Articles
Developments in Sinkhole Coverage Litigation - Burden of Proof
Date:
December 4, 2014
Typically property insurance polices in Florida cover all damage to a home or a commercial building unless excluded. In a lawsuit seeking coverage for cracking or other settlement-related damage, the burden of proof was typically on the insurance company to prove ...
Firm Wins Defense Verdict in Air Conditioning Contractor Liability Case
Date:
May 5, 2011
Senior trial attorney Mark Hruska won a defense verdict for our client, an air conditioning systems installer, B & L Air Conditioning, in Martin County after a five-day jury trial. The case was brought by the home buyer who had a prior diagnosed lung condition which ultimately lead to a transplant some two years after he moved into his new home. Plaintiff alleged ...
Appeals Court Certifies Insurer Objections to Appraisal-Coverage Dual Track Approach
Date:
October 27, 2010
In a Miami appeal, argued by the firm in a case closely analogous to its victory in Sunshine State Insurance Company v. Corridori, the Third District Appeals Court reached the opposite conclusion from the Fourth District on the right of an insured to demand an appraisal before showing compliance with the insurer's claim investigation requests. In the case of ...
Firm Wins Lawsuit Against City for Unpaid Engineering Fees
Date:
October 8, 2010
Trial attorney David Pascuzzi won a large verdict against the City of Arcadia which refused payment for our client's civl engineering work done in the aftermath of Hurricane Wilma. Our client's firm had provided infrastructure damage assessment services to the municipality to help with its clean-up after the storm. The multi-day trial involved numerous fact and expert witnesses with voluminous documents including testimony from a consulting group run by the former head of FEMA. The trial judge also granted our firms' post-verdict motion for award of attorneys' fees and taxable costs. The City has filed an appeal of the lower court's findings.
Firm Wins Appellate Reversal of Large Jury Verdict on Plaintiff's Economic Damages Claims
Date:
June 23, 2010
Senior appellate counsel, Steve Schwartz won a major appellate reversal in the Second District Court of Appeal overturning a high six figure jury verdict in a commercial multi-vehicle auto accident case in favor of a drywall installer for future diminished earnings because the verdict lacked reasonable certainty of calculated projected amounts. The plaintiff's award ...
Appeals Court Rejects Appraisal Demand Where the Insured Fails to Meet the Insurer's Post-Loss Claim Investigation Requests
Date:
February 3, 2010
In a decision of major importance to the entire insurance community, the firm won a trend-setting appeal rejecting the insured's petition to compel a homeowners claim appraisal where the insured had failed to comply with the insurer's post-loss requests for supportive documentation, Examination Under Oath and timely submission of a Proof of Loss. In Sunshine State ...
Firm Wins Key Appellate Decision on When Prejudgment Interest Accrues for Payment of an Appraisal Award
Date:
July 15, 2009
Insurers are increasingly presented with a demand by plaintiff attorneys to pay prejudgment interest on a loss often in the aftemath of an appraisal award where the insured's counsel demands interest dating back to the original date of loss years before even where the insurer has fully cooperated in the appraisal process. In a major holding in favor of the insurer, as argued by the firm, in the case of ......
Firm Successfully Overturns Lower Court Ruling Permitting Bad Faith Claim to be Joined with Insurer Breach of Contract for Nonpayment of the Claim
Date:
December 31, 2008
Insurers are increasingly faced with first party property lawsuits which sue not only for non payment of the claim but for bad faith extra-contractual damages and statutory causes of action under the Civil Remedy Notice or claims handling regulatory scheme as well. In a case of industry-wide importance, the firm won reversal ...
