Insurance Recovery
Anticipating and managing risk are critical to the success of any company, and most companies rely on insurance as their primary tool for doing so.
Manatt's insurance recovery lawyers assist corporate policyholders with all aspects of insurance coverage. Our goal is simple: to help clients secure the insurance protection they seek and to capitalize on that coverage when a claim arises.
We represent clients at every phase of the insurance life cycle, including:
- Evaluating Existing Coverage. Our lawyers counsel clients on the extent and effectiveness of existing coverage, which includes finding unintended "holes" in coverage. Identifying and correcting these issues before claims arise is a critical function we perform for our clients.
- Advising in the Placement of New or Renewed Coverage. We assist clients and their brokers in placing the most effective and comprehensive coverage possible. We often are involved in negotiating specific policy terms that expand coverage or narrow exclusionary language, and which thus provide greater security.
- Assessing and Preserving Potential Claims. When potentially covered claims arise, we provide clients with detailed analyses of the likelihood of obtaining coverage for those claims and how best to preserve them. If a client is contemplating a potential merger or acquisition, we provide advice regarding the availability of insurance coverage for liabilities they may be assuming.
- Securing Coverage When Disputes Arise. Our lawyers are experienced in crafting strategies to resolve coverage disputes. We have recovered billions of dollars of insurance proceeds through focused settlement negotiation, mediation, litigation, both at trial and on appeal nationwide. We recognize that delay hurts policyholders, and we design a customized approach to reach a prompt and successful resolution. In many cases we are able to reach a favorable conclusion without the need for substantial litigation. However, when coverage disputes cannot be resolved through settlement or mediation, our lawyers aggressively pursue coverage through litigation and arbitration. Our victories have resulted in coverage for claims involving mass torts (including asbestos exposure and environmental contamination), class actions, shareholder derivative suits, breach of fiduciary duty, wrongful termination, negligent design and construction, false advertising, and trademark and copyright infringement, to name a few.
- Bankruptcy. Our clients sometimes face overwhelming liabilities and must consider restructuring through Chapter 11 bankruptcy or otherwise. In this context, insurance often is one of the debtor's most significant assets and, consequently, insurance issues often are hotly disputed. We assist clients through all phases of the bankruptcy process, including critical pre-bankruptcy planning. Our attorneys have been directly involved in some of the largest asbestos-related bankruptcies in the country, including a landmark ruling limiting insurer standing to object to a policyholder's bankruptcy plan.
Attorneys & Professionals
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Email
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Name
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Office
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Phone
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Abraham, Jaime
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New York
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212.790.4507
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Bloomgarden, Craig S.
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Los Angeles
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310.312.4240
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Briggs, Amy B.
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San Francisco
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415.291.7451
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Chamberlain, Harry
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Sacramento
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916.552.2380
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Killalea, David B.
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Washington, D.C.
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202.585.6555
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Knudsen, Amanda M.
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San Francisco
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415.291.7466
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Raptis, Stephen T.
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Washington, D.C.
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202.585.6550
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Shulman, Robert H.
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Washington, D.C.
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202.585.6599
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White, Susan P.
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Los Angeles
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310.312.4310
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Insurance Recovery
Selected Clients
- Blue Shield of California
- Combustion Engineering
- Dignity Health (formerly Catholic Healthcare West)
- Federal-Mogul
- IGT
- Pfizer
- Shook & Fletcher Insulation Co.
- State Compensation Insurance Fund
- Tesoro
- Warner-Lambert
- Wisconsin Electric Power Co.
- Wright Medical Technology
Insurance Recovery
Representative Matters
We represent clients across a broad array of industry sectors in obtaining coverage under nearly every type of commercial insurance in the marketplace, including:
- Dozens of companies in the pharmaceutical, petroleum, electrical, automotive, and manufacturing sectors seeking coverage for asbestos and environmental contamination claims, often totaling in the billions of dollars
- Aglobal leader in paper and packaging products against 22 of its insurance carriers in a nationwide products liability class action. The first phase of the case resulted in a $93.2 million jury verdict in our client's favor. The trial of the second phase returned a $383.3 million verdict in our client's favor.
- A financial services holding company in a landmark case obtaining substantial defense costs in D&O insurance cases arising out of shareholder, SEC, and New York Attorney General actions.
- Ongoing representation of the FDIC in seeking insurance and other sources of recovery in connection with bank closings.
- A global manufacturer of household appliances in multistate subrogation claims linked to an alleged product defect as well as related insurance coverage issues.
- A global manufacturer of household appliances in an appeal of a significant jury verdict involving a product liability lawsuit as well as mediation resulting in settlements with our client and an insurance company.
- A global energy company in several environmental insurance coverage disputes, including a case of first impression regarding the application of a pollution exclusion to an industrial accident.
- An international chemical company in two international arbitrations regarding insurance coverage for fungicide-related crop damage.
- A policyholder in a landmark case for insurance arising out of alleged defamation
- Public and private pension plans seeking coverage under fiduciary liability policies
- A pharmaceutical company in obtaining favorable, multimillion-dollar settlements for defense costs and settlements paid in class action litigation
- The officers and directors of a large venture capital company in obtaining coverage for claims brought by individual investors
- A telecommunications company in obtaining coverage for alleged wrongful termination claims
- A software development company in obtaining full coverage arising out of allegations of negligent development of a complex billing program sold to its customers
- A chemical manufacturer in obtaining full recovery, following a multiweek trial, of environmental remediation and defense costs at facilities in multiple states
- A large real estate investment trust in obtaining coverage for property damage at shopping centers in California and Oregon
- An employment staffing company in obtaining coverage for its directors and officers arising from allegations of improper solicitation of employees and use of confidential and proprietary information and breach of a noncompete agreement
- Liquidated trusts of former engineering and construction companies and their directors in obtaining coverage for securities litigation, ERISA class action litigation, and a related government investigation
- A manufacturer in obtaining coverage for alleged violations of the Lanham Act and unfair competition
- A nutritional supplement company and its directors in obtaining coverage for claims involving the manufacturing and advertising of health supplement products
- A nationwide real estate developer in obtaining coverage for property damage and construction defect claims at a premier resort
- A garment manufacturer in obtaining coverage for copyright and trademark infringement
- A major food manufacturer in negotiating a substantially broader scope of product recall coverage than previously had been available