Expert Witness Blog

Insurance Expert Witness On Recurring Insurance Litigation Themes Part 7

Mon, 20 May 2013 05:00:00 -0800

In Property & Casualty Insurance Procurement & Litigation (Ten Recurring Themes Every Lawyer Should Know) insurance expert witness David L. Stegall, CPCU, ARM, ARe, RPA, of Risk Consulting & Expert Services writes on ten recurring themes that often lead to litigation. Attorneys either dealing in insurance procurement litigation issues or with clients who purchase insurance may want to consider these ten themes:

Theme 7 of 10
Understand Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist (UM) coverage before it is needed. This coverage acts as the liability coverage for persons who injure you, your family, your employees or anyone driving your car with your permission when the person who causes injury either does not have liability insurance or is underinsured. Various states handle the issue of UM coverage differently, and apart from the 12 states that provide so-called ‘no-fault” coverage with Personal Injury Protection (PIP), insurance buyers seldom purchase adequate Automobile UM Liability Limits.

With this in mind, the minimum limit an automobile policy provides is typically woefully inadequate. It is estimated that 15 percent of all drivers on the road are without insurance and even more have minimum limits. In some states, this average percentage can be doubled.

There are very legitimate reasons that commercial entities do not increase their Uninsured/Underinsured limits. Many provide other insurance that would cover employees, such as workers’ compensation insurance and certain employee benefit coverages that would act as primary coverage before Uninsured/Underinsured coverage would come into play.

Lesson #7: Although this increased coverage will also increase the automobile liability premiums, the increase in coverage and premium should, at least, be considered.

Reoccurring Conclusion: Just like poor legal advice, poor understanding of insurance procurement issues can be very expensive for your client!

David Stegall is the Principal Consultant at Risk Consulting & Expert. Mr. Stegall holds a B.A. in Communication from Auburn University and is a Chartered Property and Casualty Underwriter, an Associate in Risk Management and an Associate in Reinsurance, all awarded by The Institutes in Malvern. PA. He is also a Director of the Society of Risk Management Consultant

Real Estate Damages Expert Witnesses & Hurricane Sandy Lawsuits

Sun, 19 May 2013 06:00:00 -0800

Real estate damages expert witnesses may give expert opinions on a wide range of issues including flood damage, hurricane damage, damage impact and related matters. In Sandy-Related Suits Against Co-ops, Condos Face Unique Challenges, the New York Law Journal reports on lawsuits filed by condo and co-op owners in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy. Owners are suing their building management over failure to protect their property in the disaster. NYLJ says the plaintiffs face a unique difficulty. "How can they show that the managers failed to prepare adequately for a disaster that no one had seen before?"

Explosions Expert Witnesses & Texas Fertilizer Plant Blast

Sat, 18 May 2013 06:00:00 -0800

Explosions expert witnesses may consult regarding flammable materials, chemical explosions, and combustion. In the news, MailOnline reports that "a malfunctioning golf cart, faulty electrical system or even arson" could have led to the fire that triggered the deadly explosion of a fertilizer plant in West, Texas. Officials have yet to find the cause of a blast that killed 14 people, including 12 first responders. The blast formed a crater 93' wide by 10' deep.

Patent Litigation Expert Witesses & Patent Litigation Survey

Fri, 17 May 2013 19:45:00 -0800

Patent litigation expert witnesses may consult and testify on patent prosecution, patent infringement, design patents, exclusive rights, and more. The Santa Clara University School of Law has released a study entitled Best Practices in Patent Litigation Survey which describes how patents have become a major part of business planning. Reuters reports that the survey discusses “patent assertion entities,” which are companies that do not make anything themselves.

Scholarly papers by Assistant Professor Colleen V. Chien,
Santa Clara University - School of Law. including Startups and Patent Trolls may be found here:
http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/cf_dev/AbsByAuth.cfm?per_id=362060

Fire Expert Witnesses & Wildfire Season

Thu, 16 May 2013 05:00:00 -0800

Fire expert witnesses may consult on wildfires, fire engineering, fire accelerants, fire safety engineering, and fire patterns, among other topics. The Salt Lake Tribune reports that there could be "another historic wildfire season" and significantly less funds to work with due to budget cuts from the sequester.

Tom Vilsack said the Agriculture Department will try to manage large fires using monies budgeted for prevention in order to pay for fire fighting.

Read more: http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/world/56310072-68/fire-fires-acres-burned.html.csp

Insurance Expert Witness On Recurring Insurance Litigation Themes Part 6

Wed, 15 May 2013 09:55:00 -0800

The insurance application process now requires more attention. There was a time, in the not too distant past, when most applications for property and casualty insurance did not require the signature of the insurance buyer. Agents routinely completed applications and underwriters readily accepted them without anyone’s signature on the application. This custom and practice is no more. Insurance applications have become more than just tools to gather underwriting information to determine the eligibility of the applicant for coverage and for premium determination purposes. The necessity for thoroughness and precision has greatly increased. It is more than appropriate and appreciated by the underwriter for the applicant to provide supplemental answers and explanations along with the standardized application. These relatively recent changes in the usual and customary practices of making an application for insurance can make the difference between having a claim covered and not having it covered. An ambiguity or misunderstanding can become an allegation of misrepresentation, which can lead to no coverage at all, rather than just a possible increase in premiums. Policy rescission and voiding policies ab initio are on the rise, along with underwriters using application information as “Warrants” thereby making the application a part of the policy (which has always been the case with life insurance policy applications).

These developments make providing accurate information to underwriters more than just important. Accurate information becomes the basis for the existence of the contract itself and adds an increased threshold to the concept of “utmost good-faith” which is the traditional basis of all insurance relationships.

However, “utmost good-faith” is a two-way street. Insurance companies sometimes attempt to deny coverage based on conditions and exclusions that are not, and never were intended, appropriate to the situation or the claim at hand. Some prohibitions were intended to exclude coverage because the hazard is better transferred by another type of policy, not to be used to exclude an otherwise covered claim. This type of unfair claims settlement practice is rare and usually caused by poor attention to detail in the filing of a claim and/or inexperienced claims adjusters. The insurance buyer needs to be equally diligent and vigilant as to the accuracy of applications of insurance and in the filing of a claim under an insurance policy.

Lesson #6: Insurance applications are more important than they once were. Have your client (the insurance buyer) plan and prepare in a careful, thorough manner, before submitting an application for insurance or filing a claim.

Reoccurring Conclusion: Just like poor legal advice, poor understanding of insurance procurement issues can be very expensive for your client!

Medical Malpractice Expert Witnesses

Tue, 14 May 2013 05:00:00 -0800

Medical malpractice expert witnesses may consult on issues involving medical negligence, healthcare providers malpractice, and medical malpractice litigation. In the news, Dr. Kermit Gosnell has been found guilty on three counts of first-degree murder. The Philadelphia abortion provider who is not a board-certified obstetrician or gynecologist, was found guilty of 21 counts of abortion of the unborn.

Intellectual Property Litigation Expert Witnesses

Mon, 13 May 2013 16:22:00 -0800

Intellectual property litigation expert witnesses may opine on licensing, assignees, patents, and associated matters. At the blog IPWise, attorneys Peter J. Brann, Stacy O. Stitham, and David Swetnam-Burland are "Making Business Wise About Intellectual Property Litigation." The litigation attorneys with Brann & Isaacson represent leading internet retailers in intellectual property matters running the gamut from copyright to trademark to patent litigation. On May 10th, they wrote:

In a badly fractured en banc decision, the Federal Circuit in CLS Bank v. Alice Corp. affirmed the lower court’s holding that Alice’s claims to a computerized method, a computer-readable medium containing computer instructions, and a computer system that implements those instructions were not patent-eligible subject matter.

Read more: http://ipwise.wordpress.com/.

Patent Protection Expert Witnesses & Monsanto Supreme Court Win

Mon, 13 May 2013 15:03:00 -0800

Patent protection expert witnesses may consult on assignees,
patent infringement, inventions patents, and related matters. In Bowman v. Monsanto, the US Supreme Court ruled today that Indiana farmer Vernon Hugh Bowman violated Monsanto's patent on a genetically modified soybean. Bowman reused Monsanto's Roundup Ready soybeans seeds without paying the company.

Slip opinion found here

Safety Expert Witnesses & Bangladesh Factory Collapse

Mon, 13 May 2013 14:33:00 -0800

Safety expert witnesses may provide reports concerning safety codes, safety standards, and safety inspections. After the April 2013 collapse of the Dhaka, Bangladesh, textile factory complex, all the Ashulia industrial zone factories have been shut down. Criminal cases have been brought against at least 177 garment factories after they failed to ensure safety measures. Nine stories collapsed and 1,100 employees lost their lives in the industrial disaster.

Details: http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp

Computer Security Expert Witnesses & $45M ATM Theft

Fri, 10 May 2013 13:42:00 -0800

Computer security expert witnesses may consult regarding network security, network forensics, computer forensics, computer crime, hacking, and data security. Philly.com reports that hackers stole $45M from thousands of ATM machines in just hours. The thieves hacked into a database of prepaid debit cards and then drained ATMs.

Read more at http://www.philly.com/philly/news/20130510_Hackers_pull_out_a__45M_jackpot.html#g092o7TBHzuOBWhv.99

FDA Expert Witnesses & Caffeine Gum

Thu, 09 May 2013 05:00:00 -0800

FDA expert witnesses may consult on the FDA, food and drug regulations for humans and animals, nutritional standards of care, and more. In the news, Wrigley has decided to stop production of their new product Alert Energy Caffeine Gum after meetings with the FDA. One piece of the chewing gum contains 40 mg of caffeine, equal to 1/2 cup of coffee.

The FDA is investigating deaths which may be linked to energy drinks with caffeine. Caffeine gum may be detrimental to young people.

Cardiology Expert Witness Testifies In Jackson Family Lawsuit

Wed, 08 May 2013 16:20:00 -0800

Cardiology expert witness Dr. Daniel Wohlgelernter testified Tuesday that Dr. Conrad Murray was not qualified to treat Michael Jackson. Jackson's family is suing concert promoters at AEG Live saying that AEG should be responsible for hiring Dr. Murray.

Dr. Wohlgelernter, Cardiology Consultants of Santa Monica, earned his medical degree from the Yale University School of Medicine and has been on the UCLA faculty since 1985. He testified that “Dr. Murray did not have the appropriate training, experience or knowledge to administer propofol.” In addition Dr. Murray did not have the proper equipment or ancillary personnel.

Sports Injuries Expert Witnesses & Referee Death

Mon, 06 May 2013 05:00:00 -0800

Sports injuries expert witnesses may consult on exercise physiology, sports injuries, sports medicine, and orthopedic rehabilitation, as well as related topics. www.standard.net/ reports that 46 year old soccer referee Ricardo Portillo has died after being punched in the head by a 17 year old goalie. The player was called for a foul and issued a yellow card warning. Portillo's daughters had begged him to stop refereeing because of the growing risk of violence from angry players.

Oil & Gas Expert Witnesses & Hydraulic Fracking

Sun, 05 May 2013 16:30:00 -0800

Oil and gas expert witnesses may opine regarding oil and gas pumps, fracking, petrochemical manufacturing, oil field explosions, and related matters. In the news, Mora County, N.M. has voted to ban oil and gas extraction using hydraulic fracking. Commissioners believe federal and state laws are not adequately protecting communities from hazards such as ground water contamination, risks to air quality, and migration of gases and hydraulic fracturing chemicals to the surface.

More news at http://www.usnews.com/.