Tracy Abatemarco is a seasoned, results-oriented litigator that aggressively handles matters and obtains early resolution and favorable settlements where appropriate. She is a powerful communicator which dovetails into her reputation as a celebrated defense litigator throughout the Northeastern United States. As a founding partner of the New York office, Tracy has been instrumental in navigating the international reputation of being the go-to law firm for a host of matters due to her creative strategies and sage litigation prowess. Tracy also serves as the co-managing partner of the New York office and takes pride in the results, trial verdicts and impressive string of consistent results which continue to fuel the reputation and growth of WSHB’s footprint in New York State.

Tracy focuses her practice on construction and labor law litigation, premises, lead paint, mold, toxic tort, transportation and complex general liability and casualty actions. Her clients include insurance companies, financial institutions, and real estate owners and managers. She has extensive experience in state and appellate practice and has enjoyed success in the trial, appellate and arbitration forums. Tracy has developed protocols for compliance with lead paint guidelines for private landlords and real estate managers. Tracy obtained a prominent defense verdict in a lead poisoning action where it was alleged that the infant-plaintiff was brain damaged and sustained neurological and cognitive impairments.

Widely regarded as a thought leader in the legal industry, Tracy frequently lectures and presents at seminars and symposiums in the areas of labor law, lead paint and mold litigation, and the art of taking and defending depositions. She has published articles in the field of lead paint litigation and has presented Continuing Legal Education classes on topics including the defense of lead-paint and mold claims.
 

Matthew Adler is currently with XL Catlin, a worldwide group of insurance companies and he works out of the Los Angeles office as a senior claims consultant. At X Catlin, Mr. Adler handles a variety of claims including excess, reinsurance and wrap programs involving commercial and residential construction. Mr. Adler was previously with OneBeacon and handled construction defect claims and coverage actions of all types, exposures and jurisdictions across the United States. Mr. Adler’s prior work history includes many years at The St. Paul/Travelers and The Zenith Insurance Companies. In addition to the construction field, his experience includes general liability, SIU and Workers Compensation. He is a past President of the Construction Defect Claim Managers Association (CDCMA). Mr. Adler is a frequent speaker at various seminars and industry events on a variety of claims related subjects. Mr. Adler earned his bachelor degree from Pitzer College and is proud to serve as an executive board member of a local theater group, The Production Company.
 

Regina is the US Construction Claims Leader for Marsh, spearheading Marsh’s commitment to deliver world-class claim support to Marsh’s construction clients.  Both Regina and her department have particular expertise with practice programs for General Contractors and large Subcontractors as well as project specific OCIPs and CCIPs including commercial, healthcare, entertainment, public works and residential projects across the US.  Regina herself has over two decades of experience in claims, most of that specializing in construction defect and related coverage matters . She has multi-line and multi-jurisdictional claims experience, and has an established track record that goes beyond construction defect and complex general liability claims in areas of issues of coverage interpretation, risk transfer, TPA and litigation management, and special account handling. Regina and her team work closely with Marsh’s account executives and brokers to ensure that Marsh’s clients receive the service and attention that both they need and rightfully expect.

 

A Managing Partner at Butler, Denise M. Anderson is the Chairperson of the Firm's Construction Litigation Practice Group. Denise is Board Certified in Construction Law by the Florida  Bar and is an AV peer-rated attorney by Martindale-Hubbell.While she currently practices primarily in the fields of construction  defect and product liability, in her legal career she has handled a large variety of insurance related disputes involving coverage and subrogation. Her construction experience includes the representation of general contractors, developers, designers, every trade in the construction process, as well as suppliers and manufacturers of building components. She has served as the chairperson of several national construction seminars and regularly speaks to clients and peers on a variety of construction and civil litigation topics. After serving as the Regional Chairperson (Southern Region) for the Women in Construction Litigation Alliance (WCLA), Denise was appointed to the Board of Directors of the WCLA in 2015. Denise is also the National Membership Vice Chairperson of the Association of Defense Trial Attorneys (ADTA).  In addition, Denise has served as a Florida delegate for the Claims and Litigation Management Alliance. In 2013, she was appointed to serve as the Chairperson of the Steering Committee for the CLM's production of a Claims Handling Manual which is national initiative undertaken by 150 attorneys from across the U.S. and Canada.  Also, for the second year, Denise was selected as a Chairperson for the CLM's Annual Construction and Environmental Conference which will be held in Atlanta the first week of November, 2015 (Boston 2014).She received her Bachelor of Arts, with high honors, from Auburn University (1991) and her Doctor of Jurisprudence from Mercer University School of Law (1994). Denise is licensed to practice in the state and federal courts of Florida and the state courts of Georgia.  

Thanks for tuning in.  I’ll make this brief so you can get back to your regularly-scheduled programming.  Mindy’s experience includes:    
30+ years multi-lines claims experience, including Property, Workers’ Compensation, Business Auto, Premises Liability and Construction Defect
Development and implementation of a Construction Defect training program for new hires
Managing a team of Construction Defect adjusters
Over 17+ years working remotely, exclusively handling Construction Defect claims
Specialization in handling a book of business for large home builders; OCIP/WRAP and GC/Developer, including both Primary and Excess exposures; Closely working with offshore partners, reinsurers and London Underwriters

In Ms. Ashcraft’s role as Corporate Vice President, she works in conjunction with the President and Chief Operating Officer to determine the strategic direction of all MC Consultants, Inc. consulting groups, as well as carry out the corporation’s strategic plan through overseeing operations, developing functional roles and assigning responsibilities to employees who report directly to her. Ms. Ashcraft is also responsible for oversight and workflow monitoring of forensic consulting projects, as well as staff supervision and development. Ms. Ashcraft’s years of industry experience in both insurance and litigation is extensive which positions her to add tremendous value to the corporate management team.

Paul Balentine is a claim professional that has been in the insurance industry since 1989 and has been at Nationwide Commercial Lines and E&S/Specialty since 1999. In his current role, he leads the Specialty Casualty Claim organization that includes Construction, Programs, Alternative Ventures and Casualty Excess lines for Nationwide.  His experience includes General Liability, Excess/Umbrella,  Transportation, Property, as well as Construction Defect and Professional Lines. Paul earned a Bachelor of Science in Business Finance from the University of Arizona and holds the CPCU designation.
 

Mr. Barger was born in Sacramento, California. He attended the University of California, Davis, where he earned a Bachelor's Degree in Economics in 1988. In 1991, he earned his Juris Doctor Degree from Pepperdine University School of Law. He was admitted to the State Bar of California, the United States District Court, and the California Supreme Court. He is a member of the Association of Southern California Defense Counsel, where he is also the Committee Chairperson for the Construction Practice Group and is a member of the Association of Defense Counsel of Northern California. He is a member of the California Building Industry Association and is on the Speaker’s & Topic’s Committee for the annual West Coast Casualty Construction Defect Seminar.His publications include The Impact of Disappearing Carriers on Construction Defect Litigation The Construction Lawyer); Additional Insured Endorsement: Their Vital Importance in Construction Defect Litigation, The Construction Lawyer; Additional Insured Endorsement Issues Which Are Currently Impacting Construction Defect Litigation; Managing Construction Defect Cases, The Construction Lawyer; Tight Building Syndrome - In The Defense Of HVAC Contractors, HVAC Products News; In Defense Of Tight Building Syndrome, For The Defense. He has also been published on Mold & Environmental Litigation topics, Crawford decision, SB 800 (Right to Repair Statutes) pre-trial motions, and indemnity issues in various publications. Mr. Barger has been a profiled speaker and a panelist at numerous industry-related seminars and presentations, including HB Litigation Construction Defect Litigation Conference (2009); Lorman’s California Mold and Construction Conference (2002, 2003); MC2 Consultants, CD Seminar (2007, 2008); Mealey’s Construction Conferences (2002, 2004, 2005); West Coast Casualty Construction Defect Seminars (2001, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2010); Association of Southern California Defense Counsel’s Annual Seminar and Construction Seminar (2004, 2009) Chairperson and speaker at Association of Southern California Defense Counsel and Construction Defect Claims Managers’ CD Seminar (2005 – 2010); and California Building Industry Association Annual Meeting (2004).

Mr. Barger has trial, arbitration, and mediation experience. He has the distinction of achieving the highest rating of “AV” by the prestigious national lawyer rating organization Martindale-Hubbell. He specializes in Construction Litigation, Environmental, Toxic and Hazardous Substance Litigation, Commercial/Business Litigation, General Negligence and Complex, Multi-Party Litigation.

Practice Areas:

Catastrophic Injury and Products LiabilityBusiness & Employment LawConstruction LawEnvironmental LawProfessional Liability

Education

University of California, Davis, B.A., 1988Pepperdine University School of Law, J.D., 1991

Mr. Beemer has 46 years in the insurance industry and is retired but continues to do consulting and expert witness work through Suite 200 Solutions.  Previously he was the VP of Claims at Tokio Marine HCC Insurance Group.  Prior to TMHCC, Mr. Beemer worked at IAT, QBE, Aetna, CNA, Home Insurance, Risk Enterprise Management and Fireman's Fund Insurance Company.   At QBE Mr. Beemer lead the liability claims department and the Litigation Management department for QBE.  He had direct oversight of Litigation Management, Transportation, GL, CD, TPA Services and Environmental claims.  Prior to QBE Mr. Beemer was the National Claim Director for Construction Defect, Latent Injury and Entertainment Claims at Fireman's Fund Insurance Company. In his career he has been a chief technical officer, consultant to re-insurers, training coordinator, national accounts coordinator, litigation manager, legal auditor, claims and due diligence auditor, PMK, expert witness and has been a panel speaker at CLM and other industry events. He serves on  the Advisory Board for the Claims and Litigation Management Alliance, has served as Dean of Litigation Management at Claims College and is a Chancellor and Professor at Litigation Management Institute. Mr. Beemer has authored numerous articles for Claims Management Magazine and Litigation Management Magazine. Mr. Beemer received the CLM Lifetime Achievement Award in 2023 at the Annual Conference in Tampa Florida. 

Christine Bernstock is a Director within the Risk Management Department at Tishman Construction Corporation, overseeing the handling and administration of claims and litigation.  Prior to joining Tishman, Christine was at ACE Insurance, handling professional liability matters involving architects, engineers and design professionals on a worldwide basis. She was also at Catlin, handling property and casualty matters, with a focus on construction.  Ms. Bernstock was formerly a partner in the New York office of Wilson Elser Moskowitz Edelman & Dicker LLP, where her practice focused on insurance defense litigation, with an emphasis on construction. She has litigated cases in the state and federal court systems in New York; handling all aspects of litigation, from inception to trial, including appellate advocacy. She has successfully argued appeals before the Appellate Division and the NY Court of Appeals.  Ms. Bernstock has co-authored Continuing Legal Education materials on automobile liability and the New York Labor Law.

Martin Block is a Sr. Claim Account Manager at Arch Insurance. Mr. Block holds a Bachelors degree in Psychology from Humboldt State University and a Law degree from University of West Los Angeles. He has been in the claims industry for over 30 years in various roles as a technical claims handler, claims supervisor, litigation manager, claims manager and risk manager with both insurers and self-insured entities. Mr. Block has handled claims and directed litigation in all 50 states of the US and much of Canada and, despite this fact, still enjoys his work. 
 

Jamie received her Juris Doctorate in 2004 from Brooklyn Law School, and her Bachelor’s degree cum laude from John Jay College of Criminal Justice in 2000.  She was admitted to practice law in the State of New York in 2005.  Jamie effectively handles all aspects of civil litigation, whether at the pleadings, discovery or trial stages, including conducting depositions and drafting of motions.  Jamie concentrates her practice in construction and surety law and general liability defense, representing sureties, insurance companies and contractors.  Jamie also handles administrative and criminal hearings ranging from Department of Transportation, Department of Environmental Protection, New York City Police Department and other various New York City entities.
 
            Jamie has over nineteen years of real court-room experience, starting out as an Assistant District Attorney in Nassau County, New York, where she conducted numerous trials, hearings and grand jury presentments for diverse criminal matters.  She successfully prosecuted violent felonies, high profile domestic violence and sex offense cases, including cases based on scientific evidence alone.  During her tenure as a prosecutor, she handled criminal cases from investigation through trial verdicts. Her experience includes preparing children, the elderly and infirm, and hostile witnesses for difficult and traumatic trial testimony.  She has utilized all forms of evidence, both physical and scientific, during the course of her many trials.  She has successfully cross examined doctors, scientists, alibi witnesses, and even defendants.  Her eagerness to always accept the challenge of the most difficult cases enabled her to hone her skills and become one of the most prolific trial assistants at the District Attorney’s Office. 

Ms. Bryan currently acts as the Regional Underwriting Manager for excess construction liability coverage for the Western Region at AIG. This includes supervising the underwriting of both wrap-up and practice program coverages for a wide variety of developers, contractors and trade subcontractors involved in all types of construction.

Ms. Bryan spent 13 years as an adjuster handling construction defect, complex coverage and severe exposures in the Construction Defect and Major Case Units at Aetna and Royal Insurance Companies. She also spent four years as an insurance broker, working on program placement for construction risks and acting as a consulting resource throughout the country on coverage and claims issues. Ms. Bryan is routinely consulted and has testified at trial for her expertise in coverage and claims issues. She is a regular speaker at legal, construction and insurance industry conferences and seminars.

Ken is currently the Vice President of Claims at Builders Mutual Insurance Company headquartered in Raleigh, NC. He has been in the insurance industry since 1990, cultivating his career through various roles in Claims, Program Management/IT and Corporate Training. While most of his career has been focused around claims handling and claims leadership, Ken also has a long record of successfully leading large corporate initiatives, system implementations and various training programs. In his current position, Ken oversees all claims functions including Workers Compensation, Commercial and Litigated claims. After joining BMIC in 2014, Ken launched the transition from a Third Party Administrator based model to an in-house claims department. This included complete organizational and process redesign, during a time of double digit growth for the company.
 
Ken holds a BA from North Carolina State University, in addition to earning his AIC, CBIA, and PMP designations, and is also an active member of DRI and CLM.

TYLER M. BUNTING has held various program and claims management positions in the insurance industry and is currently a Claim Manager with NBIS Construction & Transport Insurance Services, Inc.. Preceding his current role, Mr. Bunting was a Claim Manager at AmTrust Financial Services, a Claim Manager at Corvel Corporation, as well as a Senior Claims Program Manager and Casualty Claims Manager at QBE North America.  Mr. Bunting has 30 years of experience in the insurance industry, including investigations, complex claims handling, and management of losses throughout the United States, 

Mr. Bunting holds the AIC, SCLA, AINS and FCLA designations.  Mr. Bunting earned Bachelor of Arts degrees from the University of Utah in Political Science and Criminology.

Sarah is a Commercial Insurance Brokerage Professional, with a background in Client Management, Client Accounting, Project Specific Insurance Placement, Leadership and Team Building. She has over 15 years experience in managing large property casualty accounts and complex Controlled Insurance Programs for National and Regional General Contractors.

Ms. Connor’s practice focuses on civil litigation, insurance coverage disputes, insurance defense, UM/UIM issues, commercial litigation, construction, and condemnation.

She received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Louisiana State University. Ms. Connor graduated cum laude from Tulane Law School where she received a Juris Doctor. She is a member of the Mecklenburg County Bar Association, North Carolina Bar Association, North Carolina Association of Defense Attorneys, Defense Research Institute and the Claims and Litigation Management Alliance.

PRACTICE AREAS Civil Litigation Insurance Coverage Disputes Insurance Defense UM/UIM Claims Commercial Litigation Construction Condemnation

William T. Cornell

Mr. Cornell is a seasoned litigator whose practice focuses on construction, real estate and complex commercial disputes.  He provides corporate, risk management and contract advice to commercial landlords, builders and other real estate professionals. Mr. Cornell is admitted to practice in Washington, Oregon and the U.S. District Court for the Eastern and Western Districts of Washington.

Mr. Cornell has served as an arbitrator and mediator. He also shares his experience and legal insights, having made presentations at continuing legal education seminars and for insurance companies and builders.

Before joining Preg, O'Donnell & Gillett, Mr. Cornell served as managing partner in a regional law firm, in-house counsel for a multi state homebuilder and as a director of litigation management for Fireman’s Fund Insurance Company.

After studying biology at the University of California, San Diego, Mr. Cornell earned a Doctor of Jurisprudence from the University of San Diego Law School in 1989, where he was managing editor of the Law Review.

Dan Costello, Founder and Managing Partner of Costello Ginex & Wideikis,  is currently recognized as a national expert in litigation management, complex case litigation, and trial practice.  In 2014 he was one of four finalists for the Claim and Litigation Management (CLM) Outside Counsel of the Year, selected from nearly 40,000 members. He is a Advisory Board member for CLM, Co-Chair of the Anti-Nuclear Verdict Task Force, Co-Chair of the Litigation Management Symposium (LMS), and a Chancellor of Litigation Management Institute (LMI) held at Loyola Law school in Chicago.

Over the last three years, Dan's litigation practice has continued to grow, as has the firms growing portfolio of litigation based solutions.   Dan has been retained as lead counsel in complex cases including lead trial counsel in two cases of first impression in Illinois  including the loss of opportunity to have a biological child for 66 plaintiffs in a Cryogenic tank malfunction, and a class action lawsuit in litigation of Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) dealing with statutory/punitive damages.  He has also been retained in complex litigation including the collapse of a tent resulting in multiple fatalities and 19 plaintiffs' claims and recently resolved construction litigation brought on behalf of a national retailer that spanned seven states, and involved insurance disputes with twenty-two separate insurers. 

He also acts as a litigation consultant, billing fees expert, and expert in litigation of complex and construction defect disputes.  He has recently been retained as an expert witness in multiple party litigation in California, Texas, Florida, Arizona, among other states.   Dan also maintains an active practice in consulting with carriers on litigation management strategy, implementation, and improvement.  

Specialties: Construction Litigation, Litigation Management, Expert Fees, Complex litigation, Insurance Coverage, products liability, and construction/design defect

Nationwide is number 85 on the Fortune 500 list of companies and a two-time recipient of the J.D. Power 100 Best Places to Work. Carolyn Crawford is Commercial Claims Director leading the national Construction Defect segment of the Complex Claims organization for Nationwide. Carolyn has over 30 years in the Insurance Industry with a wide range of disciplines and specialty handling to include General Liability, Workers Compensation, Commercial and Non Standard Auto and National Accounts. During her 30 plus years in the industry, Carolyn has held both technical and leadership positions with major carriers such as Fireman’s Fund, CNA, AIG, One Beacon, Travelers and now Nationwide. 
Carolyn currently serves as a member on the CLM Construction Defect Advisory Board.     
 

Steven R. Cuneo, Jr., Esq., has served as General Counsel for the C.W. Driver Companies since 2013. Prior to that, Mr. Cuneo was a partner in the Los Angeles law firm of Gibbs, Giden, Locher, Turner, Senet & Wittbrodt LLP, where he practiced primarily in the areas of construction and insurance law. He received his B.S. degree from the University of California at Los Angeles and his J.D. degree from the University of California at Los Angeles School of Law. Over his career, Mr. Cuneo has represented owners, general contractors, subcontractors, and design professionals in a variety of areas, including construction claims, insurance coverage, risk management, contract drafting and administration and construction defect claims. He can be reached at scuneo@cwdriver.com.

Robert “Bob” de Flesco is an associate in the firm’s Miami office. Mr. de Flesco devotes most of his practice to various areas of construction law, including representation of contractors and developers in construction defect claims. Mr. de Flesco also represents design professionals and consulting engineers in professional liability claims.

Mr. de Flesco earned his B.S. in Accounting from Boston College. Following his undergraduate studies, he worked as a Certified Public Accountant for PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP and Tyco International.

Mr. de Flesco graduated magna cum laude from the University of Miami School of Law. While in law school, he received several honors and distinctions, including: Dean’s List (four semesters); Outstanding Merit Scholarship; Daniel Murray Scholarship; Dean’s Certificate of Achievement in Legal Research and Writing, International Finance, and Mindful Ethics; Honors in Litigation Skills Pretrial and Trial Classes; and the Florida Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers Award for Excellence in Litigation Skills. He was an Associate Editor of the Inter-American Law Review as well as a member of the trial team.

After law school, Mr. de Flesco served as a judicial fellow for the Honorable Cecilia M. Altonaga, U.S. District Court Judge for the Southern District of Florida. Thereafter, and before joining our firm, Mr. de Flesco practiced general and commercial litigation. He also second-chaired a federal jury trial.

Catherine Deter is a partner in WSHB’s Orange County office. In her practice, she represents national and regional construction, engineering and architectural firms in complex litigation and business and employment practice issues and disputes. Specifically, Catherine excels in the representation of architects, engineers, and other design professionals because of her passionate drive to protect creative individuals and work quickly to favorably resolve claims. She has also represented some of the country’s largest builders and developers. Additionally, Catherine is well-versed in other areas of construction litigation, pre-claim assistance and risk management, and has also represented general contractors, and numerous construction sub-trades. Her unique practice representing a variety of professionals in the construction industry provides her with valuable insight in evaluating claims to bring them to speedy resolution.

Catherine specializes in pre-claim assistance to provide our clients with valuable guidance on managing risk, avoiding future claims, and pre-trial resolution. Catherine’s creative and strategic approach to pre-claim assistance and early litigation defense strategy often resolves claims in the very early stages, delivering considerable time and cost savings. She enjoys employing strategy in her law and motion practice, with the goal of posturing cases for successful dispositive motions and early resolution.

Throughout her career, Catherine has represented some of the largest professional design firms in the world, top industry leaders, individuals, professionals, and corporations. Catherine’s ability to effectively communicate with clients from all backgrounds is key to her successful development of litigation strategy. Catherine’s practice also includes a diverse group of high exposure catastrophic injury cases, automobile accidents, wrongful death actions, intellectual property disputes, habitability claims, and business transactions. Catherine also effectively litigates and counsels a wide variety of professional liability claims, including veterinary malpractice claims. She expanded her practice to include toxic tort and pollution matters, representing some of the country’s largest commercial property owners.
 

Bert Dizon is currently the Claims Manager for Cardinal Captive Strategies, where he manages claims and risk for multiple construction captives throughout the US.

Previously, Bert was the client account manager for Arch Insurance under the Alternative Market/Captive, Construction and Transportation space for all lines of coverage including Worker Compensation, Commercial Auto/Trucking and General Liability. He has extensive knowledge in claims management and coverage investigation in multiple lines of insurance including Construction/Construction Defect, personal lines auto (standard/non-standard), Commercial Auto and Trucking, General Liability, Professional Liability, Franchise Risk, Cyber and Cannabis. Since 2001, he has had various roles in carrier and TPA claims operations, brokerage and business development, where he managed different aspects of Claims Operations, including claims resolution and management, leadership, operational excellence, technology development, data analytics, and legal and vendor relations. In addition, he has traveled the county mediating claims in California, Arizona, Texas, Florida, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Washington. In 2016, he represented the carrier for over 300 mediations with a 95% success rate and averaged a 30% total incurred reduction in his efforts. 

He currently serves as the Rising Insurance Star Executive (RISE) Education Co-Chair and a faculty member for the CLM Claims College Schools of Leadership and Transportation. He was the former Vice President of the Orange County CLM Chapter from 2019 - 2022.  Bert is also on the Racial Equity Committee for DiveIn and the Include@GB Steering Committee. He is an industry speaker for various conferences, speaking on topics ranging from DE&I, Claims Management, Construction Defect, Transportation, Mediation and Young Professional Development. In 2017, he was an inaugural recipient of the Rising Insurance Star Executive (RISE) Award and a finalist for the Nexus Claims Innovative Leader of the Year. Bert was the CLM Claims Management Professional of the Year in 2022.  

Tim Donnelly manages Sompo International’s US Casualty - Construction claims team.  His team handles primary and excess casualty exposures related to the construction industry across the United States. He has significant experience both handling and managing claims under owner-controlled and contractor-controlled insurance programs.  In addition to managing claim handlers, Tim provides support to Sompo’s underwriting teams on construction specific exposures. 
 
Prior to joining Sompo, Tim was a Complex Director handling complex construction defect claims for another insurance carrier.  Tim began his career as an attorney handling errors and omissions claims against insurance brokers and providing coverage advice to insurance carriers.  Tim received his Juris Doctorate from Brooklyn Law School and a Bachelor of Science from Fordham University.

Ms. Doom’s litigation experience includes personal injury, insurance defense, transportation, construction liability and defects, premises liability, products liability, medical malpractice, professional liability, commercial business, DPTA and employment law.  She has performed appellate work in both the Texas Court of Appeals and the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.

The Texas Lawyer and Verdict Search recognized Ms. Doom for obtaining a Top Texas Verdict in 2012.  The recognition was for her role as lead attorney in a Tarrant County, Texas case that resulted in the sixth-highest intentional torts jury verdict in the State of Texas in 2012.

While in law school, Ms. Doom was a member of the Health Law Moot Court Team and completed over 85 hours of mediation training.  Her mediation training contributes to her ability to creatively bring parties together by narrowing the issues, identify areas of agreement, advocate for her client and use a common-sense approach to navigate through parties’ emotions and financial concerns.

Ms. Doom is an experienced litigator with a unique ability of keeping an eye on the complexity of the bigger picture, while putting all the smaller pieces together to successfully build a case.  She focuses on effective communications and building relationships with clients while developing a case so that important details are never overlooked.

Dan Ducommun is President & CEO of MC Consultants, which nationally supports and serves the construction and general liability expert forensics market. Dan directs MC’s consulting groups through dynamic leadership and strategic planning, guiding the organization to ensure continued growth and effectively cultivating key business relationships. Through his visionary leadership, Dan is committed to position TEAM MC to be recognized as an industry leader, committed to innovation while maintaining a corporate culture of excellence, performance and integrity. Prior to joining MC (2007), Dan served as the Marketing Director for myCFO, which within 12 months’ time evolved into the nation’s largest wealth management consulting company. In the mid 90’s Dan served as West Region Marketing Director for Deloitte’s Audit, Tax and Consulting Groups (supporting annual revenues of $1B). Dan’s sales and marketing experience dates back nearly 4 decades, which includes 18 years of management roles that supported national and international electronic manufacturing and distribution companies. In addition to serving on CLM’s Construction Claims Leadership Team, Dan was very much involved and enjoyed being associated with the former Construction Defect Community Charitable Foundation (CDCCF), in which he served as President. Dan enjoyed supporting CLM’s Claims College School of Leadership serving as a faculty member during the years 2017, 2018 & 2019. In May of 2022, Dan was recognized as the recipient of the 2022 Jerold S. Oliver Award of Excellence (West Coast Casualty’s 28th Annual CD Conference).


 

Julian Ehrlich is a member of Aon’s Construction Services Group (CSG) national claims leadership and directly oversees the claims team in the greater New York/New Jersey region. This team of claim professionals advocates for superior claim service for wrap up and traditional clients on issues ranging from accurate reserving to appropriate resolution strategies to an expanded carrier view of coverage. 
 
Julian is a Past President of the Defense Association of New York (DANY) and has written for the New York Law Journal’s Outside Counsel and Expert Commentary columns regularly for more than 15 years. He has authored more than 40 articles on insurance, coverage and tort liability trends and emerging issues in numerous trade, industry and law journals. He is also a coauthor of the definitive treatise on New York Labor Law published by the New York State Bar Association and has been quoted in Crain’s New York Business, Claims Journal, ENR (Engineering News-Record), and Business Insurance.  

Tom Fama is a partner at Wood, Smith, Henning & Berman LLP, specializing in complex construction claims and real estate litigation. He is known for defending the nation’s largest home builders against construction defect and accident litigation, and for his expertise in title insurance claims, boundary disputes, and broker professional liability.

Summary of Skills: Claims executive with comprehensive claims and litigation management experience; managed multiple offices including their claims personnel; significant experience in developing and effectively utilizing metrics; highly successful history of reducing claim inventory and reserves; developed and implemented functional methodologies for reducing claim and litigation related expenses; strong research and writing skills; and a strong commitment to professional excellence.
 
Professional Experience :
 
 
02/95 – Present     Dynamic Claims Services, Inc.
                             President
 
08/89 – 10/94        Continental Insurance Company
                             Claims Vice President and Claim Manager
 
Supervise complex, high exposure claims involving construction defect, products liability, and professional/environmental liability; develop and monitor methodologies to ensure that claims are being promptly and efficiently resolved; develop and monitor metrics to qualitatively measure the results of claim handling efforts; revise Best Practices to maximize claim results and to minimize expense and time to closure; optimize litigation management guidelines to reduce legal costs; prepare reporting protocols for clients; prepare training programs and materials; draft and distribute marketing materials; conduct regular meetings with existing and prospective clientele; and maintain high levels of client retention. 
                            
03/84 – 07/89        Adjustco, Inc.
                             Claim Manager
 
Directed high exposure, complex litigation; responsible for developing and implementing claims-wide special projects and related training; implemented legal bill review program; created and implemented medical payments recovery program.
In a run-off environment, managed to conclusion a nationwide book of 9,826 complex, high exposure litigated casualty cases involving general liability BOP, product, garage keepers, with reserves totaling $601,000,000; expedited reduction of net claim inventory and reserves; reduced expense to indemnity ratio; increased claim file audit scores; reduced unit expenses; managed a staff of 110, including a home office and six (6) field offices; $7,000,000 in settlement authority; developed, maintained and monitored metrics and key performance indicators (KPI’s);
 
06/82 – 02/84        Crawford and Company
                             Casualty Claims Adjuster
                            

 
 

Jason Daniel Feld, Esq. is a Founding Partner of Kahana Feld. Mr. Feld focuses his practice on the defense of homebuilders, contractors, developers, and real estate professionals primarily in construction defect, general liability, insurance defense, construction accident and real estate matters. Mr. Feld also represents government entities handling construction, premises liability, general liability, and environmental claims. Mr. Feld is a nationwide leader in construction claims and active industry speaker at CLM Conferences, Perrin Conferences, ASCDC CD Conference and the annual West Coast Casualty Construction Defect Seminar. Mr. Feld proudly serves as panel counsel for many prominent insurance carriers, as well as personal counsel to several national and regional homebuilders, developers, and general contractors. Mr. Feld is active in several professional organizations including the Association of Southern California Defense Counsel, Orange County Bar Association, Construction Lawyers Society of America and Claims and Litigation Management Alliance.

Mr. Feld is an AV Preeminent Rated Attorney, was recognized as a Southern CA Super Lawyer (2025) and Rising Star (2009-2011) and recently won the inaugural CLM Volunteer of the Year Award (2024). Mr. Feld is licensed to practice law in the States of California, Texas, Arizona, and New York. He is also admitted to the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and US District Courts for the Southern & Central Districts of California and Northern District of Texas.

Mr. Feld graduated cum laude from the University of Houston and Whittier Law School. While in law school, Mr. Feld served as a judicial extern to the Honorable Alex Kozinski, US Court of Appeals Judge for the Ninth Circuit, as well as a member of the Law Review, Trial Advocacy Honors Board and Joseph A. Ball/Clarence S. Hunt Inns of Court.

Peter Fogarty is a Director with Everest Insurance, based in the New York Metro area.  Mr. Fogarty supervises various types of professional liability claims, including those against architects and engineers.  He also has significant experience supervising securities claims against broker-dealers and registered representatives in connection with FINRA arbitration hearings.  Mr. Fogarty is admitted to practice law in New York and New Jersey.  He earned a B.A. in History from James Madison University and a J.D. from Brooklyn Law School.  Prior to joining Everest, Mr. Fogarty practiced law, working at a private law firm that specialized in representing design professionals, and he also spent several years as an Assistant Corporation Counsel with the New York City Law Department.

Mr. Franco is a Certified Legal Malpractice Law Specialist, State Bar of California: Board of Legal Specialization. Mr. Franco focuses his practice on the representation of lawyers, designers, directors and officers, insurance and real estate professionals. He also represents product manufacturers in catastrophic injury cases, handles insurance coverage disputes and related litigation. Mr. Franco also provides contractual review to a wide variety of clientele. Mr. Franco is rated AV-Preeminent by Martindale Hubbell.
 
Mr. Franco is a Vice-President and Director of the North San Diego County Bar Association and was elected  President for 2022. He is a member of the San Diego County Bar Association, Orange County Bar Association Masters Division, Lawyers Professional Liability Consortium, Claims and Litigation Management Alliance, Risk Insurance Management Society (S.D. RIMS), Affiliate Member of AIA San Diego Chapter and is a Judge Pro Tempore of the San Diego County Superior Court. He has been a featured speaker at the CLM National Conference from 2016 to 2021.  Mr. Franco was selected as a Top Lawyer in San Diego in San Diego Magazine for 2015 through 2021 and in Southern California in the Los Angeles Times for 2017 to 2021. He was honored as a Lawyer of Distinction in the New York Times in 2020.
 
Mr. Franco received his Bachelor of Arts degree, cum laude, from the University of Dayton in 1981. He received his Juris Doctorate from Pepperdine University School of Law and was admitted to practice in 1984. Mr. Franco has represented legal professionals for over thirty years, has authored and lectured on risk management for lawyers to the Orange, North San Diego and Riverside County Bar Associations including: Preventing and Defending Legal Malpractice for the Small Firm; Understanding Legal Malpractice and Cyber Liability; Where Attorney Work Product Privilege Rests; General Counsel: From Luxury to Necessity.
 
 

Elaine Fresch is a senior partner in the Los Angeles and Las Vegas offices of the national litigation defense firm Hawkins Parnell. She specializes in construction defect litigation, representing developers, general contractors, subcontractors, design professionals and product manufacturers. She develops aggressive strategies to defend her clients cost-effectively. Elaine has tried complex construction defect cases and handled various complex commercial/real estate litigation matters in federal and state courts. She has also arbitrated construction cases successfully over the years. She is aggressive in her pursuit of settlement on cost-effective and strategically sound terms for her clients. Elaine also represents product manufacturers in complex subrogation claims and defends various clients in general liability and construction accident lawsuits. Elaine is a member of CLM's Construction Leadership Team  and is a member of CLM's Diversity and Inclusion Committee. She is also a Charter Fellow of the Construction Lawyers Society of America and a Senior Fellow of the Litigation Counsel of America. Elaine has been honored with the Larry Syhre Commitment to Service Award for her contributions to the construction industry.

Bob Friedenberg is a full-time mediator, arbitrator and discovery referee. Bob has over 43 years of legal experience and 38 years of mediation and arbitration experience, the last 23 of which have been exclusively as a Mediator, Arbitrator, Discovery Referee and Special Master. He has handled over 3,000 cases through his years of experience, with a wide range of subject matters and case sizes. His cases have ranged from large, multi-party construction cases (public and private) with claims exceeding $80 million, down to smaller value cases in a wide variety of civil matters. Bob’s early experience as a secondary school teacher and coach before beginning his legal career has helped him succeed both as a trial lawyer and mediator working with regular people in a down-to-earth way. 
 
Bob began his legal career in 1983, practicing all types of civil litigation in state and federal courts. While working in private law firms in the Bay Area and San Diego, he acquired significant experience handling numerous bench and jury trials in general civil and business litigation, including: construction claims and defect litigation (representing plaintiff associations, individual homeowners, developer/general contractors, and a wide variety of subcontractors); personal injury (plaintiff and defense); product liability; insurance; premises liability; professional E&O; real estate; employment; civil rights; and municipal liability defense. 
 
In 2000, Bob opened his own independent mediation firm, Friedenberg Mediation, to focus exclusively on alternative dispute resolution. He subsequently joined ADR Services, Inc. in 2018. Bob is certified by the National Conflict Resolution Center and the Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution, and has served as a San Diego County Superior Court Judge Pro Tem since 1997. 

Ms. Friis is a Principal with Walter P Moore.  She has over 27 years of structural engineering design, design-build, project management, forensic engineering, construction defect litigation, and builder's risk claims experience. Her extensive analysis and design experience combined with her educational background enable her to analyze a wide variety of structural problems and failures.
 
In addition, Ms. Friis has comprehensive knowledge of technical design standards for the most commonly used building materials, construction processes, as well as past and current building codes.  She is a member of the ASCE Forensics Committee and and past member of ASCE 7 Main Committee and the ASCE 7 Wind Loads Subcommittee for the 2022, 2016, and 2010 ASCE 7. She is a recipient of the Structural Engineering Institute (SEI) President's Award, an SEI Fellow, an ASCE Fellow and a past member of the SEI Board of Governors. Ms. Friis enjoys presenting at CLM Conferences and teaching at CLM Claims College (Construction). 

Anthony Gaeta’s legal practice specializes in complex construction defect litigation, personal injury and general liability defense, employment litigation, contract law, business formation, premises liability, and hospitality law. In addition, Mr. Gaeta has extensive experience providing sexual harassment prevention training to employers and has led continuing education seminars for insurance adjusters and industry professionals. He is an active member of the San Diego County Bar Association and the Claims and Litigation Management Alliance (CLM). Mr. Gaeta graduated in 2005 from California Western School of Law in San Diego, California, where he earned a place on the Dean’s Honor List. He holds a BA in Political Science from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, California, earned in 2001. He was admitted to the State Bar of California and the United States District Court for the Southern District of California in 2005.

Diana Gerstberger has an extensive background managing and handling  a variety of complex litigated claims including New York Labor Law, Products Liability, Premise Liability and Construction Defect matters. Ms. Gerstberger is currently Vice President of Casualty Claims at Arch Insurance, where she manages the Construction Defect and NY Labor Law claims teams. Previously, Diana was a Primary Claims Manager at AXIS Insurance where she managed a team of  adjusters as well as handled a claims pending consisting of primarily of New York Labor Law, Premises liability and Products Liability losses.  Additionally, Diana has served in various mentoring and  leadership roles while at Zurich, Catlin, XL Catlin, AXIS and Arch.  Ms. Gerstberger has over 21 years’ experience in the insurance industry as a claims professional and insurance defense counsel. She obtained her JD from California Western School of Law and she is licensed to practice in California.

Krista Glenn is Executive Vice President and Chief Claims Officer for Westfield Specialty and brings 30 years of insurance claims and management experience to the role. At Westfield Specialty, Ms. Glenn is building a new, full-service claims organization in order to support all of Westfield Specialty's lines of business which currently include E&S Casualty; E&S Property; Financial Institutions; Management Liability and Westfield Pro (Cyber, E&O and Professional Liability).     

Prior to joining Westfield Specialty, Krista spent five years as EVP, Chief Claims Officer at a North Carolina-based insurance carrier.  Krista also spent more than 21 years at the ACE/Chubb companies where she held many roles in Chubb, ACE North America and ACE Group Claims.  She ended her career at Chubb as the Head of Multinational Claims with dual reporting to the Global Accounts underwriting division.  Krista began her career handling claims and declaratory judgment actions at AIG in New York.

Krista is a member of Chief, a 2019 Women to Watch and a 2015 Woman on the Move award winner, a member of the Federation of Defense & Corporate Counsel and APIW, and an advisory board member for the CLM.  She is a graduate of Seton Hall University and Delaware Law School and is admitted to the bar in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.  In her most important role, Krista is the proud mother of two adult daughters.

Mark Gothold is the Claims Director in the Corporate Risk Management department of McCarthy Holdings, Inc., a national commercial general contractor. He manages losses involving Builder’s Risk, Professional, General Liability (personal injury and construction defect), Pollution, Cyber and Employment Practice Liability. Mr. Gothold partners with McCarthy’s insurance companies, vendors, and third-party administrators in the adjustment of those claims. He also supervises the handling of Worker’s Comp and Auto Liability claims. Mr. Gothold works closely with McCarthy’s Legal Department on insurance losses that impact McCarthy’s projects, including Subcontractor Default claims. Prior to McCarthy, Mr. Gothold worked for Property & Casualty insurers, handling litigated claims involving excess, reinsurance and wrap policies.

Mr. Griffin is a Senior Principal Engineer with Envista Forensics located in Dallas, Texas. Mr. Griffin is a Structural Engineer with over 30 years of experience including the structural design, analysis and forensic investigation of commercial, institutional, residential, municipal and industrial buildings, water and wastewater treatment facilities, flood control projects, retaining walls, and welded steel ground storage tanks. He has experience in performing failure investigations for a variety of construction materials, including concrete, steel and wood structures, and damages, including wind, hail, flood, soil movement, and vehicular impacts. He has extensive knowledge of evaluating building conditions and analyzing structural failures. 

Danielle is a former trial attorney with the highest possible “AV Preeminent” rating by Martindale Hubbell’s peer & client review rating system.  In addition to being awarded San Diego Super Lawyers – Rising Star recognition, she has also received awards for Top Lawyer in San Diego Magazine, & Top Attorney in the San Diego Daily Transcript.   Danielle was a panel speaker at the West Coast Casualty Construction Defect conference.  She served on the board of directors as a board member/Treasurer for San Diego Defense Lawyers Association & as Co-chair of the Construction Section of the San Diego County Bar Association. Danielle served on the Board of Directors for the United Services Organization (“USO”) in San Diego.  She most recently served as President on the Board of Directors for The Vox Artium Foundation in Atlanta, Georgia.  Danielle has had success representing a diverse group of clients, from a Fortune 500 company to commercial real estate developers, LLC's, business owners, individuals, insurance underwriters, general contractors & subcontractors both as litigation counsel & as General Counsel of a real estate holding company of commercial retail properties, resorts, golf courses, & hotels. Danielle is currently the Chief Legal Officer/Chief Underwriting Counsel and Co-Founder of the start-up MGA, First Insurance & Risk Management.

Michelle Grimaldi recently joined TransRe/Fair American Insurance and Reinsurance Company as a Senior Claims Examiner in the New York office where her focus is Directors & Officers Liability for both public and private companies. Prior to that, she was Vice President of the Professional Liability Claims Group at Sedgwick where she managed a team that handled a number of professional liability claims, including Directors & Officers Liability, Lawyers Professional Liability, Architects & Engineers, Accountants Liability, Employment Practices Liability, and Cyber Liability, among others. Michelle comes with years of professional liability claims handling experience with a major insurance carrier and third-party administrators. Michelle also has years of civil litigation experience as she was a lawyer at two large New York City law firms for several years. Michelle earned her B.S. from St. John’s University and her J.D. from New York Law School. She is admitted to the New York State Bar as well as the Eastern and Southern Districts of New York. Michelle also has several claims adjusting licenses.

Andy Guerra is a Structural Engineer with over 25 years of experience as a structural engineer and 15 years of experience specializing in the investigation and analysis of potential construction defects and building system failures. He has extensive expertise in analyzing buildings to identify causes of potential design and construction deficiencies, determining responsible parties, and providing solutions to mitigate or repair issues. His experience spans residential, commercial, educational, mixed-use, and hospitality.
 
Mr. Guerra is well-versed in the analysis, design, and detailing of building envelope, structural, and foundation systems. He has a deep understanding of the International Building Codes, ASCE 7, and material-specific design standards such as ACI, AISC, AISI, and NDS, which he applies in both forensic investigations and repair designs. His work combines technical expertise with a commitment to resolving complex construction challenges effectively.

Steve Halbeisen is a member of the firm's Dallas office, where he is chair of the Subrogation & Recovery Department's South Central region.  Steve has successfully litigated a wide variety of property damage disputes involving fires and explosions, product failures, petrochemical plant damages, flood damages, structural failures, material failures, sprinkler system failures, heavy equipment losses, tower collapses, fine arts losses and construction defect losses, among others.  Steve has tried cases to verdict in Texas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Kansas and Arkansas.
Steve earned his undergraduate degree from St. Joseph's University in 1987 and his law degree from the University of Miami in 1990.

From Birmingham, AL, Bryant was an Employment Attorney with extensive experience litigating fist fights at municipal landfills.  When his small business was decimated by the hiring of a soft hearted and overly forgiving landfill administrator, Bryant turned his sites on the insurance industry.  At Engle Martin, Bryant is an Executive Casualty General Adjuster who specializes in microwave explosions, unauthorized vehicle painting, health club stabbings, concrete hose whip injuries, bat exposures in haunted hotels (as codirector of the Haunted Risk Consortium), and vehicle verses pharmaceutically-enhanced pedestrian claims. 

Amanda Harvey is a Partner at Mullen Coughlin and focuses her practice on providing organizations of all sizes and from every industry sector in first-party incident response and third-party privacy defense legal services. Amanda guides organizations through all stages of responding to, or preparing for, a data privacy and security incident, ranging from the initial discovery and containment of the incident, to counseling the organization on its legal obligations and, finally, with responding to inquiries from regulators, law enforcement and the media. Amanda has counseled hundreds of organizations in investigating and responding to an incident compromising information and network security, working closely with the various stakeholders in the incident response process such as the organization itself, third-party forensic investigators and law enforcement. She advises victim organizations on their legal notice and compliance responsibilities required by state, federal and international law, as well as those stemming from industry-specific standards, ethical obligations and contract. 

Amanda has experience with organizations in the healthcare and life sciences industry, such as hospital and healthcare systems and providers, as well as organizations from other industries including financial services; retail/e-commerce; hospitality and entertainment; and professional services. She’s represented these types of organizations in responding to formal follow-up inquiries by regulators, including state Attorneys Generals; state insurance and health departments; and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights (HHS-OCR).  

Miles is the Vice President and Chief Claims officer for Berkley Construction Solutions. He has over 16 years of experience in claims and claims management specializing in excess and primary liability for construction risks. Most recently, he served as the New York construction claims manager for a sister Berkley company, in addition to managing the professional liability book and in-house coverage roles. Miles holds a BA in History from the University of Wisconsin at Madison, and a JD from the University of Dayton.  
 

Stephen J. Henning is the co-founder of Wood, Smith, Henning, and Berman, LLP, a prestigious Am Law 125 law firm with a nationwide presence spanning 36 offices across the United States. Renowned for his expertise as a litigator, Steve has garnered national recognition for his exceptional results in complex construction, real estate, business, and employment litigation. He also enjoys experience handling all facets of professional liability, and toxic tort litigation.

Steve regularly represents Fortune 500 companies and prominent figures in the business community, represents some of the largest residential and commercial public and private owners, homebuilders, developers, investors, contractors, and lenders in the nation. His track record of success has solidified his reputation as a trusted legal resource for high-profile clients.

As a sought-after thought leader in the legal field, Steve is a frequent speaker and prolific author on emerging issues. In recognition of his exceptional contributions, Steve was honored with the 2019 CLM's Professional of the Year for Outside Legal Counsel award. He also is the first defense lawyer to receive the prestigious Jerold S. Oliver Award for his significant contributions to the construction community. In 2022, Steve was named the RISE Mentor of the Year, further solidifying his status as a respected leader in the industry. His exceptional legal writing skills were recognized with the prestigious 2023 Law360 Distinguished Legal Writing Award, highlighting his ability to articulate complex legal concepts with clarity and precision.

Dave has nearly 30 years of experience in the legal and claims industry. Dave joined National Claim
Services in 2022 as Senior Vice President – Programs, National Claim Services. National Claim Services is
a Third-Party Claim administrator, which includes handling claims for policies underwritten by Prime
Specialty. Dave’s responsibilities include oversight and management of claims involving New York Labor
Law, general liability, and third-party property damage claims.

Prior to joining National Claim Services, Dave started as an attorney in private practice before moving to
GNY and RLI insurance companies. He has extensive experience in New York Labor Law, general liability
claims, and insurance coverage. Dave earned his B.A from Syracuse University and his J.D. from
Brooklyn Law School. He holds the Chartered Property Casualty Underwriter (CPCU) designation.

Ryan is a partner in WSHB’s Denver office, handling complex litigation involving construction defect, catastrophic injury, insurance coverage, premises liability and professional liability issues. In addition, Ryan handles litigation involving products liability, toxic torts, subrogation and business litigation. His construction defect experience includes representation of large residential and commercial builders / developers with claims exceeding $50 million down to individual subcontractors on single family residences.  Ryan earned his law degree from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas – William S. Boyd School of Law. While enrolled at UNLV, he was a student attorney in the Thomas & Mack Immigration Law Clinic and also taught local residents family law and child custody basics through the law school’s community outreach program. Ryan earned bachelor’s degrees in economics and marketing from Western Michigan University, where he also received the Presidential Scholar Award in Economics and the Outstanding Academic Achievement in Marketing.

Henrietta Hinojosa, Senior Vice President of claims with National Claim Services LLC, has over 20 years experience in the insurance industry. In her current role, her responsibilities include oversight and management of commercial general liability claims with specialization in construction defect claims.  As part of oversight and management, Mrs. Hinojosa  develops and implements best practices for claims handling. In addition to oversight and management duties, Mrs. Hinojosa negotiates and manages of relationships with carriers, sister companies, vendors and other partners. She earned her Bachelors of Business Administration with focus in Risk Management and Insurance from the University of Georgia. She has also earned her Associate in Claims designation. Prior to joining National Claim Services, Mrs. Hinojosa  handled general liability claims involving construction defect, long term exposure including FEMA Trailer & Chinese Drywall, and New York Labor Law for the ACE Group of Companies.

Michael A. Hinojosa is the President and Chief Claim Officer for National Claim Services LLC,  a third-party claims administrator for programs under the Starwind Specialty Insurance Services, LLC.  As a seasoned claims executive with over 40 years of experience, he has built his successful career through innovation and intellectual talent development.  He is recognized as a “hands-on roll up your sleeve” results-oriented Leader with the ability to quickly identify opportunities, formulate strategic plans and implement new processes in challenging and diverse environments.

Prior to joining National Claim Services, he held the position of Chief Claim Officer for American Safety Insurance Company and Westchester Fire Insurance Company. Additionally, he held various positions of increasing responsibilities with USAA and the Chubb Group of Insurance Company’s.

Anoush Holaday is a partner in WSHB's Petaluma office and an accomplished litigator with extensive experience in the state and federal courts of California. She enjoys a host of experience in several different practice areas, including catastrophic injury, wrongful death, intellectual property, medical malpractice, habitability, landlord-tenant claims, premises liability, and civil rights. She also has a comprehensive construction practice in which she counsels and fiercely defends regional and national builders in complex residential and commercial construction contract disputes, construction defect litigation, and accident litigation.

Anoush excels at risk analysis and strategy development to yield successful results for our clients. She has secured remarkable results at all stages of claims, from pre-litigation through trial. Her track record boasts innumerable suit dismissals, dispositive motions, favorable settlements, and trial results.

She also proudly serves as WSHB’s first-ever Director of Associate Success. In this capacity, Anoush mentors firm associates, across all of our offices, on all aspects of litigation. Anoush also proudly serves as a mentor for dozens of associates through the firm’s Mentorship Program as well as a DEI mentor through the firm’s DEI Mentorship Program. Additionally, she is also a valued and integral member of WSHB's DEI Task Force.

Bill leads Skyward Specialty Insurance’s Property Claims team.  He has 30 years of legal, claims, underwriting and brokerage experience with expertise in many insurance lines including Property, General Liability, Commercial Auto, Environmental, Professional, and Construction Defect. He previously held Property and General Liability claim leadership roles at Scottsdale Insurance/Nationwide E&S, and recently was the claim leader at Nautilus Insurance Group for Commercial Excess Claims.  Bill is actively involved with the American Bar Association’s Insurance Coverage Litigation Committee. 

Mr. Hopkins is a licensed Professional Engineer and Architect with expertise in the design and performance of building envelope systems. In addition to his dual bachelor's degrees from Lehigh University, Mr. Hopkins has an MBA from the University of Chicago. He brings over thirty years of real-world design, project management, operations, and construction experience. Project experience includes residential, educational, commercial, retail, entertainment, heavy-industrial, municipal, and utility services. Mr. Hopkins is a seasoned negotiator and has been designated as a lead expert on numerous complex construction cases, including mediation, deposition, and trial testimony.

Mr. Hopkins heads up YA Groups National Construction Defect Practice. He performs all aspects of construction defect litigation support, including claims analysis, field inspection and documentation of defects, code review, as-built conditions, document review, cause and origin analysis, cost estimating, repair scope, financial analysis, and allocation of responsibility for developer and individual subcontractor clients.  In addition to evaluation of Architect / Engineer Standard of Care.

Mr. Hopkins is licensed in multiple states and holds NCARB and NCEES credentials.

Laura Huffman joined Engle Martin in 2011 as a General Casualty Adjuster before being promoted to Director of Casualty Operations in 2017. In her current role as Engle Martin’s Vice President of Casualty Operations, Laura provides leadership, operational direction, and supervision to Engle Martin’s National Casualty Practice.

Prior to joining Engle Martin, Laura spent several years at Farmers Insurance serving as Senior Liability Adjuster. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Community Health from Texas A&M University. She holds an Associate in Claims designation and is a board member of the Young Professionals Advisory for Claims and Litigation Management (CLM) Alliance.

Donna M. Hunt AIA, Esq. joined Ironshore in 2014 as Assistant Vice President of the Designers & Contractors Professional Liability (DCPL). The DCPL team focus is on providing underwriting and risk management services to architects, engineers and design-build contractors throughout the construction industry. Donna is both a licensed attorney and registered architect, provide a complement to Ironshore’s underwriting, claim and risk management services and to all DCPL brokers and clients. Prior to joining Ironshore, Donna was with AIG/Lexington for 10 years in various roles within the Architects & Engineers professional liability team ranging from the Manager of the A&E Claims Group to the Director of Risk Management Services. Prior to AIG Donna actively practiced as an attorney representing contractors, subcontractors, architects and engineers.   In addition, Donna has over 35 years of construction industry practice and actively practiced as an architect in New York and Boston.   
 
Donna received a Bachelor of architecture from Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York and her Juris Doctor (JD) from New England School of Law in Boston, MA.  She is a licensed attorney and registered architect in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.  Donna is the President of the Jefferson Society and a member of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) and Boston Society of Architects.
 
Donna can be contacted in Boston, MA at 617-502-5374 or donna.hunt@ironshore.com.

 

Mary Lou Hutson is the Major Case Specialization Leader at UFG.  An attorney by training, she has worked in various insurer claim departments as an adjuster and manager since 1990, primarily in environmental and construction defect claims.  

Kelley works for Hudson Insurance Group in its New York City office managing a team of adjusters who handle a variety of claims including general liability, construction (GL and Wrap), product liability, cyber, liquor liability, public entity, and umbrella. Prior to joining Hudson Insurance Group, Kelley worked for two insurance carriers handling general liability, toxic tort, product liability, and environmental claims. Kelley also practiced law in Maryland and the District of Columbia focusing on general liability, toxic tort, and long tail exposure claims.

In her spare time, she enjoys cooking, traveling, Orangethoery, Broadway shows, sporting events, and spending time with friends and family.

Corey Jeffers has nearly a decade of experience in the insurance industry as a practicing attorney and claims professional. Currently Corey is a Technical Claims Manager at RLI Corp handling a case load of complex bodily injury and property damage cases.  Prior to his current role, Corey worked at Markel Insurance Company handling a variety of commercial and residential construction defect matters throughout the country, including a significant case load in Texas. In his roles Corey has been successful in investigating claims, analyzing coverage, pursuing risk transfer, and bringing claims to effective resolutions. Corey has spoken on other panels and other conferences including CLM.  He holds a Juris Doctor from Fordham University Law School in New York, and is admitted to the bar in New Jersey where he resides with his wife and three children.

Terence Kadlec is the Senior Vice President of Technical Services at MC Consultants, specializing in forensic engineering and construction defect matters. His expertise includes investigating design and construction defects, structural failures, and catastrophic events. Additionally, he has played a pivotal role in expanding the company’s forensic engineering capabilities nationwide since joining in 2022.

Robin Kahn is the Vice President of Construction Claims with Chubb. Robin started her career with Kemper Insurance in 1996 as a claim trainee handling national accounts auto, slip and fall and a variety of bodily injury claims. During her time with Kemper, she moved on to complex matters such as Construction Defect, Personal Injury and Advertising Injury claims. In 2002, she moved to St. Paul Insurance to focus on CD claims. St. Paul merged with Travelers Insurance in 2004 and she was promoted to a Major Case Specialist position, handling a variety of complex claims and providing oversight to other claim professionals. In 2012, she joined ACE/Chubb as a supervisor, leading the Chatsworth CD team. She continued expand her role to lead the entire CD department, which specializes in property damage matters involving construction, as well as construction products liability claims. As VP of Construction, she leads the construction defect and construction injury departments. She was the recipient of West Coast Casualty’s 2017 “Legends of an Era” honor, awarded for her lifetime contribution to the CD community. She has a BA from the University of California at Santa Barbara and an AIC designation from The Institutes.

J.D.’s practice focuses on civil litigation with an emphasis on construction, professional lines defense, real estate litigation, catastrophic loss, commercial litigation and first party defense.  He currently serves as the Litigation Practice and Process Leader for the firm.  He is a frequent speaker on Litigation Management and Industry related trends and topics.  He has been fortunate to be an instructor at CLM's Litigation Management Institute and a Dean for the School of Litigation Management at the CLM Claims College.  

 He is a member of the Wake County Bar Association, the Mecklenburg County Bar Association, the North Carolina State Bar, the North Carolina Bar Association, the Defense Research Institute, the Claims and Litigation Management Association (CLM), PLUS and the North Carolina Association of Defense Attorneys. Mr. Keister currently serves on the Executive Board for the North Carolina Association of Defense Attorneys.  He has previosly served as Chair of the Construction, Amicus and CLE Committee.  He has also previously served as the co-chair of CLE for the NCBA Construction Section, and on the board of the Eastern North Carolina Chapter of CLM, currently serving as its President. He is AV-rated by Martindale-Hubbell and has been named a Rising Star in North Carolina Super Lawyers. He has also been featured in North Carolina Business Leader Magazine and the Book of Leaders Legal Section of Charlotte Business Leader.  He has been honored in the North Carolina Business Journal's Legal Elite and maintains an AV rating from Martindale Hubbell.

Justin Kestner has been with Haag since January 2006 and has been President & CEO since March 2014.  He oversees all of Haag's divisions including Engineering, Construction Consulting, Research & Testing, and Education.  He is a licensed professional engineer with a civil/structural background.  Mr. Kestner has been retained as an expert for cases including multi-district class action litigation, federal and sate courts.  He has provided expert testimony and/or litigation support for construction defects, builders risk, product liability, construction accidents, and property damage cases inlcuding those stemming from major hurricanes.  Mr. Kestner has expertise with bridges and highway structures, roofing and building envelope, foundations, and buildings.  He has presented at various conferences including PLRB and Windstorm.  Mr. Kestner has been a contributing author for CLM Magazine and other publications.  He is also a co-developer and presenter for Haag's Certified Inspector courses in Residential and Commercial Roof Damage Assessment.  

Ms. King is licensed to and regularly practices in the state and federal courts of Alabama, Louisiana, and Texas. She has extensive litigation experience in first-party insurance bad faith litigation. Ms. King also has expansive experience in large loss third-party defense litigation, mass tort litigation, catastrophe litigation, and insurance coverage litigation. Mary Ellen handled all stages of litigation in hundreds of cases while defending numerous insurers nationwide after Hurricanes Charley, Frances, Jeanne, Ivan, Dennis, Katrina, Rita, Wilma, and Ike. She advises clients on the existence of insurance coverage and the handling of insurance claims under various insurance policies, including commercial general liability, automobile, homeowners, personal and commercial property, and Standard Flood Insurance Policies for clients in the State of Alabama, Texas, and Louisiana. Mary Ellen litigates insurance coverage disputes and extra-contractual liability lawsuits involving the duty of good faith and fair dealing, Stowers liability, the Texas Insurance Code, and the Deceptive Trade Practices Act.

Specialties

Bad Faith Insurance Litigation, First Party Insurance Litigation, Third Party Insurance Litigation, Insurance Coverage Analysis, National Flood Insurance Program Defense Litigation, Commercial Litigation, Business Litigation, Real Estate Litigation, Employment Litigation, Public Corporation Consulting and Defense, Lobbying

Keith D. Koeller, Esq. joined JAMS following 39-year legal career and is available as a full-time mediator, arbitrator, referee and special master.  As the founding partner of Koeller, Nebeker, Carlson & Haluck, LLP, he litigated, tried, arbitrated and mediated a multitude of complex commercial and residential construction defect, construction claims, government liability, insurance coverage, catastrophic personal injury and wrongful death cases.  Mr. Koeller earned a reputation for resolving complex matters by forging a consensus among divergent parties. In 2009, Mr. Koeller was the recipient of the prestiges Jerrold S. Oliver Award of Excellence for his outstanding contributions to the construction community.  Mr. Koeller is AV Preeminent – rated by Martindale Hubbell.  He has been selected as a Southern California Super Lawyer 2009 – 2022.  He is the past chair of the Orange County Bar Association Construction Law section.  Mr. Koeller has been a featured speaker at numerous seminars on various construction topics.

Matt is a Manager in the Construction Claims unit of Markel and is based out of Woodland Hills, California.  He manages a team of claims specialists responsible for resolving claims of diverse exposure types and sizes, including traditional construction defect, worksite injury, ongoing operations, and general liability.  Matt's team handles claims throughout the Gulf South and Western United States with a focus on Texas-based claims.  He specializes is evaluating coverages through a wide variety of policy forms and types on both the primary and excess levels.  Matt’s professional claims experience includes handling construction claims on both the primary and excess levels. Prior to joining Markel, Matt enjoyed a multi-jurisdicational law practice litigating environmental, toxic tort, construction defect, and medical malpractice cases.  Matt received his undergraduate degree from Trinity University in San Antonio.  He earned his Juris Doctor degree from University of Denver Sturm College of Law.   

Cheryl L. Kozdrey, Esq. is a Partner at Saxe Doernberger & Vita, P.C., where her practice is dedicated exclusively to policyholder representation throughout the insurance claims process and in coverage dispute litigation against insurance carriers.  Cheryl advises insurance brokers, risk managers, and construction industry professionals regarding optimal risk transfer strategies and insurance solutions, including key considerations for Builder’s Risk, Commercial General Liability, D&O, and Commercial Property policies.  She assists clients with initial policy reviews, as well as renewals and modification(s) of existing policies to ensure coverage needs are satisfied. Cheryl also represents policyholders throughout the claims process, and in coverage dispute litigation against insurance carriers.   She is currently working on some of the largest construction defect cases in the country.  Cheryl is a published author and is admitted to practice in the States of California and Washington and all federal district courts within the State of California.
Cheryl L. Kozdrey, Esq. is a Partner at Saxe Doernberger & Vita, P.C., where her practice is dedicated exclusively to policyholder representation throughout the insurance claims process and in coverage dispute litigation against insurance carriers.  Cheryl advises insurance brokers, risk managers, and construction industry professionals regarding optimal risk transfer strategies and insurance solutions, including key considerations for Builder’s Risk, Commercial General Liability, D&O, and Commercial Property policies.  She assists clients with initial policy reviews, as well as renewals and modification(s) of existing policies to ensure coverage needs are satisfied. Cheryl also represents policyholders throughout the claims process, and in coverage dispute litigation against insurance carriers.   She is currently working on some of the largest construction defect cases in the country.  Cheryl is a published author and is admitted to practice in the States of California and Washington and all federal district courts within the State of California.

Experienced Commercial Casualty Claims Manager with demonstrated insurance industry experience. Skilled in Casualty Claims, Negotiations, Construction Defect, Automobile Liability, Commercial Liability, Professional Liability, General Liability, and Large loss claims. Obtained a Bachelor's of Business Administration degree with a concentration in Finance and a minor in Spanish from Auburn University.

Actively practicing in Colorado, Wyoming and Nebraska, Robert Lapidow approaches law with a proactive and effective mindset, which is how he has established himself as a trusted litigator for over 20 years. His experience in a variety of cases has helped him acquire the tools and knowledge to handle complex matters in a skilled manner.  He’s specifically talented at assessing liability and damages claims at the early stages of a case, resulting in a rapid solution. Robert takes pride in deposing facts and expert witnesses, specifically doctors. His position as a partner and litigator is not only rewarding because he plays a role in helping clients seek justice, but also interesting because every day he is learning, which makes the practice varied, fresh and exciting.  Robert has been with Overturf, McGath & Hull, P.C. since 2005.  Prior to that he worked at a proimint insurance defense firm in New York City, and prosecuted child abuse and neglect cases for the New York City Administration for Children's Services.  Robert earned his CLMP in 2019.

BARBARA LASKARIS-LORIGAN has held various risk and claims management positions in the construction and insurance industries and is currently the Vice President and Head of Claims for Golden State Claims Adjusters headquartered in Carlsbad, California.  Ms. Laskaris-Lorigan was previously an Assistant Vice President for the Construction Defect Specialty Unit at Arch Insurance; a Construction Claims Manager and Large Loss Specialist at Gallagher Bassett Services; the Regional Manager of Claims, Contracts and Credit for SelectBuild, a subsidiary of Building Materials Holding Corporation; Southwestern Regional Team Manager for construction defect claims for Zurich North America; and the Construction Liability Claim Manager for the former Arrowhead Claims organization. Ms. Laskaris-Lorigan has over twenty-six years of experience in the construction defect industry, including investigations, complex claims handling, and management of losses throughout the United States, and has lectured before various legal and trade organizations. Ms. Laskaris-Lorigan is currently the President of the San Diego Chapter of CLM.  In her spare time, she enjoys running and has captained a relay race team that has raised over $110,000 for Taking Control of Your Diabetes, a charity that promotes education for those suffering from diabetes.
 

Jeff is an experienced claims professional with over 37 years in the insurance industry. He has handled large value and complex first-party and third-party claims and litigation as a staff claims representative and as an independent consultant, and his experience spans commercial and personal lines property and liability coverages. Jeff has also held various leadership roles in the industry, and has lead claims organizations of over 100 employees.  

Meliz Martin is a Partner in the firm’s Miami office. Ms. Martin’s practice involves all aspects of federal and state trial litigation with a focus on complex commercial litigation and construction litigation. In her practice, Ms. Martin represents developers, general contractors, subcontractors, design professionals, and insurance carriers in a variety of contexts arising from the construction and use of real property.

Prior to joining the firm, Ms. Martin was an associate in a law firm practicing in the areas of condominium and homeowners association, construction and real estate litigation. Ms. Martin has successfully represented clients in all phases of litigation including trials, summary judgment proceedings and mediations.

Paul manages a group of eight claims professionals tasked with managing Energy and Construction Defect across the United States claims for AXA XL. Paul is based in Los Angeles. Prior to joining AXA XL in 2015, Paul spent 14 years at Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty. Paul has 22 years of domestic and international claim handling experience, including construction, general & products liability, subrogation and toxic tort claim experience as well as reinsurance dispute resolution experience. Paul earned his Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Management from California State University at Long Beach and his Master of Science in Insurance Management from Boston University. Additionally, Paul has obtained numerous insurance designations, including the ARe, ARM, CPCU, CRIS & SCLA designations.

Ashley M. Mattingly is a Partner at Butler and practices in the area of Construction Defect Litigation. Prior to joining the firm, Ashley served indigent Hillsborough County residents as an Assistant Public Defender for the Thirteenth Judicial Circuit handling thousands of cases and litigating over thirty trials. Ashley earned her Bachelor of Arts degree, cum laude, from the University of South Florida in 2010, where she was also a member of the University of South Florida Honors College.  She earned her Juris Doctorate from Valparaiso University School of Law in Valparaiso, Indiana in 2013. During law school, Ashley focused on Litigation and Trial Advocacy while also serving as a member of the Valparaiso University Criminal Law Clinic.

Lynn McCahren is currently with Sompo International, and works out of their Alpharetta, GA office.  At Sompo, Mrs. McCahren handles a variety of General Liability claims including primary and excess wrap programs involving commercial construction.  Mrs. McCahren previously worked with Colony insurance handling construction defect claims for General Contractors and subcontractors.   She began her career with The Hartford Insurance Group as a multi lines adjuster. Lynn was the National Liability Claim manager for REM, a third-party administrator who handled self-insured retentions for large national companies as well as run-off business for The Home Insurance Company.  Other employers include, USF&G, Tristar, and Argo Group.  Lynn has experience handling auto, general liability, property and construction defect. 

Cathie McGrath brings both a lifetime in the construction industry as well as a law degree to her position as Senior Vice President of Construction Claims at Alliant Insurance Services. Cathie has been providing claims management services for over 29 years. An accomplished attorney and the daughter of the founder of a large trade contractor in New York City, Cathie's unique blend of life experience and professional expertise make her an invaluable asset to construction clients and wrap-up programs.  Cathie has responsibility for managing the NY based eastern region claim service center and the team of claim professionals that are dedicated to Alliant’s construction clients. She is responsible for all aspects of the claims advocacy services for large construction trade contractors, national construction / development accounts and comprehensive Contractor Controlled Insurance Programs (CCIPs) and Owner Controlled Insurance Programs (OCIPs), from initiation through implementation and conclusion. 
 
Cathie had a solid track record working on national accounts with loss sensitive programs. Cathie possesses in-depth expertise on NY Labor Law issues, Additional Insured and Contractual Indemnification issues, negotiating claim disputes, coverage analysis and brings her legal knowledge to bear for clients in order to maximize insurance coverage and reach settlements as quickly end cost effectively as possible. 
 
Cathie’s professional Affiliations include CHIEF, Professional Women in Construction (PWC) and Claims Litigation Management (CLM), Women’s Builders Council, New York State Self Insured Association, Long Island Claims Associateion, New York Claims Association. Cathie was named one of Long Island’s Top 50 Women in Business in 2017.
 
Cathie received her Bachelor’s Degree from St. Michael’s College and received her Juris Doctor from New York Law School.

David M. McLain is a founding member of Higgins, Hopkins, McLain & Roswell, LLC, a Denver-based law firm that focuses on construction law and construction litigation throughout Colorado. Since founding the firm in 2001, Mr. McLain has helped build HHMR into one of Colorado's premier construction litigation firms, representing developers, general contractors, subcontractors, design professionals, and insurance carriers in complex construction and commercial disputes.

Mr. McLain graduated cum laude from Colorado State University and earned his Juris Doctor from the University of Denver Sturm College of Law. He is a Certified Litigation Management Professional (CLMP) through the Claims and Litigation Management Alliance and has spent more than two decades defending construction professionals and their insurers in some of Colorado's largest and most complex construction defect lawsuits.

In addition to defending litigation, Mr. McLain advises clients on risk avoidance, claim prevention, contract strategy, litigation management, and early dispute resolution. His clients include national and regional homebuilders, custom builders, developers, subcontractors, and numerous domestic and international insurance carriers.

Mr. McLain is an AV® Preeminent™ Peer Review Rated attorney by Martindale-Hubbell and was recognized by Law Week Colorado as Barrister's Best Construction Defects Lawyer for Defendants. He is a frequent author and speaker on construction defect litigation, insurance defense, risk management, litigation management, and construction law topics, presenting regularly to claims professionals, insurers, builders, and attorneys throughout the country.

Mr. McLain is particularly interested in developing systems and processes that achieve the best possible outcome at the lowest possible total cost, as early as possible. As the Visionary of Higgins, Hopkins, McLain & Roswell, LLC, he is focused on building a sustainable law firm recognized as the premier legal service provider to Colorado's development and construction industry.

I am a civil litigation defense attorney based in New York City. I defend clients in law suits brought in the New York and New Jersey State and Federal trial and appellate level courts, and also in Alternative Dispute Resolution forums.  I have handled professional malpractice defense cases, including architects & engineering malpractice and legal malpractice  I have also worked on also work on construction defect claims and handle personal injury defense, including general liability and premises liability claims involving serious personal injury and wrongful death claims.  Additionally, I work on commerical automobile and transportation litigation matters.  I graduated from Fordham University, Bronx, New York in 1991 with a B.A. in Political Science.  I graduated from Touro Law School, Central Islip, New York, in 1995 with a J.D.  I am admitted to practice law in the State and Federal Courts of New York and New Jersey.

Caitlin is a Senior Claims Professional at Berkley Construction Solutions. Caitlin joined BCS in 2023. Prior to BCS, Caitlin was a Senior Complex Claims Specialist at Vela Insurance Services. Prior to entering the claims world, Caitlin was an associate attorney at Wood, Smith, Henning & Berman.  In addition to her responsibilities at BCS, Caitlin has become involved with professional organizations. Caitlin is involved with the CLM Construction Leadership Board. Caitlin also joined together with other NYC based CLM fellows and members to revive the CLM NYC Chapter, which had become inactive during the pandemic. Caitlin serves as the Vice President of the CLM NYC Chapter and has enjoyed planning activities for local members and fellows. Caitlin serves on the CLM Young Professional Advisory Board. Caitlin was awarded a RISE 35 Under 35 award in 2022. Caitlin is earned a Bachelor’s degree from State University of New York, College at Geneseo and a Juris Doctorate from University at Buffalo Law School.  

WORK EXPERIENCE
CENTRAL MUTUAL INSURANCE COMPANY, Van Wert, Ohio
Director Property Claims
2007 to present.
STATE FARM MUTUAL AUTOMOBILE INSURANCE COMPANY, Toledo, Ohio
Claims Representative
2000 to 2007.
CONGRESSMAN ROBIN HAYES, Concord, North Carolina
Intern in Concord field office
2000.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
EDUCATION
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA AT CHARLOTTE, Charlotte, North Carolina
Degree, B.A. Political Science
January 1999 to December 1999.
UNIVERSITY OF TOLEDO, Toledo, Ohio
Political Science, History
September 1992 to May 1994.
MIAMI UNIVERSITY, Oxford, Ohio
Political Science, History
August 1989 to May 1992.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
CIVIC ORGANIZATIONS AND ACTIVITIES
VAN WERT CITY SCHOOL BOARD OF EDUCATION, Van Wert, Ohio
January 2014 to present
President 2019, Vice President 2018, 2020
UNITED WAY OF VAN WERT COUNTY INC., Van Wert, Ohio
Board of Trustees 2013 to 2020
Executive Committee 2013 to present
President 2015.
VAN WERT PERFORMING ARTS FOUNDATION, Van Wert, Ohio
Board member 2015 to present.
JUNIOR ACHIEVEMENT OF VAN WERT COUNTY, Van Wert, Ohio
Board member 2014 to present
President 2018 – present.
VAN WERT COUNTY REPUBLICAN PARTY CENTRAL COMMITTEE
Committee member 2018 to present.
NORTHWEST STATE COMMUNITY COLLEGE
Board of Trustees 2018 to present
2nd Vice Chair 2020 to present.
VAN WERT MARLINS SWIM CLUB, Van Wert, Ohio
Board member 2015 to 2019.
GRAND LAKE CHAPTER OF CPCU, Van Wert, Ohio
Member 2009 to present.
BUCKEYE INSURANCE PROFESSIONALS (IAIP), Van Wert, Ohio
Member 2013 to present
Board of Directors 2014 to present.
InVEST, Van Wert, Ohio
Course instructor Van Wert High School 2012 to present.
LEADERSHIP VAN WERT COUNTY, Van Wert, Ohio
Course graduate 2014.
CALVARY EVANGELICAL CHURCH, Van Wert, Ohio
Member 2012 to present.
PROPERTY LOSS RESEARCH BUREAU, Various locations
Presenter 2014 to present.
BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA, Wauseon, Ohio.
Eagle Scout 1987.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
PROFESSIONAL DESIGNATIONS
CHARTERED PROPERTY CASUALTY UNDERWRITER, 2009
SENIOR CLAIMS LAW ASSOCIATE, 2011
ASSOCIATE IN MANAGEMENT 2013
ASSOCIATE IN PERSONAL INSURANCE 2014
ASSOCIATE IN REINSURANCE 2015
ASSOCIATE IN CLAIMS 2004
ASSOCIATE IN UNDERWRITING-MANAGEMENT 2017
KENTUCKY ADJUSTERS LICENSE 2006
WRT/ASD CERTIFICATION 2014
ARBITRATION FORUMS CERTIFIED ARBITRATOR 2005

Jeff Miragliotta is the managing partner of Kahana Feld's New York City office. Mr. Miragliotta has dedicated his more than fifteen year career representing insurance companies and self-insureds in insurance defense and insurance coverage matters. Mr. Miragliotta has encountered nearly every conceivable case and fact pattern, and thus can evaluate them quickly and accurately to determine their value and the appropriate defense strategy to pursue to resolve them efficiently and cost effectively.

Mr. Miragliotta defends insurers and their insureds throughout New York and New Jersey in matters involving labor law, commercial automobile accidents, product liability and construction defect. His clients include electrical contractors, general contractors, construction managers and insurance brokers. He also has represented the city of New York and the county of Nassau in tort defense matters and has counseled insurance companies on coverage matters. Mr. Miragliotta has prevailed on appeals before the First and Second Departments of the New York State Supreme Court.

He is experienced in all facets of litigation, handles the entire process: from inception through resolution, whether that involves motions practice, settlement, mediation, arbitration or trial. Mr. Miragliotta understands the strict parameters under which insurance company work, and regularly monitors firm metrics to ensure he adheres to carrier guidelines in every way.

Prior to private practice, Mr. Miragliotta served as a law clerk to the Honorable Patricia Del bueno Clearly of the Superior Court of New Jersey, where he garnered invaluable experience researching and writing briefs, as well as in the courtroom.

Phyllis Modlin is a Director and Senior Counsel with Markel's Complex Casualty Claims team where she handles third-party casualty and construction claims (defect, product liability and bodily injury) for large construction risks involving primary and excess commercial general liability and OCIP/WRAP policies. She has extensive experience and expertise in evaluating unique claims and is extremely knowledgeable about how technology has changed in the construction industry and sees a wide range of claims and issues. She is responsible for all aspects of claims handling, including damages, liability, coverage, reserving, risk transfer, litigation management, expense control measures and claims resolution. As one of the key members of the Topics and Speakers Committee of West Coast Casualty's Construction Defect Seminar, and the co-chair of CLM's Construction Conference, she has substantial knowledge and exposure as to how claims and insurance impact the industry.

Miles Moody earned his undergraduate degree from Georgia State University.  He also earned his Juris Doctorate from Atlanta Law School and is a Graduate of the Herschel E. Cole League of Honor Graduates.  Early in the course of his insurance career he also earned his AIC designation.  His professional experience spans over 34 years in the insurance industry.  As a Complex Claims Specialist for Westfield Insurance Company, he is responsible for supervising complex claims in the commercial arena for the Southeast.  His claims experience includes matters involving heavy litigation in construction defect, premise liability, commercial motor carrier, personal injury and advertising, and other casualty related claims.  He also served as Vice President of the Southern Loss Claims Association.

As a Regional Claims Director for TSIB, Maren oversees a team that is responsible for Turner Construction Company's claims/litigation program including the following jurisdictions: Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, Arkansas, Louisiana, Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, Colorado, Wyoming, Nevada, Arizona, California, Oregon, and Washington.

Maren’s responsibilities encompass supervising and collaborating closely with clients, insurance adjusters, external legal counsel, investigators, brokers, and other vendors to litigate and efficiently resolve numerous high exposure claims, coverage disputes, and lawsuits. These include matters covered under General Liability, Builders’ Risk, Professional Liability, Pollution, Auto, and Property Insurance policies.

Additionally, Maren and her team mobilize TSIB’s crisis-management response to high exposure incidents, including those resulting in personal injury and/or property damage, by overseeing post-incident investigations and assessing potential exposure to Turner’s insurance lines, as well as risk-transfer opportunities. Finally, Maren and her team identify areas of risk potentially connected to Turner’s operations through complex data analytics, and implement protocols, procedures, and programs designed to minimize future insurance premiums and contractual risk based upon prior loss trends.
 
Prior to joining TSIB, Maren worked as an Account Executive with a construction specialist broker and before that as the Claims Manager for a full-service general contractor where she began her career in the construction industry in 2007.

Maren has a Master of Jurisprudence in Compliance and Risk Management, holds an insurance producer license in the state of Iowa for property and casualty lines and a Construction Risk and Insurance Specialist (CRIS) certification from IRMI. She has also obtained the Certified Litigation Management Professional (CLMP), and Advanced Claims Professional (ACP) designations through the Claims and Litigation Management Alliance (CLM).

Elisabeth (Beth) Morris is a litigation attorney whose practice focuses on real property, corporate, construction, general liability disputes and risk management. Her legal career has primarily focused on representing small businesses, start-up companies and large multinational corporations.

Beth represents clients in a variety of industries, including product manufacturing, retail, financial services, construction, real estate, and technology. Beth’s career has been varied, formerly working in the technology sector for venture-backed startups, emerging technologies, and global cybersecurity companies in dual-capacity roles as in-house legal counsel and director of strategic partnerships. Early in her career, she was a lobbyist for a leading multinational telecommunications and technology company.

Beth practices in both Northern and Southern California.

As chief claims officer, Morrison oversees MSIG USA’s enterprise claims function, with responsibility for claims strategy, operations, technical quality, litigation management, and organizational development. He works closely with underwriting, legal, and distribution leadership to ensure claims outcomes align with portfolio intent, support disciplined risk-taking, and deliver timely, fair resolutions for policyholders.

Prior to joining MSIG USA, Morrison held senior claims leadership roles at Great American Insurance Group, where he most recently served as divisional senior vice president overseeing property claims and large-loss operations. Earlier in his career, he held progressively senior roles at The Cincinnati Insurance Companies, managing high-exposure casualty and litigation claims, and served as a complex claims specialist at Selective Insurance. Across his career, he has been recognized for strengthening governance, improving claims efficiency, developing high-performing teams, and fostering close collaboration across underwriting and legal functions.

Will Moye graduated from Marquette University with a degree in Biology and completed his legal education at Seton Hall University School of Law. His trial practice is chiefly focused on transportation, oilfield casualty, and auto product liability claims. Mr. Moye chairs his office’s litigation section. He has been named a Texas Super Lawyer for the past 5 years.

 

Derrick Mullen is a Vice President, Litigation manager and Director of Casualty Claims with the responsibility for managing and handling complex and high exposure litigated claims involving major coverage issues, coordinating mediation days, manages a plaintiff doctor’s spreadsheet as well as managing defense and coverage law firms at Seneca Insurance Company, Inc. Since 1991, he has also worked for Hartford Insurance Company and Crum & Forster Insurance Company as an inside claims representative and an auto claims supervisor. Derrick studied in the field of computer engineering field at Gardner Webb University, where he received his B.S. In his current role, Derrick specializes in commercial general liability insurance claims, as well as first party property litigation filed against the company. Derrick’s success in this area is supported by excellent negotiation and communication skills, high claim technical ability, leadership, organizational skills combined with a special interest in coverage, habitability, products defect as well as construction defect claims. Derrick also carries an insurance adjusting license in 17-States and has a designation as a Master Certified Special Arbitrator (MCSA),  Advanced Claims Professional (ACP)  and a Claims Litigation Management Professional (CLMP) designation. Derrick is currently a faculty member of CLM Claims College. Derrick is an active member of NAAIA, PLRB, LEA and SERMA as well as a Fellow of the CLM. Derrick also serves on the Board of Directors of JINLAW

Mr. Alan Mullenix is a Principal Consultant with over 15 years of experience. He specializes in the practice areas of civil and structural engineering. Alan has extensive experience working in the nuclear and petrochemical industries. At Envista, Alan provides forensic investigations, onsite examinations, and can provide proposals and opinions as to the cause and scope of damages, including cost and repair estimates. He has experience in performing failure investigations for a variety of construction materials, including concrete, steel and wood structures, and damages, including wind, hail, flood, soil movement, and vehicular impacts. 

Pat Nails is the Chief Claims Officer for the Arch Insurance Group Inc.  Pat joined Arch in April 2004 and held a number of positions in legal, claims and reinsurance before being named General Counsel in 2012.  Pat subsequently moved over to the Claims Department in April 2018 assuming the role of Chief Claims Officer for Arch.  Prior to joining Arch Pat spent ten years at the Kemper Insurance Companies and five years in private practice in his hometown of Chicago, Illinois.  He received his B.S. in Finance from the University of Illinois and his J.D. from the Chicago-Kent College of Law.  In addition, he teaches as an adjunct professor in the Temple University’s Fox School of Business.

Catherine Naltsas has successfully represented clients in all phases of civil litigation, including pre-lawsuit investigation, discovery, dispositive motions and trial.? Catherine has extensive experience preparing witnesses for direct and cross-examination, both for depositions and at trial. She works closely in collaboration with her clients to develop the most effective and efficient strategy for the defense of a lawsuit, including obtaining early resolutions of complex lawsuits by successfully arguing dispositive motions in state and federal court.

Catherine Naltsas’ practice focuses primarily on insurance coverage litigation and insurance contract interpretation involving mass torts, environmental, toxic and pollution claims, healthcare malpractice claims, bad faith litigation, breach of insurer duties, comprehensive general liability, professional liability, employment liability and management liability claims.?Her extensive representation of insurer’s interests has involved litigating coverage issues on a local and national level, with amounts in controversy exceeding $1 billion. She has experience negotiating settlement agreements and coverage-in-place agreements on behalf of her insurer clients. Post-resolution, she also works on behalf of her insurer clients on an ongoing basis to evaluate payment allocation and compliance with settlement agreement terms.When not working, Catherine enjoys golfing, philanthropy and community outreach to women, children, and families in need.

Walter has 30 years of experience as an insurance specialist. He began his career as an auto and homeowner’s adjuster with SAFECO in Fountain Valley, CA.  Within a year, he was moved into commercial lines focusing primarily on construction defect claims.  Most of his career has focused on the direct handling and management of multi-million-dollar exposure complex litigated residential and commercial construction defect, and general liability claims with an emphasis on coverage, contract, and damages analysis.

Walter brings 8 + years of proven team/people management and leadership experience including extensive technical and practical knowledge of various property and casualty lines of business including construction, general liability, OCIP/CCIP, excess, severe bodily injury, and fatality, auto, and E&O to his current role of Claims Manager with Turner Surety and Insurance Brokerage, Inc. (TSiB)
He utilizes skills and experience in relationship building, collaboration, and clear and concise communication.  He is accomplished at managing multiple objectives to promote productivity and impact positive outcomes.
 
Walter has claims handling experience in multiple lines of business within multiple jurisdictions and states throughout the United States.  He has a documented history of strong customer service, being an independent self-starter with a track record of leading by example.  His strong organization and desk management skills result in measured favorable results, appropriate expense management and analytical analysis considering the big picture impact on all claims.  He has significant experience in working collaboratively with all internal (underwriting, legal, operations, account management, and customer support) and external (defense counsel, coverage counsel, carriers, experts, mediators, and judges) to achieve successful results.  

Walter regularly participates in speaking panels at various industry seminars.  

Currently Walter holds the following designations:  Certified Risk Manager (CRM); Certified Risk & Insurance Specialist (CRIS), Certified Graduate Associate (CGA) and is individually licensed in over 30 states.

Mark Oertel is a partner in the Los Angeles office of Lewis Brisbois and a member of the Surety, Fidelity, Construction, and Insurance Law Practices. He has more than 30 years of experience in the areas of surety and fidelity and serves as chair of both firmwide practice areas. His experience also includes insurance, professional liability, construction and commercial disputes.

He handles the following types of matters:

Contract surety disputes involving all phases of payment and performance bond claims, litigation and recovery
Commercial surety claims including license and permit bonds
Fidelity bond claims
Employee dishonesty claims
Construction disputes including all phases of contracting, performance and liability
Commercial disputes both domestic and international
Professional liability defense
Insurance coverage and litigation including extra contractual claims- See more at: http://lewisbrisbois.com/attorneys/oertel-mark-a#sthash.rcZLi4Ns.dpuf

As Senior Project Manager/Complex Claims Analyst, Matt
manages property and liability claims for the company’s
lines of coverage, including general liability, excess liability,
contractor’s equipment, pollution, professional, property,
builders’ risk, subcontractor defaults. Also supports
mediations and arbitrations for the company.
Prior to his role in the Risk department, Matt was in
project management having been involved in a variety of
public and private projects including educational,
commercial, pharmaceutical plants, food and beverage,
industrial, and institutional and specializing in healthcare.

Russ M. Patane is a Shareholder in GRSLBG&B’s Litigation Department and serves as the Shareholder in Charge of the Firm’s New York Office. He concentrates his practice in general liability and  construction litigation, with an emphasis on New York Labor Law.

Russ represents a broad range of clients in complex litigation involving construction defects, construction site accidents, premises liability, personal injury, and products liability claims throughout New York and New Jersey. In 2019, he earned the Certified Litigation Management Professional (CLMP) designation from the CLM Litigation Management Institute, reflecting his commitment to excellence in litigation strategy and case management. He is also accredited as a LEED Green Associate by the Green Building Certification Institute.

Russ received his B.A. from The Pennsylvania State University in 1996 and his J.D. from Pace University School of Law in 2006. He is admitted to practice in New York and New Jersey, as well as in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey and the Southern District of New York. He was recognized as a “Rising Star” by New Jersey Super Lawyers from 2013 through 2016 and was named a “Super Lawyer” by New York Metro Super Lawyers in 2023, 2024  and 2025. Since 2017, he has earned an AV Preeminent rating from his peers.

Before entering the legal profession, Russ spent eight years as a junior high school teacher and high school football coach in the Lodi, New Jersey Public School System.

Laura is a Partner in the Charleston office of Gordon & Rees. For over 16 years, she has successfully developed and executed resolution plans representing corporate entities and individuals in pre-litigation disputes and litigated cases. Laura holds an AV Preeminent Peer Review rating by Martindale-Hubbell and has been named a Super Lawyers Rising Star. Laura's practice focuses primarily on litigation providing corporate clients with exceptional legal services in the areas of construction defects, product liability, personal injury, and premises liability defense.

In addition to her practice with the firm, she is a published author, respected speaker, and avid volunteer. She served nine years on Board of Directors for the South Carolina Women Lawyers Association, founded SCWLA Public Service Committee, and has served on CLM's Diversity in Construction Committee. She is a graduate of the South Carolina Bar Leadership Academy's 2014 class and is a certified mediator.

Commercial Litigation
Construction Litigation
Premises and Personal Injury Litigation
General Liability

Greg leads the GB Construction Vertical Practice. He is responsible for leading the integration, evolution, promotion, and outcomes of GB’s industry-leading construction claims and risk management solutions. His expertise is multi-faceted, with a particular focus in casualty insurance programs and captives. For more than 20 years, Greg has been providing solutions to some of the largest construction management and real-estate development companies. Greg brings an accomplished risk management background compromising multinational corporate business, complex real-estate development, and construction operations.

Under Greg’s leadership, GB guides the construction industry to achieve total cost of risk reduction in tandem with enhancing profitability. Through commitment and focused investment in risk management solutions within the construction industry, GB brings enhanced value to the entire insured, carrier, and broker distribution chain. Greg is a tactical planner with the ability to attract and secure key players to build strong, lasting business relationships.

Kimberly Petrina is currentlyVice President, Senior Litigation Counsel at Old Republic International where she oversees a variety of claims litigation and other legal matters. Prior to joining Old Republic, Kim was a Partner in the Global Insurance Department at Cozen O'Connor. She has broad experience with evaluating coverage issues. Her experience includes advising clients with respect to policy interpretation and drafting of policy language. Kimberly is a 2005 graduate from Loyola University School of Law and a 2001 graduate, with honors, from Saint Mary's College Notre Dame. Kimberly holds law licenses in Illinois and Texas. Kimberly began her legal career practicing medical malpractice defense, construction defect, as well as product liability defense. She then moved her practice to the Chicago office of Traub Lieberman Straus & Shrewsberry, LLP, where she maintained a professional liability defense practice as well as grew a CGL (primary and umbrella), professional liability, D & O and EPLI practice. She supervised attorneys and worked as coverage and monitoring counsel for insurance industry clients during that time. In 2017, Kimberly joined AXIS Capital Insurance Co. as Senior Litigation Counsel, where she worked to evaluate coverage on behalf of the primary CGL, umbrella and excess claims unit, as well as the DP& E claims team. In her role as in-house counsel with AXIS, Kimberly provided coverage counseling as well as exposure analysis and determines whether outside counsel should be retained in the primary, umbrella and excess units on all matters involving questions of coverage and/or exposure. Kimberly was then promoted to Head of Excess Casualty Claims and eventually to Head of North American Casualty Claims.

Ryan Pitterson is the Director of Operations for Stratus Risk Associates, a subsidiary of Turner Construction Company and its Risk Management Department. Stratus Risk Associates provides clients with customized risk management solutions and claim services. Prior to the formation of Stratus, Ryan was Regional Risk Management Director at Turner. He previously worked as an Insurance Claims Executive for AIG in New York, and prior to that in private legal practice. Ryan serves on the Board of Directors of The King’s Academy, a non-profit, private school in Dallas, Texas, that provides high-level private school education to underserved communities. He also serves on the Construction Advisory Board for Perrin Conferences.  Ryan received his B.A. from the University of Rochester and JD from Columbia University Law School.

Hillary Price has over 25 years of experience as an insurance claims adjuster, claims manager and leader, insurance broker and investment manager. She began her career as an adjuster at Infinity Property & Casualty Corporation (Kemper) in Los Angeles, California, then moved into claims management positions, and most recently held the position of Claim Director of Chubb’s East Coast TPA Oversight Division in NJ/NY. Hillary has extensive complex claims handling experience. She brings technical coverage expertise and risk management strategies to her clients in the hospitality, real estate, and construction space. She has implemented and managed large claim programs with self-insureds, carriers, TPAs, MGAs and captives and supervised multiple teams of claims managers and claims adjusters across the country. She is considered a subject matter expert on contractual defense and indemnity, additional insured coverage, and New York Labor Law. Additionally, Hillary brings comprehensive knowledge of customer service and account management as a former wealth manager and business owner. Hillary holds a Bachelor of Science in Economics from the University of Wisconsin Madison, Master Certificate in Financial Planning from the University of California Los Angeles and participated in Yale's Executive Education Women in Leadership Program. Hillary holds the CPCU, ARM, CRIS, and CFP® designations.

Maria Quintero, Partner at Hinshaw & Culbertson, handles complex insurance disputes involving a broad range of insurance coverage lines including property, cyber, environmental, employment, commercial general and professional liability. She devotes her practice to assisting clients with all facets of insurance law including negotiation, litigation, coverage opinions, policy drafting and extra-contractual disputes. Maria has served as the Insurance Liaison to the Association of Defense Counsel for Northern California and Nevada and is a Co-Chair of the Extra-Contractual Committee with the Claims and Litigation Management Alliance. She is also a contributing author to Insurance Agency Risk Management: E&O Exposures By Line of Business. Maria develops training on industry best practices and is experienced with both bench and jury trials and with appellate court argument. She is a frequent commentator, presenter, and writer on emerging industry issues and technology.

 

 

Scott D. Rembold is a founding partner of Rembold Hirschman, an insurance, construction, and business litigation firm with offices in Miami, West Palm Beach, and Naples, Florida.  Mr. Rembold focuses his practice primarily on the construction industry, representing contractors and subcontractors both directly and through their insurers as assigned defense counsel.  Mr. Rembold and his firm also have extensive experience handling general liability claims on behalf of insureds, as well as complex commercial litigation matters. Mr. Rembold has also served as outside general counsel for the South Florida Associated General Contractors and the American Society of Professional Estimators.

Mr. Rembold is AV® Preeminent rated by Martindale-Hubbell, and has been named a Top Rated Lawyer in Construction Law by American Lawyer Media, a Top Attorney by the South Florida Legal Guide, “Legal Elite” by Florida Trend magazine, and has been named on the list of the Top 100 Lawyers in Florida by SuperLawyers in both 2016 and 2017. Mr. Rembold is Board Certified in Construction Law by the Florida Bar and earned the Certified Litigation Management Professional (CLMP) designation.

Candace Rhoden is an accomplished construction consultant and claims adjuster with 8 years of experience in the insurance industry. Specializing in both complex large loss desk and field adjusting, she has established herself as a reliable and knowledgeable professional in the field of property claims. With a strong background in water damage restoration and mitigation, as well as expertise in roofing, Candace's skill set extends beyond the typical claims adjuster role.
 
Candace's journey in the industry began with a keen interest in helping individuals and businesses recover from unexpected disasters. As a certified water restoration technician, and Residential Building Inspector, she possesses an in-depth understanding of the complexities involved in assessing and addressing water-related damages. From identifying the source of leaks and seepage to determining the extent of water intrusion, Candace's expertise enables her to make accurate and efficient claims assessments.
 
Throughout her career, Candace has successfully managed a wide range of claims, collaborating closely with policyholders, contractors, and other industry professionals to facilitate the restoration process. Her comprehensive knowledge of water mitigation techniques allows him to provide practical solutions to minimize further damage and expedite the recovery process for those affected by water-related incidents.

Joanna concentrates her practice in complex insurance coverage, product liability, and commercial litigation. She serves as counsel for multi-national insurance carriers in numerous matters pending throughout the country. Joanna has litigated all phases of declaratory judgment actions and arbitrations. She has counseled large insurers on risk management, underwriting procedures, and policy rewriting and claims practices.

She also focuses her practice on professional liability claims, including errors and omissions; property claims; life, health, and disability; construction liability coverage; Coverage B litigation; and products liability. She recently chaired the Annual Meeting for the Torts Insurance and Compensation Law (TICL) Section of the New York State Bar Association.

Joanna is currently the editor of the TICL Insurance Coverage eNews, published by the New York State Bar Association’s Torts, Insurance, and Compensation Law Section. She is also a commentator for Mealey’s Litigation Report: Insurance Bad Faith.

Joanna is multi-lingual and has attained a degree in linguistics in Florence, Italy. She has a familiarity with and appreciation for international claims handling practices as a result of her experience handling claims arising in Mexico, Italy, the United Kingdom, Spain and France.

Michael Saba brings more than 44 years of fidelity, surety, subcontractor default insurance, and claim management experience. Mr. Saba has held in-house, senior claims management positions with major surety companies and has directed and personally handled numerous construction defaults. Mr. Saba oversees Guardian Group, Inc's Surety Practice and has participated in mediation, arbitration, and litigation of disputed performance and payment bond obligations. Mr. Saba received his Bachelor of Science Degree from Woodbury University and studied law at  LaVerne University School of Law. He is a certified instructor for The American Surety Association, associate member of TIPS of the American Bar Association, past President of the Northern California Fidelity & Surety Claims Association, past speaker and current member for the National Bond Claims Association and is affiliated with numerous professional organizations.


 

Peter has over 30 years of experience representing clients in construction and surety law, general and professional liability, insurance defense and medical malpractice as well as general litigation matters. Peter is also well versed in the coverage issues that arise in his practice areas and has litigated those coverage issues throughout his career. 

Nicholas J. Sansone, Sr. is a graduate of Temple University where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Criminal Justice with honors in 1988. He graduated from Villanova University School of Law with his Juris Doctorate in 1991. Mr. Sansone is admitted to practice in the State of New Jersey, the state of New York and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. He is also admitted to practice in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.

Mr. Sansone was engaged in private practice for 30+ years prior to joining Donnelly, Petrycki and Sansone in 2022. His practice is focused on the defense of litigated matters for insurance carriers and self-insured clients in both state and federal courts in cases involving premises liability, negligence security claims, pharmacy malpractice, construction site accidents, property damage, construction defect, insurance coverage claims, general negligence and appellate practice. He has also been awarded Top Attorney -Construction- South Jersey Magazine 2021-2022.

Mr. Sansone is a member of the Camden County Bar Association and the Burlington County Bar Association (Trustee on Board). He is also a member of the Philadelphia County Bar, Pennsylvania State Bar, New Jersey State Bar and New York State Bar Associations, as well as the American Bar Association. Mr. Sansone is also a member of the New Jersey Defense Association, Defense Resolution Institute - Construction Law Steering Committee and SLG Vice Chair – Retail and Hospitality Subcommittee. He is a member of CLM, Construction Claims Community and Construction Conference Committee. Mr. Sansone also serves on RIMS - External Affairs Committee. He has also presented various seminars to clients on insurance coverage issues, contractual indemnity claims, verbal threshold issues for commercial clients, and other motor vehicle related topics.

Tracy Alan Saxe, President of Saxe Doernberger & Vita, P.C, is a skilled commercial litigator with more than 35 years of experience focused on insurance coverage on behalf of policyholders. He handles cases involving coverage for comprehensive general liability, directors and officers, professional liability, builder’s risk, subcontractor default insurance, first-party property damage, additional insured, wrap-up policies, collateral disputes, cyber, reps and warranty, and business interruption claims. Mr. Saxe has litigated insurance coverage matters nationwide and has successfully tried over 60 arbitrations, appraisals, jury, and court trials. In addition, Mr. Saxe has been an Adjunct Professor of Law at Quinnipiac University, where he taught Insurance Law. He frequently lectures on insurance coverage nationwide.

Rick Seely is a shareholder Segal McCambridge in their Los Angeles. Mr. Seely has over 30 years of experience representing clients mainly in business litigation, construction defect litigation, and general insurance defense matters. He has handled numerous matters from initial case introduction through trial.

Mr. Seely successfully defends clients in construction and general litigation, including a defense award for his client after a 70 day multi-party arbitration; a defense award which also produced a judgment for attorney fees and costs for his client; and a successful trial in which a general contractor was only assessed $35,000, against a claim for $700,000 in construction damages.

Mr. Seely earned a B.A. in Political Science from the University of California, Riverside in 1990 and obtained his J.D. from Loyola of Los Angeles Law School in 1993. Mr. Seely also regularly presents and moderates continuing education panels for organizations such as The CLM, West Coast Casualty’s Construction Defect Seminar, and the OCBA. His topics range from the basics of subrogation claims; the analysis of indemnification clauses; construction litigation trends; and his favorite: civility among lawyers.

In his time away from the office, Mr. Seely runs, surfs, camps, and hikes: all of which are a distant second behind spending time with his wife and children.

Jay Sever is a partner in the Insurance and Reinsurance group of Phelps Dunbar. He is the Regional Practice Coordinator for the firm's insurance practice group and is also head of the insurance and reinsurance practice group in the New Orleans office. He serves as local, regional and national coverage counsel for both foreign and domestic insurance companies. He counsels clients, manages disputes and tries cases involving a wide variety of insurance coverage issues, including matters arising from bad faith, construction defects claims, third-party liability claims, first-party claims, professional liability claims, crane and rigging claims, racing and competitive sport claims, entertainment claims, transportation claims, environmental claims, general and toxic tort claims, advertising, copyright and trademark claims, media liability claims, multiple-year trigger and allocation issues, marine liability claims, Louisiana direct action claims and numerous others.

In addition to handling cases in Louisiana and California courts in which he is admitted, Jay also has acted as lead counsel in cases pending in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Mississippi, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and Washington. Jay's practice, both litigation and counseling, involves attorneys from all of Phelps Dunbar's offices in the Gulf South and, where necessary, local counsel in states throughout the United States.

Lee H. Shidlofsky is a founding member of Shidlofsky Law Firm PLLC. His practice is devoted to representing and counseling corporate policyholders in the area of insurance law, risk management, contractual risk transfer, and extra-contractual issues. In addition to his policyholder practice, Lee mediates multi-party construction defect disputes and insurance coverage matters. 

He is a Past Chair of the Insurance Law Section and a former council member of the Construction Law Section of the State Bar of Texas and previously served as the Insurance Liason to the Construction Law Section of the State Bar of Texas. He is the author of numerous articles and seminar papers and is a frequent speaker at continuing legal education seminars in Texas and across the country.

Lee has been named a “Super Lawyer” by Texas Monthly Magazine each year since 2004, including a ranking as a Top 50 attorney in the Central and West Texas Region since 2007 and a Top 100 attorney in Texas since 2016. Lee also is ranked as a top insurance coverage lawyer by Best Lawyers, Chambers USA and Who’s Who Legal. Lee was named a Top Notch Lawyer for Insurance Coverage by Texas Lawyer and was finalist for the Go To Lawyer for Insurance Coverage. Lee is a Fellow of the Texas Bar Foundation and American College of Construction Lawyers. 

Caryn Siebert is VP - National Director of Carrier Engagement at Gallagher Bassett (GB). GB is the premier provider of global claims/risk services, dedicated to superior outcomes and exceptional service. In her role, Caryn formulates strategic initiatives and builds lasting/productive claims/risk management partnerships in the carrier marketplace. She collaborates with industry leaders as they seek out creative/efficient alternatives to optimize their claims outcomes in ongoing and discontinued LOBs creating a better experience by partnering with GB. Delivering results through relentless execution, she focuses on quality products, excellence in customer service and pro-active risk management. She’s been the public voice of claims and related issues for GB, while leading internally through example and influence, mentoring, and open communication, honesty, and passion. She is a sought-after speaker and expert bringing creative solutions to audiences, projects and challenges.

Caryn was most recently awarded the 2024 CLM Lifetime Achievement Award. Other accolades include 2017 CLM Litigation Management Professional of the Year, 2017 WCC Ollie Award Winner, 2019 NRRDA President’s Award recipient, 2020 RISE Mentor of the Year, 2023 CalState Fullerton Industry Leadership Award, and 2023 WorkComp Central CompLaude for Philanthropy. 

Ms. Siebert led the claims operations of Knight including oversight of TPAs and internal claim teams. Prior to that, under her guidance as CEO, Carl Warren & Company made the 2014 Inc5000 list of fastest growing private companies and was awarded the National ESOP Company of the Year for 2013. Prior to Carl Warren, Ms. Siebert was Chief Claims Officer of Safeco in Washington and part of a leadership team that overhauled the claims operation. Prior roles include Director of Commercial Claims for GE-ERC; SVP of Claims/Customer Operations/General Counsel for GE-Coregis in Illinois; Assistant GC for Crum & Foster in NJ and Associate at LeBoeuf, Lamb in NY.

Michael Starks is MC Consultants’ building envelope expert from the Florida team where he provides expert testimony and often leads MC’s expert teams on diverse cases.
 
 He has been intimately involved in Florida in the masonry and stucco trades since the early 1980’s. He has extensive experience in both the technical aspects of plastering codes and standards and the practical side of operations and applications. Michael has been a licensed Contractor in Florida since 1985. He also has nearly two decades as an active participant in the ASTM Committees that write those Standards as well as serving on the Florida Building Officials Association Code Development Committee. Michael is the founder, Board of Directors member, and former Chairman of the Florida Lath & Plaster Bureau. He holds Continuing Education Provider licenses for both the Florida Construction Industry Licensing Board and the Florida Board of Architecture and Interior Design.

Mr. Sterlace is involved in all aspects of DM’s development projects and is responsible for the execution and management of all design, permitting, and construction activities at DM.

Prior to working with DM, Mr. Sterlace’s 18 years in Real Estate included managing the development of complex projects, from acquisition through disposition and across multiple product types. As Executive Vice President of Brian Spiers Development, Mr. Sterlace was responsible for all phases of mixed-use developments including due diligence and financial feasibility, debt and equity investor relations and reporting, entitlements, community relations, as well as managing the design, permitting, construction, marketing, leasing and sales. He has directly managed over $1 Billion in ground up projects, including recently four high-density residential condominium and apartment developments in San Francisco totaling 250 units and approximately $300M in value: Linea, 1600 Market, 2100 Market and 235 Valencia Street. Prior to joining Brian Spiers Development, Mr. Sterlace served as a consultant with Exponent, and as a Senior Project Manager with Roebbelen Contracting. His industry experience spans multiple sectors including Mixed-Use Multi Family Residential, Office, Commercial, Low-Income Housing, Healthcare, Higher Education, Public Works, K-12 and Heavy Civil. He is actively involved in trade organizations including the American Society of Civil Engineers, the Urban Land Institute, and the San Francisco Housing Action Coalition.

Mr. Sterlace holds a Bachelor of Science in Civil and Environmental Engineering from the University of California Berkeley, a Master of Science in Civil Engineering from the University of Southern California, a Master’s of Business Administration from the University of California Berkeley’s Haas School of Business and is a licensed Professional Civil Engineer in the state of California since 2008.

Lara Taibi is a Senior Technical Claims Specialist with Argo Pro. She currently handles professional liability claims reported under Architects & Engineers, Contractors Professional, Real Estate Professional and Miscellaneous Professional Liability Errors & Omissions policies. Prior to joining Argo Pro, Ms. Taibi was a Director at York Pro, at TPA, where she handled a variety of Errors & Omissions and Directors & Officers matters. Before joining York Pro, Ms. Taibi worked for Chubb where she managed a team of claims professionals handling claims made under various Errors & Omissions Professional Liability policies. Prior to Chubb, Lara was Senior Claims Counsel at Zurich where she was responsible for handling complex professional liability claims made against design professionals, contractors and project owners. Prior to joining Zurich, Ms. Taibi was in private practice in New York. Lara holds a B.A. from Lehigh University and a J.D. from the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law.

Cynthia has over 30 years of experience representing Fortune 500 companies, governmental entities, and policyholders. She focuses her litigation practice on multi-party, complex construction defect actions including commercial, mixed-use, residential construction, and school districts, and has a diverse practice defending clients in general liability matters, products liability, catastrophic loss, bodily injury, traumatic brain injury, and wrongful death claims. She has experience with FELA and in the energy industry, particularly with oil and gas and solar. Additionally, Cynthia often acts as monitoring counsel for her clients, managing their litigation nationwide. She is a national consultant in the development of clients’ contract negotiations, which serve to align contract terms with insurance provisions. Prior to joining Kahana Feld, Cynthia founded Tarle Law in 2011 and served as managing partner for the firm’s four offices, litigating and serving clients across California and Texas. An established thought leader, she frequently speaks to groups nationally on topics of insurance, contracts and construction loss control mechanisms, risk transfer, and litigation.
 

 As a Construction Advisor, Toni understands the clients' needs and provides the necessary risk and insurance advice to effectively serve them. She works in conjunction with internal teams to execute strategies that best suit clients’ unique exposures while participating in presentations to prospective clientele that suggest innovative risk solutions specific to the construction industry. Further, Toni is actively involved in Diversity and Inclusion initiatives within the construction sector.

Along with multifarious skills, she brings with her a dynamic teaching background and the ability to establish trusted relationships which create positive outcomes. Toni’s experience also includes assisting construction clients with navigating complex insurance programs including Master Builder’s Risk (MBR) and Controlled Insurance Programs (CIP) as well as contract review. She has made a habit of sharing the knowledge she’s acquired by leading risk management and insurance classes, developing training materials, and authoring informative essays. 

Master of Jurisprudence in Risk Management - Texas A&M University School of Law
Bachelor of Business Administration; Risk Management & Insurance - University of North Texas
Construction Risk Insurance Specialist (CRIS)
Commercial Insurance Counselor (CIC) designation
Associate in Risk Management (ARM)

Wendy Testa is a partner and cochair of Wilson Elser’s national Complex Tort & General Casualty and Design Professional practices. She focuses her legal practice on risk management services, and defense and insurance coverage litigation in the areas of professional liability, including architects/engineers as well as other construction professionals; real estate and insurance brokers/agents; construction/construction defect liability; product liability; and contract drafting, negotiating and risk transfer disputes on behalf of developers and contractors. Wendy handles defense and coverage matters for the U.S. and London insurance markets. Her understanding of these markets and varied underwriting practices as well as her experience in drafting and interpreting policy language contributes to her effectiveness with coverage analysis and as a litigator in her areas of practice.
 
In addition, Wendy has a breadth of real estate E&O defense experience managing and resolving claims on behalf of large national property management and brokerage firms as well as litigating disputes throughout the United States on behalf of real estate brokers, appraisers, title abstractors, home inspectors, insurance brokers, managing agents and broker-dealers. In addition to efficiently managing claims, she assists our real estate professionals in licensing and regulatory matters as well as navigating complex contractual issues, leases and agency agreements; performing due diligence related to acquisitions; helping to ensure fair housing and other applicable statutory and/or local code and regulatory compliance. Wendy’s experience in the insurance and real estate industries results in spot-on analysis of liability and exposure and effective resolution strategies.

Bill started in the insurance industry in 2001 as a claims adjuster primarily handling professional liability claims in the municipal arena, specifically Law Enforcement, Public Officials and Educators liability claims.  While doing this Bill completed law school and went into private practice for a period of time before coming back to the insuarance industry at Network Adjusters Inc. in 2016. He currently handles a wide varierty of matters in his role as Claim Director, including general liability, construction, municpal liablity, prefessional liability and trucking. 

John H. Toohey is a Partner for Bremer Whyte Brown & O’Meara, LLP. Mr. Toohey is an A.V. Preeminent rated attorney with a practice that is focused on contract negotiation and litigation, complex product liability, and construction. He has successfully represented hundreds of clients in alternative dispute resolution and trial, including multiple cases to jury verdict.

Mr. Toohey was recently recognized by Los Angeles Magazine as one of the “Top Attorneys in Southern California”. He has been selected into the “Lawyers of Distinction”, which limits membership to the top 10% of lawyers in the United States based upon qualifications, license, reputation, experience, and disciplinary history. Mr. Toohey has also been selected to the 2017 - 2025 California Super Lawyers list. This is an exclusive list, recognizing no more than five percent of attorneys in the state.

John Toohey was selected as a 2019 California Litigator of the Year by The American Institute of Trial Lawyers, which is an invitation only organization composed of premier trial attorneys from all over the county. He has also been nominated as a Top 100 member of the American Academy of Attorneys, a national organization of elite attorneys actively practicing law who are dedicated to the promotion of excellence in their field.

Mr. Toohey is admitted to practice in the State of California, the State of Texas, the State of Arizona, and the State of Colorado.

Chimdi Tuffs is a partner in Gfeller Laurie LLP’s Philadelphia, Pennsylvania office. She is lead counsel in  civil litigation matters before state and federal courts in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York involving defense of commercial entities and individuals as to employment and labor disputes, transportation, product liability, and premises liability matters. She has tried numerous civil matters to verdict.
 

Wakako Uritani is a partner at Lorber, Greenfield & Olsen, LLP and works out of the San Francisco office. Her work and trial experience is in civil litigation matters, primarily in casualty liability, general tort litigation (personal injury, products liability, property tort), and complex construction litigation. Her product and personal injury cases have involved catastrophic injuries and wrongful death. Her construction litigation cases involve the specialized representation of commercial and residential builders in construction defect claims. She also assists clients in navigating issues of risk management and contract formation/disputes in addition to securing positive litigation results.  She is sensitive to her client’s reputation and ongoing business activities and puts her client’s needs first to resolve disputes that can significantly impact their well-being. Early evaluation and early resolution is foremost in her practice.

Ms. Uritani serves as Board of Director for the Association of Defense Counsel of Northern California/Nevada and to Claims Litigation Management (SF Bay Area Chapter). Her involvement with these preeminent organizations ensures that she is knowledgeable about legislative decisions that may impact her client’s cases.

Ms. Uritani earned her J.D. at Santa Clara University. She is admitted to practice in the State Courts of California and the Northern and Eastern Districts of California as well as the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.

Mr. Veksler is a Complex Claims Manager - Construction Defect with Selective Insurance. He oversees a team of claim professionals who handle high exposure construction defect matters countrywide. Prior to joining Selective, Mr. Veksler worked at AIG, QBE and a small, regional third-party administrator. Claims management is Mr. Veksler’s second career as he previously engaged in the practice of law for 14 years. He is licensed to practice law in CA, NV and FL. He previously represented general contractors, developers, subcontractors, and design professionals in various construction matters. He also represented insurance carriers in coverage disputes. He has spoken at prior CLM Construction Seminars as well as other national, regional and local organizations. 

Amy Welborn is a Partner in the firm’s Austin office. She is an accomplished trial lawyer with more than 20 years of experience representing corporations and individuals in litigation involving business disputes, property damage, construction, employment, professional liability, trucking defense, subrogation, and personal injury defense. Additionally, she represents professionals and corporations in administrative and government matters.

Professional Affiliations:

Austin Bar Association 

President Elect (2016-2017)
Treasurer (2014-2015)
Board of Directors (2002-2014)

Adjunct Professor Trial Advocacy Program, University of Texas School of Law
Founding Master, Barbara Jordan Inn of Court
City of Austin Commission for Women 

Chair (2013-2014)
Commissioner (2010-2013)

Austin Young Lawyers Association

President (2008-2010)
President Elect (2007-2008)
Treasurer (2006-2007)
Secretary (2005-2006)
Board of Directors (2004-2009)

Lawyer Referral Service 

Chairman of the Board (2007-2008)
Board of Trustees (2003-2008)

Leadership Austin

Essentials Class of 2009 

University of Texas Student Union

Advisory Committee (2011- present)
Stewart of the Texas Union (2009-2011) 

Texas Association of Defense Council 

Young Lawyers Committee (2005-2007)

Robert Calvert Inns of Court (2000-2014)
Texas Young Lawyers Association (2000-2014)
Founding Fellow, Austin Bar Foundation (2005)
Fellow, Texas Bar Foundation (2007)
Travis County Women Lawyers (2011-present)

Jennifer is a passionate advocate and skilled litigator.  She focuses her practice on insurance coverage disputes, bad faith litigation, and personal injury litigation.

She is the chair of the firm’s Motor Vehicle Litigation Section, chair of the firm’s Insurance Law & Coverage practice group and serves on the Cranfill Sumner COVID-19 Response Team. She regularly advises clients on a wide array of insurance coverage issues involving both first and third-party coverages, including commercial general liability coverage, commercial and personal auto coverage, homeowners’ coverage, professional liability coverage, and property coverage.  She has represented insurers in numerous declaratory judgment actions in both state and federal courts, and she has also authored numerous publications and given many presentations on various insurance coverage issues.

Jennifer also routinely handles cases involving insurance bad faith, premises liability, motor vehicle negligence, and homeowners’ association disputes. She has particular experience and interest in handling uninsured and underinsured motorist claims and has an in-depth understanding of the intricacies of the laws governing such claims.  No matter what type of case she is litigating, Jennifer strives to help her clients develop cost-effective resolution strategies and, when necessary, aggressively represents their interests in court.

Jennifer is a Raleigh native.  In her spare time, she enjoys cooking, exercising, gardening, and spending time with her husband, Matt, and their two daughters, Grayson and Caroline.

Dr. Wieghaus practices as a civil/structural forensic engineer and expert witness related to construction, construction defect, builders risk, and property claims and litigation. He earned his Doctor of Philosophy in Civil Engineering from Texas A&M University and his Bachelor and Master of Science degrees in Civil Engineering from Colorado State University. Dr. Wieghaus is a licensed Professional Engineer (P.E.) and credentialed by NCEES as a Model Law Engineer. He has provided expert opinion reports and expert testimony/deposition.
 
Dr. Wieghaus has conducted and overseen hundreds of forensic structural, civil, and architectural investigations involving residential, commercial, mixed-use, industrial, and marine facilities affected by design and construction deficiencies, structural member failure, foundation failure, differential structural movement, mechanical damage, wildfire, structure fire, wind, flood, hail, wind, tornado, snow, moisture intrusion, inadequate drainage, and/or organics. Dr. Wieghaus has served as a competent, unbiased appraiser and umpire/neutral to resolve disputes stemming from property claims.
 
Dr. Wieghaus has provided civil and structural engineering designs/plans for repairs, improvements, and new construction for a variety of residential, commercial, and mixed-use projects, including those used for post-litigation reconstruction projects. He has experience in both full-scale physical and non-destructive structural component testing.
 
Dr. Wieghaus is involved with NCEES as a committee member developing the nationwide Civil/Structural Principles and Practice of Engineering (or Civil/Structural P.E.) exam. He has also been previously contributed to the development of the Fundamentals of Engineering (F.E.) exam, the first step in the process to becoming a licensed P.E. in the United States.

Mr. Wijtenburg received his Master of Civil Engineering degree from Johns Hopkins University and his Bachelor of Civil Engineering degree from the Catholic University of America.  As a Senior Structural/Civil engineer at S-E-A, Mr. Wijtenburg performs examinations and evaluations of existing structures to determine the presence, extent, and/or cause of damage to building components as a result of partial or full collapse, storm damage, water intrusion, fire, vibration, blasting, or other phenomena.  He also provides investigation and consultation for a variety of projects, including, but not limited to, structure, roof, and building envelope/fenestration failures, as well as means of ingress/egress, code compliance, and potentially defective construction and design.  Prior to joining S-E-A, Mr. Wijtenburg worked as a design and construction professional focused on building and bridge structures.  He has specific experience designing residential wood, Post-Tensioned concrete, conventionally reinforced concrete, steel, and masonry.  Mr. Wijtenburg is a licensed professional engineer (P.E.) in Alabama, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Rhode Island, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia.  He is also a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC), the National Roof Contractor’s Association (NRCA), and ASTM.

Amber is a Senior Field Claims representative at Acuity, A Mutual Insurance Company. She is a multi-line adjuster handling a variety of claims including Bodily Injury, Product Defect, Premises Liability, Personal Injury and Employers Liability primarily in Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin and Florida. She has earned her CCP through her completion of CLM's Claims College School of Transportation and is a member of the Transportation Committee. 






 

Courtney Winzeler is a partner at Lorber, Greenfield & Polito and works out of the Southern California office. Ms. Winzeler has extensive litigation experience of over 14 years with an emphasis on construction, insurance defense, and general liability including bodily injury and premises liability. Her construction practice focuses on defending contractors, subcontractors, developers, and suppliers in multimillion-dollar disputes involving high profile, multifaceted construction projects. This includes litigation regarding high-end single-family residences, multi-family projects (condos/apartments), tract homes, commercial and mixed-use properties. Ms. Winzeler’s vast experience in insurance defense claims include bodily injury and premise liability. Ms. Winzeler believes in a tactical approach to litigation striving for early resolution of disputes. Ms. Winzeler is licensed in California and Arizona.

Ms. Winzeler received her B.S. in Criminal Justice Administration from the University of Arizona and her J.D Magna Cum Laude from Western State University, School of Law. Ms. Winzeler is involved with the Orange County Bar Association, CLM, Orange County Women’s Lawyer’s Association and the Association of Southern California Defense Attorneys. She is the Chair of the Orange County Bar Association’s Construction Law Section for 2021. She previously served as the Orange County Bar Association’s Construction Law Section Secretary and Treasurer (2019) and Chair-Elect (2020).

Ms. Winzeler grew up in Arizona and continues to staunchly support her Arizona Wildcats. She enjoys spending time with her family, trying out new restaurants, and golfing.

Lee Wright is a claim professional with more than thirty five years of experience focusing on the handling and management of large, complex litigation files involving products, transportation and construction risks. He has overseen national claims programs for self-insureds and foreign insurers and acted as a regional training coordinator for a major insurer. He is a regular speaker at national and regional seminars and classes on insurance coverage and risk transfer issues and an approved CE instructor in CA, MD, SC and VA. He is a past President of the Construction Defect Claim Manager Association and a Member of the CLM Construction Claims Advisory Board and served as the inaugural Dean for CLM's Claims College School of Construction Claims.

Specialties: Construction Defect Claims & Management, General Liability Coverage, Contractual Risk Transfer, Arbitration and Mediation

Jane Young is a Partner in the Colorado office of McElroy, Deutsch, Mulvaney & Carpenter.  She has over twenty years of experience representing insurers and third-party administrators in complex coverage and bad faith disputes around the country.  Her work involves all types of insurance policies, first and third party coverages, including commercial general liability, construction, subcontractor default, environmental, automobile, property, directors and officers, etc.   She assists insurance carriers, third-party administrators, and insurance agencies in assessing coverage under policies and evaluating exposure, representing her clients in the courts and alternative dispute resolution proceedings - advocating for their positions with judges, mediators and insureds.  Ms. Young has tried cases in state and federal courts and also argued in the Colorado appellate courts and Tenth Circuit.


 

As SVP of Gallagher’s Law Firms Practice, Laura is responsible for the placement of Lawyers Professional Liability Insurance, Management Liability Insurance, and Risk Management services for Gallagher law firm clients. Her primary focus is mid-size to large law firms. Laura has a deep understanding of the challenges faced by law firms due to her 16 years as a practicing attorney, her handling of law firms claims and years dealing with LPL coverage issues.  Laura is happy to bring her knowledge and skill set to the broking process in order to assist firms with finding and tailoring the best coverage solutions available in the marketplace for each individual firm.
Experience
           
Laura Zaroski was the Executive Vice President of Cyber, Management and Professional Liability at Socius Insurance Services, a wholesale insurance broker.  Laura also served as Socius’ EPL Practice Leader and Complex Claims Liaison.  Laura’s practice included the placement of all types of D&O, EPL, Fiduciary, LPL, MPL and Cyber policies. Prior to becoming a broker, Laura was a partner at the Chicago Office of O'Hagan Spencer, LLC, and headed up the insurance coverage and claims management department.  As claims management and coverage counsel for various London and domestic carriers, Laura’s experience involved counseling clients in the drafting of policies, program creation, examining claim exposure, effective claims handling techniques, litigation management, and effective resolution/settlement negotiation techniques.  Laura counseled as to cost effective defense strategies, and negotiated favorable settlements for hundreds of cases nationwide. 
Laura is an approved Continuing Education provider and frequently presents CE classes to producers, agencies and clients on cyber liability as well as various management liability topics.  Laura has authored numerous articles regarding cyber and professional liability issues, and is a regular speaker at industry conferences. 
 

Dave Zehner is a founding partner of Zehner Trial Consulting. Zehner Trial Consulting is a provider of superior mock trials, focus groups and jury selection services. Zehner Trial Consulting uses the latest research in cognitive theory to design research exercises to test the essential elements of cases and determine what will shape the verdict of the jury. During his career, Dave has consulted on more than 800 cases in 42 states and over 180 venues in all areas of the law, specializing in professional negligence, employment, intellectual property, white collar criminal, capital crimes and complex commercial cases. Dave has also assisted clients in selecting over 120 juries in venues throughout the country. Before becoming a trial consultant, Dave taught high school history for five years and coached the freshman and JV basketball teams. Dave also coached the Academic Decathlon team to three San Diego County championships and one fourth place finish in the state of California. Dave also appeared on Jeopardy!, and his crushing defeat was made even more enjoyable by being called "evil" by Alex Trebek for working as a jury consultant. 

A graduate of the University of California at Berkeley with a degree in History and International Political Economies, Dave was a University Fellowship recipient while earning his master's degree from the University of Illinois at Chicago and ABD status for his PhD in the Public Policy Analysis Program.