Success Stories
Wood & Bender focuses solely upon insurance policy enforcement matters. Snapshots of several recent cases are below. For additional snapshots, please contact us.
- For a Fortune 500 retailer, the firm recovered $25 million under partially-manuscripted umbrella policy arising out of a premises liability claim
- The firm represented a consortium of builders of a $180 million public works project in enforcing claims arising from the design professionals’ errors and omissions under a project-specific insurance policy
- In response to an SEC investigation and shareholder derivative litigation over allegations of stock option backdating, the firm represents a Fortune 100 technology company in disputes with insurers over coverage for $13 million in defense expenses incurred to date
- When walls failed on a highway reconstruction project, the firm represented a builder-heavy construction contractor joint venture in recovering the multi-million dollar cost of repair against the project-specific insurer
- Representing one of the largest publicly-traded general contractors in North America, the firm enforced claims for coverage arising from construction defect litigation based on two commercial building projects
- When a large international general contractor was sued for project manager errors and omissions arising from construction of a city hall, the firm enforced the contractor’s claims against the subs’ general liability insurers for defense and indemnity
- For a regional developer, the firm forced the successor-in-interest of the developer’s general liability carrier to defend construction defect claims by owners of track housing; claims for indemnity from the subs’ insurers are pending
- In construction defect litigation arising from an earthquake retrofit of a large office building, the firm–representing a large international general contractor–compelled the subs’ insurers to defend the general contractor and fund a multi-million dollar settlement on its behalf
- The firm enforced claims of a large municipal entity against its joint powers authority and excess carrier for refusing to defend complex litigation brought arising from alleged errors and omission in development of a regional mall
- For a regional general contractor, the firm forced the general liability carrier to pay near policy limits to settle completed operations claims arising from a residential construction project
- The firm enforced claims of a major Pacific Rim regional bank under a directors’ and officers’ liability policy issued to predecessor-in-interest arising from shareholder action alleging securities fraud
- The firm recovered defense fees and partial indemnity for wage and hour claims under EPLI policies
- For a Southeastern regional bank, the firm enforced claims under a general liability policy based on the carrier’s refusal to defend lender liability/commercial litigation filed against predecessor-in-interest
- For a consortium of high-profile entertainment companies, the firm enforced claims under producers’ errors and omissions coverage for near policy limits, where a Canadian carrier had wrongfully denied a defense and indemnity in a dispute over intellectual property
- The firm enforced claims for defense under decades-old general liability policies for a large California city, arising out of a multiple-site environmental contamination suits filed by hundreds of homeowners
- The firm compelled the healthcare errors and omissions and general liability carrier for regional hospital to finance defense and settlement of bitter dispute with physician charging fraud in peer review process
- The firm enforced duty of managed care errors and omissions carrier to fund the defense of a major regional healthcare conglomerate in fraud litigation over a failed assisted living project
- The firm compelled insurer for a Southwest regional consortium of product and services businesses to partially fund settlement of a high-exposure employment discrimination action, just minutes before jury returned a punitive damages award against the insureds
- For the former Chief Executive Officer of a public company, the firm enforced a claim under a directors’ and officers’ liability policy in shareholder litigation, and forced the carrier to pay 150% of policy limits for failing to accept prior within-limits demand
- The firm enforced claims of a Western restaurant chain against its insurance broker for errors and omissions in placing coverage, achieving recovery of 112% of professional liability policy limits
Snapshots
Client:
Issue:
Achievement:
President of Technology Company
Directors & Officers Liability
Wood & Bender represented the president of a technology company against his directors and officers liability carrier, which had refused to reimburse defense expenses and fund a settlement in securities fraud litigation. (Los Angeles Superior Court)
Obtained insurer settlement of 150 percent of policy limits
Client:
Issue:
Achievement:
Bank
Breach of Fiduciary Duty and Securities Fraud
Wood & Bender represented a bank in claims for breach of fiduciary duty and securities fraud against the officers and directors of a bank it acquired. (Los Angeles County Superior Court)
Earned a seven-figure settlement, funded by directors' and officers' liability insurer, just before the case went to trial.
Client:
Issue:
Achievement:
Group of Attorneys
Legal Malpractice
The firm represented attorneys when a veterinary group brought a legal malpractice action against criminal defense counsel in a highly-publicized animal cruelty case. (Orange County Superior Court)
Three weeks into a six-week jury trial, the plaintiffs dismissed the case and publicly apologized for suing the defendants.
Client:
Issue:
Achievement:
Entertainment Companies
Bad Faith
Wood & Bender represented entertainment companies in a bad faith litigation arising from an insurer's wrongful denial of a defense and indemnity in an underlying intellectual property infringement action. (United States District Court for the Central District of California)
Obtained 90 percent recovery of policy limits.
Client:
Issue:
Achievement:
Bank
Legal Malpractice
Firm prosecuted a legal malpractice claim arising from an attorney's successive representation of the trustor and a beneficiary of a trust. (Los Angeles Superior Court)
The Court ruled there was a disqualifying conflict and the case settled.
Client:
Issue:
Achievement:
Business Conglomerate
Coverage for Punitive Damages Exposure
Firm served as coverage counsel for a large luxury automotive dealership in enforcing a claim for coverage under an employment practices liability policy. Where a jury had just rendered a $150,000 compensatory damages verdict and had found malice and oppression, leading to a second phase of trial on punitive damages. (Los Angeles Superior Court)
Achieved a settlement with plaintiff under which the carrier contributed 200 percent of the compensatory award, notwithstanding the uninsurability of punitive damages in California -- four minutes before the jury returned with a much larger punitive damages verdict.
Client:
Issue:
Achievement:
Private Attorney
Accounting Malpractice and Comparative Negligence
Wood & Bender enforced an attorney's accountancy malpractice claims against a CPA who failed to characterize commercial real estate losses as passive and chargeable against commercial real estate gains. (Los Angeles Superior Court)
Secured 95 percent recovery from professional liability insurer, despite comparative negligence issues.