Representative Experience
- Former Assistant General Counsel, Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA), Washington, D.C., 1993 - 1998
- Former Deputy City Attorney for the City of Inglewood, California, Criminal Division, 1989 - 1992
- Extensive first-chair trial experience, primarily representing defendants in insurance and bad faith litigation, general tort litigation and the prosecution in criminal cases
- Extensive experience representing insurance companies in insurance coverage and bad faith disputes in West Virginia
- Significant appellate experience, successfully representing defendants before appellate courts in West Virginia, Maryland and the District of Columbia on a wide range of insurance and tort law issues
- Demonstrated success in handling a high volume of medium-exposure tort cases for a large self-insured entity (WMATA)
- Obtained a reversal on appeal of a trial court’s decision to force a workers’ compensation insurance carrier to provide deliberate intent insurance coverage to an employer that had never purchased such coverage
- Obtained a reversal on appeal of a trial court’s decision to force an insurance company to provide liability insurance to the State of West Virginia for an injury sustained by a child on State property
- Obtained a defense verdict for a major hand-held power equipment manufacturer accused of fraud, breach of contract and various statutory violations in connection with the cancellation of a distributorship agreement
- Obtained a defense verdict in a lawsuit by a plaintiff alleging Multiple Chemical Sensitivity ("MCS") as a result of a toxic exposure aboard a WMATA bus
- Obtained a directed verdict for the defense, upheld on appeal, in a lawsuit by a plaintiff alleging serious neurological and psychological damage as a result of an accident aboard a WMATA train
- Obtained a reversal on appeal of a jury verdict in favor of a mentally disabled plaintiff alleging serious physical injuries as a result of being struck by a car while exiting a WMATA bus
Education
- Centre College of Kentucky, B.S., 1985
- University of Notre Dame, J.D., 1988
Admissions
- West Virginia State Bar
- Kentucky State Bar
- Ohio State Bar
- Maryland State Bar
- District of Columbia Bar
- California State Bar (currently inactive)
- All federal courts in West Virginia, Kentucky, Maryland, District of Columbia and California
- United States Courts of Appeals for the Fourth, Ninth and District of Columbia Circuits
- United States Supreme Court
Affiliations
- American Bar Association
- Defense Research Institute
- Former Member, Board of Governors, Defense Trial Counsel of West Virginia
- Former Chair, Insurance Law Committee, Defense Trial Counsel of West Virginia
Publications
Reported Cases
- West Virginia Employers’ Mutual Insurance Company v. Summit Point Raceway Associates, Inc., 719 S.E. 2d 830, ____ W. Va. ____ (2011)
- National Union Fire Insurance Company of Pittsburgh v. Miller, ____ S.E. 2d ____, ____ W. Va. ____, 2012 WL 602894 (2012)
- WMATA v. Reading, 109 Md. App. 89, 674 A. 2d 44 (1996)
- Chapman v. Kamara, 118 Md. App. 418, 702 A. 2d 977 (1997)
Awards and Distinctions
- Listed in The Best Lawyers in America, Insurance Law
- Recognized as a West Virginia Super Lawyer, Insurance Coverage and Civil Litigation Defense