Insurance and Coverage Law
The insurance defense team of Butler Williams & Skilling, P.C. delivers high-quality representation at competitive rates, combining years of experience in insurance law with the latest advancements in litigation technology. The Firm’s attorneys routinely engage in the defense and prosecution of insurance matters in all phases of trial and appellate practice at both the state and federal levels. The Firm counts among its clients a significant number of domestic carriers, as well as a number of corporations that are self-insured or part of risk-retention groups. Seasoned litigation skills and personal attention to our clients are the hallmarks of our practice.
Claims
Our successful defense engagements have covered a full range of personal injury and property damage cases, including construction defect and accident claims; commercial claims; comprehensive general liability claims; commercial premises liability claims; environmental claims; product liability claims; personal lines and homeowners claims; first party bad faith litigation; motor vehicle and off-road equipment claims; employment-related claims, including claims of discrimination; consumer claims; commercial and business claims; securities claims; and bankruptcy claims.
Coverage
We represent insurers in the investigation, evaluation, and litigation of coverage matters under a variety of insurance policies. The Firm’s attorneys have significant experience in coverage issues including the analysis of contractual coverage, policy conditions, policy exclusions, defining “occurrence,” duty to defend, reservation of rights, and notice. We also represent insurers in bad faith suits in state and federal courts throughout Virginia.
Special Investigations/Fraud
Our attorneys have extensive experience assisting insurers with the investigation of fraudulent claims including arson, business income losses, and theft or loss of personal property. We routinely conduct examinations under oath and counsel clients on claims decisions; we effectively and efficiently defend first-party suits and prosecute declaratory judgment actions arising out of those decisions. The Firm enjoys a long-standing relationship with the special investigation units of numerous insurers and has developed a network of private investigators, accountants, and other professionals integral to the successful handling of SIU claims.
Representative Engagements:
- Recently, the Firm defended a state court action for trespass, conversion, and negligent trespass involving an individual insured who purchased rail material from a bankruptcy trustee representing a mining company in a Chapter 11 proceeding. Title to the rail material was later claimed by a railroad company. After extended litigation involving both state and federal courts, the jury returned a verdict satisfactory to both the insured and the carrier.
- In a matter involving the Virginia Arson Immunity Act, Va. Code Ann. § 27-85.4 et seq., our attorneys represented the carrier in a declaratory judgment action in federal court against its insureds, where there were allegations of arson and material misrepresentations in the submission of the claim. The matter was resolved favorably for our client.