CORPORATE INSURANCE AND CLASS ACTION LITIGATION

The Corporate Insurance and Class Action Litigation practice at NLdH focuses on the defense of corporate insurance clients in significant or class action cases. Many of the class action matters are national in scope and concern causes of action such as antitrust, consumer fraud, trade practices, contract claims, and insurer bad faith. The firm’s attorneys are experienced with the unique rules of civil procedure that control the manner in which class action lawsuits and Multi District Litigation (MDL) are handled. The firm uses state of the art technology to manage vast document repositories and trial stage technology to deliver dramatic courtroom presentations. 

Recent results include:

• Denial of class certification in Texas on insurance estimating business practices.
• Defense verdict in North Carolina for unfair trade practices and tortious interference lawsuit.
• Motion for Summary Judgment granted on central coverage issue in a class action matter docketed in West Virginia.
• Motion to Dismiss granted in $20 billion antitrust class action matter filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida.
• Pennsylvania Appellate Court’s granting insurer’s mandamus and refusal to compel insurer to disclose lists of policyholders that could be potential class members prior to certification.
• Dismissal of four property insurers from a Pennsylvania class action matter attacking the ability of insurers to assess depreciation.
• Successful defense of a $24 million lawsuit in North Carolina based on allegations that a nationally prominent insurer had defamed and tortiously steered customers away from the plaintiff’s business.
• Successful dismissal of "diminished value" class action lawsuits in Tennessee.
• Successful settlement of an Ohio-based national class action regarding total loss adjustments. 
• Successful dismissal of a Canadian-based class action regarding vehicle evaluations.
• Successful settlement of a Kentucky-based class action concerning tax on policies.

The firm’s attorneys were also active in federal class action reform efforts, which culminated in amendments to the federal Rules of Civil Procedure and the passage of the Class Action Fairness Act of 2005. NLdH lawyers testified in Washington about the shortcomings of modern day class action law. We conferred with members of Congress and staff members of the House Judiciary Committee about class action reform legislation. We also worked with pro-business organizations such as U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Lawyers for Civil Justice and the Washington Legal Foundation on these initiatives.

Corporate Insurance and Class Action Litigation attorneys have also been heavily involved in the E-discovery issues. Working with groups such as Lawyers for Civil Justice, the Federation of Defense and Corporate Counsel and the U.S. Chamber, NLdH's attorneys were at the forefront of changes to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure on E-discovery. Our attorneys testified before the Federal Rules committees taking testimony on E-discovery. Most recently, we testified on Proposed Federal Rule of Evidence 502 (waiver of attorney-client privilege and work product).