deliver results. Below are representative examples of our experience and engagements.

CGL & Environmental Coverage

• Defense Cost Recovery for Product Liability Claims. Recovered more than $18 million in defense costs for a global manufacturer in thousands of bodily injury claims.
• Environmental Liability Coverage for Public Utility. Secured multimillion-dollar coverage under historic CGL policies for a municipal utility facing federal Superfund cleanup demands, navigating allocation and late notice defenses.
• Making New Law. Achieved a key appellate win for the insured reversing a trial court’s application of out-of-state law, successfully arguing for California’s continuous trigger rule to apply in a complex asbestos bodily injury coverage dispute.

D&O and Professional Liability Coverage

• Defeated Related Acts Exclusion. Advised the insured in a claim involving two towers of D&O insurance. We obtained a favorable summary judgment ruling defeated insurers’ attempt to deny coverage based on a related acts exclusion.
• Contested the Professional Services Exclusion. Represented a real estate investment firm in a D&O coverage dispute arising from antitrust claims. While the insurer initially denied coverage based on the professional services exclusion, we successfully obtained the primary insurer’s commitment to fund defense costs and resolved claims against the excess insurers relating to their continued reliance on the professional services exclusion to deny coverage.
• Fiduciary Liability Coverage Restored. Successfully obtained reversal of a summary judgment ruling finding no coverage under a fiduciary liability policy, with the Ninth Circuit holding that exclusions did not bar coverage for claims of pension fund mismanagement against a retirement association.
• Secured insurance coverage for antitrust claims. Won summary judgment on behalf of a leading poultry producer requiring its D&O insurers to fund millions in defense costs for antitrust class actions, defeating a “related claims” denial by demonstrating that antitrust allegations involving the chicken market were fundamentally distinct from antitrust allegations involving the turkey market.

Property, Business Interruption & Construction Coverage

• COVID-19 Business Interruption Losses. Secured a California Court of Appeal reversal of a demurrer in a COVID-19 business interruption case under a communicable disease provision, allowing policyholder claims for breach of contract and bad faith to proceed. The matter later resolved following favorable discovery rulings.
• Public Agency Insurance Counseling. Regularly represent public agency owners on insurance coverage aspects of significant infrastructure and capital improvement projects, including the setting of insurance limits and types of insurance, including OCIP and CCIP, contractual compliance from contractors and vendors and working with clients through the claim process.
• Construction Project Flooding Coverage Dispute. Represented a global equipment manufacturer in an insurance coverage action in California arising from extreme flooding at a construction project, resulting in millions of dollars in physical damage and delay-related expenses. The multi-million dollar dispute involved notice, tolling, “physical loss or damage,” and delay-in-completion coverage and was resolved through mediation.
• Terminal Property Flooding Claim. Represented a major public airport authority in insurance recovery negotiations arising from flooding caused by a malfunctioning fire suppression system at a leased terminal facility, securing coverage to facilitate settlement of the underlying claim.
• Wildfire Property Loss Insurance Recovery. Represented a national non-profit organization in first-party insurance coverage and valuation issues arising from the destruction and rebuilding of a historic camp following a wildfire, resulting in a seven-figure recovery without litigation.

Advertising Injury

• Advertising Injury Coverage for Copyright Infringement: Defeated insurer’s motion for summary judgment in a high-stakes dispute involving coverage for a multimillion dollar copyright infringement judgment.

Cyber and Financial Institution Bonds

• Social Engineering Loss Recovery: Successfully recovered a social engineering fraud loss under the computer fraud coverage of a commercial crime policy.
• Proactive Cyber Insurance Reviews. Advised national companies on cyber insurance program design and enhancements, aligning coverage with evolving risks and mitigating exposure to significant cyber-related losses.
• Commercial Crime and Fidelity Claims. Litigated more than two dozen financial institution bond claims for both private and public sector clients, including claims involving employee dishonesty, embezzlement, social engineering fraud and forgery-related losses.

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