Ethan S. Barnes
Having managed hundreds of claims on behalf of clients in many different fields, he understands how insurers typically respond to high-value claims, the leverage points in the insurance recovery process, and how to maximize coverage for his clients.
In particular, Ethan has extensive experience with liability coverage. He has worked on cases involving nearly every ISO standard exclusion in general liability policies, and on dozens of claims that hinge on common coverage issues under directors and officers (D&O) policies. He has taken a lead role in complicated allocation disputes over so-called long-tail injuries, which implicate many policies over several years.
Ethan has navigated these cases—which are complicated by unique coverage issues, competing insurer interests, and numerous policies—with precision, developing sophisticated strategies to maximize coverage for clients.
Related Practices
Related Industries
Experience
Representative Matters
- Represented a policyholder in a $100 million claim for smoke damage to fine art caused by wildfire.Coordinated a multidisciplinary team of conservators, appraisers, and art market professionals, and leveraged favorable provisions in a specialized art insurance policy to secure full recovery of the client’s loss without litigation
- Represented a company in a coverage dispute with its primary and excess D&O insurers arising from a competitor’s lawsuit. After the insurers denied coverage based on policy exclusions, filed coverage litigation in federal court, ultimately securing a settlement for nearly the entire combined limits of both policies
- Developed and implemented the strategy in a complex coverage dispute over product liability claims that implicated multiple years of a client’s policies. Secured two favorable summary judgment rulings, including one holding that the client only needed to pay a single million-dollar deductible to unlock several years of coverage instead of paying one such deductible per year
- Represented a homeowner after a landslide destroyed the retaining wall on his property and damaged a neighbor’s property. Despite some vulnerabilities in client’s coverage position, secured a multi-million-dollar settlement from insurer at mediation, which is expected to cover nearly all of the client’s property damage
- Managed a hospitality company’s insurance portfolio, overseeing the claims submission process for hundreds of claims and, for each claim, assessed the strength of the client’s position and negotiated with implicated insurer(s) over the scope of coverage. Secured coverage for settlement payments for many such claims and negotiated favorable defense cost rate agreements between client and insurers
- During the COVID-19 pandemic, guided clients with event cancellation policies through the claims submission process, helping multiple clients recover millions of dollars for the costs of annual conventions that they were forced to cancel because of the pandemic
Insights
Credentials
Education
- J.D. magna cum laude University of Minnesota Law School 2013
- Dean's List
- Distinguished Scholarship
- B.A. English Literature University of Michigan 2010
- Program in the Environment
Bar Admissions
- District of Columbia
- New York