Author Biography: Insurance Settlement Handbook

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Insurance Settlements

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Kevin M. Quinley is Senior Vice President of Risk Services for MEDMARC Insurance Company and Hamilton Resources Corp., Fairfax, VA. He has a BA degree from Wake Forest University and an MA degree from the College of William and Mary. He holds the Chartered Property & Casualty Underwriter (CPCU) designation and specialty designations from the American Insurance Institute in Risk Management (ARM), in Claims (AIC), in Reinsurance (ARe) and in Management (AIM).

A Contributing Editor of Claims Magazine, Kevin co-authored the Insurance Institute’s AIC 33 textbook on Workers Compensation Claims and Industrial Low Back Pain published by the Michie Company.

The author of over 300 published articles and six books, his articles have appeared in publications including Business Insurance, The National Underwriter, Risk Management, Occupational Safety & Health, Best’s Review, CPCU Journal, Insurance Settlement Journal, and For the Defense. He is the author of Time Management for Claim Professionals, Claim Management, The Quality Plan, Litigation Management, and Winning Strategies for Negotiating Claims. His sixth book, Managing Product Liability Risks was just published in early 1998.

He teaches classes in insurance, claims, and risk management for the Washington D.C. Chapter of the Society of CPCU. He is a past President of the Washington D.C. Chapter of CPCU. He is a frequent writer and speaker on topics relating to risk management and claims-handling. He can be reached via the Internet at kquinley@medmarc.com.

Kenneth A. Satin is an attorney located in Newport Beach, California. He specializes in plaintiff’s personal injury cases with particular expertise in claims involving automobile accidents, motorcycle accidents, and wrongful death.

Mr. Satin has served as Judge Pro Tempore for the Los Angeles County Municipal Court and the Orange County Municipal Court over the last 25 years. He is a former law professor at California State University, Fullerton and Western State University College of Law. Mr. Satin has written articles for numerous publications and has hosted several radio and television programs concerning legal perspectives. He can be reached at 949-851-2870.

Randy M. Hess is a shareholder of the law firm Adleson, Hess & Kelly, a professional corporation, where his practice focuses on insurance coverage disputes. He received his B. S. degree from Arizona State University and J. D. degree from the University of Santa Clara School of Law in 1979. Mr. Hess represents policyholders, including individuals, businesses, publicly held companies and governmental entities in coverage disputes. Mr. Hess is a past chairperson for the Executive Committee of the Insurance Law Section of the Santa Clara County Bar Association.

Duane W. Shewaga is a shareholder of the law firm of Adleson, Hess & Kelly, a professional corporation, located in Campbell, California. He received his J.D. degree from the University of Santa Clara School of Law in 1984 with summa cum laude honors. Mr. Shewaga’s practice emphasizes insurance coverage representation for policyholders, insurance bad faith litigation, real estate secured transactions and bankruptcy litigation, representing particularly businesses, foreclosure trustees and lenders, as well as employers who have been sued by employees. Mr. Shewaga is a member of the Santa Clara County Bar Association’s Insurance Law Section Executive Committee, the editor for the section’s monthly insurance law newsletter, and has been elected as chairperson of the Committee for the 1998-1999 term.

Paul D. DiBlasi is a structured settlement consultant in Columbus, Ohio. He represents the national firm of Structured Financial Associates, Inc. Prior to being a structured settlement consultant, he worked in the claims function of the casualty insurance industry for 14 years. He first started as a staff field adjuster and has held the positions of supervisor, claims manager and regional claims manager. Since 1985, he has worked as a structured settlement consultant for casualty companies, self-insureds and the defense industry. He has given numerous seminars to adjusters and attorneys on the use of structured settlements.

Mr. DiBlasi is a member of the Columbus Claims Association, the Columbus Life Underwriters Association, the Ohio Society of Health Care Risk Managers, the Ohio Association of Civil Trial Attorneys and the National Structured Settlement Trade Association.

John F. Distel is the managing partner and Roger L. Heaton is an associate of Liebman, Reiner & McNeil’s San Diego office. Both authors received their J.D. degrees from the University of San Diego. Mr. Distel concentrates on major personal injury litigation, has been a Judge Pro Tem and currently acts as an Arbitrator for the San Diego Superior Court. Mr. Heaton concentrates on personal injury litigation and civil appellate matters. They can be reached at (619) 232-0777.

John Farrell Fay is the trial counsel at Siegfried and Jensen, a Salt Lake City law firm dedicated exclusively to plaintiff’s personal injury. He is an experienced litigator in both judge and jury trials, as well as hundreds of arbitrations. Mr. Fay received his B.S. from Merrimack College in Massachusetts and his J.D. from Western State University in San Diego; he is a member of both the California and Utah state bars. He has served as a Judge Pro Temp in the Los Angeles Superior and Municipal Courts. He is a personal injury arbitrator for the American Arbitration Association. Recently he authored a text, Arbitrating Personal Injury Claims (Wiley, Spring 1992).

Joseph M. Fine is the senior partner of Fine & Faure, Albuquerque, N.M. He is a member of the New Mexico Medical Review Committee, the New Mexico Trial Lawyers, Advocate, American Trial Lawyers Association and a Certified Civil Trial Advocate by the National Board of Trial Advocacy.

James W. Fritz has practiced law for over fifteen years, with emphasis on personal injury and insurance matters. He is certified as a specialist in personal injury and wrongful death litigation by the State Bar of Arizona since 1991. He has tried over one hundred jury trials and he holds Advocate status as a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates. Mr. Fritz is also a member of the Association of Trial Lawyers of America, the Defense Research Institute, the Arizona Trial Lawyers Association, the State Bar of Arizona and the Maricopa County Bar Association. He is currently treasurer of the Executive Council of the Trial Practice Section of the State Bar of Arizona.

L. Robert Fuselier is a member of the California State Bar, specializing in business law and business litigation. He obtained his J.D. from Western State University in San Diego, graduating with honors. Presently, Mr. Fuselier is the National Claims Manager for Forester Indemnity Insurance Company. He is a licensed independent insurance adjuster with the state of California and he owns and operates Frontier Insurance Adjusters of Oceanside/Carlsbad, California. Mr. Fuselier has successfully represented employers before the California Unemployment Insurance Appeals Board against the Employment Development Department of the state of California in actions where the state had determined independent contractors were actually employees.

Ed Grant, C.P.C.U, has 10 years of property and casualty claims experience and presently works as a Litigation Examiner for a major insurance company. Mr. Grant received his B.A. from Ursinus College and his M.B.A. from Moravian College.

William N. Harsha, M.D., J.D., M.S., is a board-certified orthopedist with more than 40 years of medical experience. He received his Juris Doctorate from the University of Oklahoma City. Dr. Harsha practices in three clinics in Oklahoma City.

David M. Helbraun is an associate attorney in the San Francisco office of Wilson, Wiser, Moskowitz, Edelman & Dicker. Mr. Helbraun’s practice emphasizes insurance coverage, bad faith claims and professional liability.

Ronald W. Horgan is a partner in the firm of Craige & Horgan in Tulsa, Oklahoma. A graduate of Oral Roberts University and University of Oklahoma College of Law, Mr. Horgan specializes in litigation with primary emphasis on all types of personal injury and commercial litigation. He is a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates, the Association of Trial Lawyers of America and the Oklahoma Trial Lawyers Association. He is currently the Chair of the State Delegates of ATLA, a member of the Board of Governors and a member of its Executive Committee.

Mr. Horgan has authored articles on topics relating to medical malpractice and products liability which have been published in Trial magazine and OTLA’s Advocate. He served as lead counsel on several major cases involving issues of medical malpractice as well as sovereign immunity. He is a frequent lecturer at seminars and has served as a faculty member on both the Basic and Advanced Colleges of Trial Advocacy sponsored by ATLA.

Gerald S. Leeseberg is a partner with the Columbus, OH firm of Wolske and Blue. The firm specializes in medical malpractice, products liability and general personal injury. Mr. Leeseberg received his J.D. from the Ohio State College of Law in 1979. He is board-certified in civil litigation by the National Board of Trial Advocacy. Mr. Leeseberg frequently lectures on general tort and malpractice topics.

William Mann is with the Columbus, OH law firm of Wolske and Blue, which handles exclusively plaintiff personal injury and medical malpractice litigation. Mr. Mann received his B.A. from Case Western Reserve University and his J.D. from the University of Dayton. He is a member of the Association of Trial Lawyers of America, the Ohio Academy of Trial Lawyers and the Ohio State Bar Association, where he serves on the Legal Ethics and Professional Conduct Committee. He is the author of “Stare Wars: The Corporate Empire Stakes Back?” I Ohio Lawyer No. 4 (1987) 23. Mr. Mann frequently lectures on tort, insurance and litigation issues, and has been recognized by Who’s Who In American Law and The Society of Young American Professionals.

The late Marie Elisa Marzani was an attorney for 13 years and was a partner with the firm of Epstein, O’Neill, Utan, Wilson & Marzani in Scranton, Pennsylvania from 1987 to 1990. A Phi Alpha Delta graduate of Temple University Law School, Ms. Marzani was also a professor of women and the law at Maryland College and the University of Scranton. She had previously published for The Practical Lawyer. Her memberships included the Pennsylvania and American Bar Associations, Pennsylvania Trial Lawyers Association, and the Association of Trial Lawyers of America.

Samuel M. Meeks, CPCU, AIC, AIM, consults, writes claims-related materials and conducts instructional workshops. He has over thirty years experience in the Property Casualty Insurance Industry, primarily in claims. His titles have ranged from Field Claims Representative to Senior Vice President. He also holds an MBA and a BA in Education. He may be reached at (714) 639-0572.

Sarah H. Meirson is an associate with the Columbus, Ohio law firm of Wolske and Blue, which exclusively handles plaintiff personal injury, product liability and medical malpractice. Ms. Meirson attended the Cleveland institute of Music prior to receiving her B.A. from The Ohio State University. She received her J.D. from The Ohio State University College of Law in 1992. Ms. Meirson is a member of the Association of Trial Lawyers of America and the Ohio State Bar Association. She may be reached at (614) 228-6969.

Kenneth J. Mendelsohn is a partner in the firm of Beasley, Wilson, Allen, Mendelsohn, Jemison & James, P.C. in Montgomery Alabama. Mr. Mendelsohn received his B.S. from Washington & Lee University and his J.D. from the University of Alabama. Following law school he served as law clerk to the Honorable Truman Hobbs, U.S. District Court Judge. He devotes his practice to representing plaintiffs in lawsuits involving insurance claims, automobile collisions, products liability claims, and the Dram Shop Act. Mr. Mendelsohn is a frequent speaker on general trial topics on the state and national level. He is a past president of the Montgomery County Trial Lawyers Association; and a member of the American Trial Lawyers Association.

Mr. Mendelsohn and his law partner, Jere L. Beasley, obtained a fifteen million dollar wrongful death verdict for the mother of a seven-year-old child who was killed in a motor vehicle collision. Recently Mr. Beasley and Mr. Mendelsohn obtained a six million dollar verdict against an insurance company on a bad faith claim that the insurance company failed to investigate and pay an uninsured motorist claim.

Joseph P. Monteleone is Senior Vice President and Claims Counsel at Reliance National in New York which, through its affiliated insurance companies, is a major underwriter of employment practices liability insurance and other casualty insurance products.

Angeline Nanni is a structured settlement specialist with Structured Financial Associates, Inc., in Baltimore, Maryland. Prior to working as a settlement specialist in the Baltimore and Washington areas, she was Director of Administration overseeing their 30 offices nationwide. During that time, she handled approximately 4000 cases involving structured settlements.

Ms. Nanni has conducted numerous presentations and training seminars to various groups on structured settlements. She is a member of the National Structured Settlement Trade Association, the Washington Claims Association and the Maryland Society for Health Care Risk Management.

W.B. (Larry) Nelson is Professor of Economics and Business Administration at the University of Texas at Arlington. He was Dean of the College of Business from 1965 - 1973, guiding it to full accreditation of both its undergraduate and MBA programs by the American Assembly of Collegiate Schools of Business. He resigned the Deanship to return to full-time teaching, research, and consulting in economics and labor relations. He is an Arbitrator on the panels of both the Federal Mediation Conciliation Service and the American Arbitration Association and a member of the National Academy of Arbitrators.

His economics consulting is largely restricted to personal injury litigation, an area in which he has been actively involved for some twenty years. He has published extensively, and is a member of the American Economic Association, the Society of Professionals in Dispute Resolution, and other professional societies. Dr. Nelson can be reached at the University (817) 273-3061 or at (817) 261-3916 or (214) 248-8436. His mailing address is 917 Sherwood Drive, Arlington, Texas 76013.

Arthur F. Norris is an Insurance Claims Consultant and provides consultations and expert testimony on coverage, claims department customs and practices, and questions of good or bad faith. He has 23 years experience with Wausau and Western Employers’ Insurance Companies and holds a designation of Associate in Risk Management. He can be contacted at PO. Box 8502, Rowland Heights, CA 91748; telephone (818) 964-9513.

Mark A. Racine, AIC, has 17 years of experience in multi-line claims handling in the Fort Wayne, Indiana, area. The past-president of the Fort Wayne Adjusters Association and nominee for lndiana Adjuster of the Year, he has experience with both independent and staff companies. He is presently a claims specialist with Cincinnati Insurance Company and is also an instructor in its education and training program.

David Z. Ribakoff is an associate at Reuben & Novicoff, a Beverly Hills, California law firm specializing in complex civil litigation where he has represented policyholders in disputes with insurance carriers and has also represented major insurance brokers in various matters, including errors and omissions, employee dishonesty and trade secrets violations. Mr. Ribakoff is an active member of the Tort and Insurance Practice Section of the American Bar Association, and is currently an assistant editor for the TIPS/Insurance Coverage Litigation Section Newsletter.

Ellsworth T. Rundlett III is a general practice trial lawyer with 18 years of experience in the field of personal injury. He is on the Board of Governors of both the Maine Bar Association and the Maine Trial Lawyers Association. He has achieved advocate status with the National College of Advocacy and was recently certified as a civil trial specialist by the National Board of Trial Advocacy. He has lectured throughout his region on negligence law and insurance law and was an instructor of torts for the National Academy of Paralegal Studies. He is the subject of biographical reference in Who’s Who in American Law.

John A. Russo is a partner with Roth & Russo in Oakland, California. Mr. Russo’s practice emphasizes business litigation, commercial real estate, and professional malpractice.

David P. Schack is a partner in the law firm of Mitchell, Silberberg & Knupp LLP, located in Los Angeles, California. He is a business trial lawyer who represents policyholders on insurance issues. Mr. Schack received his B.A. in philosophy with honors and distinction from Stanford University in 1979. He was also elected to Phi Beta Kappa. He earned his law degree from UCLA School of Law where he was an editor of the UCLA Law Review and an editor of the UCLA Journal of International Law. Mr. Schack has practiced extensively in the area of insurance. He has handled numerous negotiations with, and lawsuits against, insurance companies to obtain insurance coverage and insurance benefits. He has handled complex insurance coverage disputes involving virtually all types of insurance policies.

Mr. Schack is a member of the American Bar Association Committee on Insurance Coverage Litigation and a member of the Los Angeles County Bar Association. He has lectured and written on the topic of insurance coverage. His other publications include, The Right to Privacy for Business Entities, 24 Santa Clara Law Review 53 (1984); and Reinsurance and Insurer Insolvency: The Problem of Direct Recovery by the Original Insured or Injured Claimant, 29 U.C.L.A. Law Review 872 (1982).

Stan Schultz is the Chief Executive Officer and one of the three principal owners of IBAR Settlement Company, located in San Marino, California. Following his graduation from the University of Southern California in 1976, Mr. Schultz was employed as an insurance field adjuster and investigator. Upon joining IBAR, Inc. in 1980, Mr. Schultz began his training in the newly emerging structured settlement industry. Since that time Mr. Schultz has been involved as a consultant on approximately 1500 structured settlement matters. Mr. Schultz has qualified and testified in state court as an expert in the area of structured settlement annuities. In addition to his structured settlement consultation, Mr. Schultz is currently involved as an advisory member of over 100 Special Needs Trusts and has co-authored an article on this subject appearing in the June 1993 issue of the CTLA Forum.

Julie Schwartz, M.S., is the founder of Occupational and Career Services, Inc. (OCS), 2823 North 48th Street, Suite 3, Phoenix, Arizona, 85008 (602) 840-9084. She serves as forensic consultant, expert witness for plaintiff and defense cases, and rehabilitation case manager. OCS, Inc. staff perform all of the client services and forensic assessments reviewed in this chapter on Determining and Proving Economic Damages, including calculations of future damages and present values.

Robert K. Scott is a partner in the law firm of Shernoff, Scott & Metzger, Newport Beach, California, and a trial lawyer with 17 years’ experience, specializing in insurance bad faith litigation. A graduate of California Western School of Law, he is a board member of the California Trial Lawyers Association, a member of numerous other legal associations and frequent lecturer and author on legal topics.

The authors gratefully acknowledge the assistance of John C. McCarty, a graduate of Western State University College of Law, with trial experience in insurance bad faith cases.

Mary Jo Smerz, J.D., is a partner in the law firm of Lowrey & Smerz, Ltd. in Chicago, IL. She has been with the firm since 1982. She specializes in personal injury, medical malpractice and products liability cases. Ms. Smerz received her J.D. from DePaul University College of Law in 1981. She has had articles published in Illinois Trial Lawyers Journal, Trial Diplomacy Journal, and Chicago Bar Association Record. She is an active member of the Chicago and Illinois State Bar Associations, the Illinois Trial Lawyer’s Association, and the Women’s Bar Association of Illinois. Ms. Smerz can be reached at 100 Monroe Street, 21st Floor, Chicago, IL 60603; telephone number (312) 332-5433.

Roy V. Trotter received formal training in techniques of investigation while at The Army Intelligence School, Fort Holabird, Maryland; after which he was assigned to the Cincinnati Field Office where he conducted background investigations of candidates for security clearance.

Mr. Trotter spent a short time with Dun & Bradstreet conducting business investigation, then in 1960 he joined a national independent adjustment firm. He has worked as a staff and independent adjuster, supervisor, litigation examiner, claims manager and field investigator for the Indiana Department of Insurance.

Mr. Trotter opened his own office in the spring of 1988.

Robert L. Tuma is a trial lawyer with over 25 years of experience. He specializes in the area of bodily injury, with emphasis on automobile accidents, products liability and wrongful death claims.

Mr. Tuma is the President and Founder of Professional Negotiations, Inc., a company designed as a new approach to negotiations and dispute resolution. He has conducted public and private seminars in negotiations, including seminars to insurance adjusters and attorneys. He has also acted as a negotiating consultant and mediator.

His extensive experience in the field of negotiating includes resolving over 2,000 claims, including bodily injury and wrongful death cases.

Robert J. Varley is an associate with the Veigas Law Group, P.C., in Montgomery, Alabama, and currently specializes in personal injury and worker’s compensation cases. Mr. Varley received his J. D. from the University of Alabama School of Law, where he served as the Research Editor for both the Alabama Law Review and the Alabama Law & Psychology Review. Mr. Varley is the author of a comment on the Alabama Youthful Offender Act, 28 Ala. L. Rev. 481-525 (1976). Following law school, Mr. Varley served as a law clerk to the Honorable Sam C. Pointer, Jr., Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama. Mr. Varley was employed for nearly fifteen years as an attorney with the Legal Services Corporation of Alabama, Inc., where he specialized in litigation and gained particular experience and notoriety handling civil rights and other class action cases. Mr. Varley is admitted to practice before the United States District Courts for the Northern, Middle and Southern Districts of Alabama, the Fifth and Eleventh Circuit Courts of Appeals and the United States Supreme Court, and has appeared in cases before each of these courts. Mr. Varley has also appeared as counsel of record in over thirty reported cases.

Henry H. Wallace of Wallace & Associates is a trial attorney with a national practice. He represents catastrophically injured plaintiffs and has had awards in the 5 million dollar area and verdicts in jurisdictions such as Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Virginia, Alaska, Florida and California. Mr. Wallace is a certified specialist in civil litigation by the National Board of Trial Advocacy. He lectures nationally. Mr. Wallace accepts cases on a referral basis and can be reached at (412) 391-6666.

J. Ray Warren is a member of the Alabama State Bar and is Claims Manager with the Division of Risk Management, State of Alabama. He obtained his LLB degree from Jones School of Law, Montgomery, Alabama. Prior to his current position, he engaged in a successful plaintiff law practice with the Veigas Law Group, representing clients in personal injury and workers” compensation claims. Additionally, he worked over 27 years with State Farm Mutual, the last 15 years as an automobile claim superintendent. Mr. Warren is a Chartered Property and Casualty Underwriter (CPCU), a retired colonel (Alabama Army National Guard) and has served as Chairman of the Alabama Ethics Commission. He can be reached at P.O. Box 230245, Montgomery, AL 36123-0245.

R. Randy Wertz is a partner with the San Francisco law firm of Dryden, Margoles, Schimaneck, Hartman & Kelly. He is a trial attorney specializing in insurance defense and products liability. Mr. Wertz is a member of the San Francisco Bar Association and the San Francisco Trial Lawyers Association. He may be contacted at (415) 352-6715.

Michael L. Wetzel of Wetzel & Associates in Stone Mountain, Georgia concentrates on insurance related litigation and personal injury cases. He can be reached at P. O. Box 871049, Stone Mountain, Georgia 30087-0027, (770) 879-9618.

Jerry D. White is Executive Vice President and CEO of Los Angeles Mutual Insurance Adjusters. He holds a Juris Doctor from Pacific Coast University School of Law. Mr. White has been qualified as an expert witness in both property and casualty claims in superior court and has testified in both plaintiff and defense cases on the customs and practices of insurance claims adjusting.

Alan J. Winters, M.D., J.D., has a private law practice specializing in medical negligence and personal injury litigation. He has been a medical-legal consultant since 1979. He received his M.D. from State University of New York and his J.D. from the University of Houston. Dr. Winters has held numerous teaching positions in obstetrics and gynecology and was a United States Air Force Physician in obstetrics and gynecology. He was also a private practitioner in obstetrics and gynecology from 1979 to 1986. He has presented several papers at medical symposia and has had numerous articles published in medical journals, including the Journal of the American Medical Association, Gynecological Investigation, the Journal of Steroid Biochemistry, and Texas Medicine. He is a member of several medical and legal organizations, including the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (Fellow), the American College of Legal Medicine (Fellow), the Houston Medical-Legal Society, the Texas Medical Association and the Texas Bar Association. Dr. Winters can be reached at 440 Louisiana, Suite 700, Houston, TX 77002; telephone number (713) 228-5353.

Charles E. Workman, M.D. is an orthopedic and hand surgeon. He has been the medical director of the Kansas City Physician’s Clinic since its inception in 1980. He has been a staff member of Trinity Lutheran Hospital since 1962, and Associate Professor Emeritus in Orthopedics at the University of Missouri since 1980. Dr. Workman is a consultant to numerous organizations and institutions, including the United States Army and Marine Corps, the Railroad Retirement Board, the Universities of Kansas, Missouri, and Nevada, and a number of law firms and insurance companies. He is both an independent medical examiner and an examiner for malpractice cases for the state of Kansas.

Dr. Workman is a member of numerous medical organizations, including the American and Missouri Medical Associations and the Missouri State Orthopaedic Society. He has given lectures on medical and legal topics to physicians and attorneys, and has had articles published in several journals, including the Journal of Modern Medicine, American Journal of Surgery, Journal of Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research, Missouri Medicine, and California Medicine. Dr. Workman can be reached at the Kansas City Physicians’ Clinic, Inc., 6609 Milhaven Drive, Mission, KS 66202; telephone numbers (800) 327-7826, (913) 722-1192.

David E. Young is an independent adjuster licensed to represent either the insurer or the insured. His practice is currently limited to adjustment of insurance claims on behalf of the insured. In addition to his work in his home state of Arizona, he has served as an appraiser in Utah and California.

Mr. Young is a Senior Partner with the public adjusting firm of Brown-O’Haver Loss Claims Representatives in Phoenix, Arizona. He graduated from Weber State College (now Weber State University) in Ogden, Utah, with a degree in finance and has served in various capacities with public adjusting firms in several states.

He can be contacted at 5217 East Whitton Avenue, P.O. Box 80122, Phoenix, AZ 85060-0122; telephone (602) 952-9188.