Insurance Coverage and Disputes

With a coast-to-coast presence, Venable's top-tier Insurance Coverage and Disputes team has the skill and experience to help policy holders achieve the coverage they need, no matter how high stakes the circumstances.

Whether helping clients procure insurance, present claims to insurance companies, settle lawsuits, or pursue coverage through arbitration or litigation, Venable has experienced legal teams representing the interests of insureds across all industries and jurisdictions. We have secured significant verdicts and settlements from claims arising under the full spectrum of policies, including general liability, property and builders' risk (including business interruption), pollution, completed operations coverage, directors' and officers' liability, employee liability, errors and omissions insurance, cyber/data breach, and many others.

Along with helping clients to assess and negotiate first-party claims against insurers, we assist in settling claims brought by third parties and in the development of complex risk transfer strategies. Known for our hands-on approach, we provide comprehensive counseling to clients from the outset of a project to its completion. In addition, we offer guidance on comprehensive risk management strategies, including contract review and determining gaps in coverage during the insurance renewal process. Our team is also active in high-profile business interruption claims arising from the COVID-19 pandemic and excels at applying past experience to these unprecedented circumstances. No matter how complex the situation, our attorneys have a strong track record of mitigating losses, reducing risk, and securing the best possible settlements for our clients.

Experience
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  • Representing a major national sporting association in insurance coverage disputes in connection with COVID-19
  • Represented the city/state agency redeveloping the World Trade Center site after 9/11 on insurance issues
  • Representing multiple DC restaurant owners in coverage litigation against their insurer for business interruption claims in connection with COVID-19
  • Representing a national motel chain with hundreds of locations across the country in insurance coverage work
  • Regularly represents many of the nation's top commercial construction, engineering, and construction management companies in coverage disputes nationwide. Recovered hundreds of millions of dollars in settlements of bad faith and other insurance claims concerning builder's risk, property insurance, and other construction-related policies
  • On behalf of a California trade association, secured a judgment after trial against several insurance companies for breach of contract and bad faith arising out of claims brought by members of the trade association
  • On behalf of a real estate investment group, secured a bad faith verdict after trial against insurance companies over claims arising out of the purchase and sale of investment properties
  • Represented a state transportation agency in insurance and risk mitigation in connection with one of the nation's largest public-private partnership (P3) projects
  • Secured a precedent-setting decision from the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, confirming a multi-million-dollar judgment against an insurance carrier for the carrier's failure to defend its insureds in a lawsuit for intentional interference with prospective economic advantage, intentional interference with the contract, and slander of title brought by a film director
  • In a record-setting result on behalf of a national hotel chain, secured a $23 million jury verdict for bad faith claims against an insurance company for failure to defend its insureds in a catastrophic personal injury case
  • Represented a client in a liability risk transfer agreement dealing with cleanup at a Superfund site that is expected to have remediation costs in excess of $100 million
  • Represented the operator of one of the nation's busiest mass transit systems in a significant insurance coverage dispute resulting in a favorable settlement
  • Represented an international airport in connection with damage claims resulting from an earthquake
  • Obtained multi-million-dollar settlements, including a substantial portion of attorneys' fees, for clients whose metropolitan Washington, DC-area properties were harmed by neighboring construction
  • Negotiated a settlement agreement with an insurance carrier on behalf of a large producer and distributor of dairy products that had been the victim of wire fraud

Recognition
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  • Chambers USA, 2013 – 2021 (Venable attorneys selected for inclusion)
  • Best Lawyers in America, 2016 – 2022 (Venable attorneys selected for inclusion)
  • Super Lawyers, 2015 – 2022 (Venable attorneys selected for inclusion)