On the Pulse…Other Notable Achievements

Bankruptcy Litigation Practice Group Launched

We recently launched a Bankruptcy Litigation Practice Group within our Professional Liability Department. This practice group will counsel and defend clients in all aspects of bankruptcy-related litigation and protect the rights and interests of clients who find themselves as creditors in a bankruptcy. The new practice group will be led by Gregory W. Fox (Philadelphia, PA) and Thomas D. Walsh (Wilmington, DE). The Bankruptcy Litigation Practice Group will service all types of businesses, individual and commercial creditors, banks, mortgage servicers, auto finance companies, debt collectors, car rental companies, taxing authorities, municipal entities, insurance carriers, insurance brokers, construction companies, and corporate directors and officers.

Special Appointments

Colleen Bannon (Philadelphia, PA), Director of Legal Information Resources, has been appointed a Vice-Chair of the Philadelphia Bar Association’s Federal Courts Committee. The committee serves as an informational liaison between the federal courts covering the Eastern District of Pennsylvania and members of the bar, and organizes the federal bench/bar conference held each spring. Colleen’s term on the committee is effective January 1, 2016.

Kimberly A. Boyer-Cohen (Philadelphia, PA), special counsel in the Appellate Advocacy and Post-Trial Practice Group, has been named a fellow of the Litigation Counsel of America (LCA). The LCA is a trial lawyer honorary society composed of less than one-half of one percent of American lawyers. Fellows are selected based upon excellence and accomplishment in litigation, both at the trial and appellate levels, and superior ethical reputation.

Niki T. Ingram (Philadelphia, PA), Director of the Workers’ Compensation Department, has been named a Fellow of the College of Workers’ Compensation Lawyers. Niki was inducted into the College during the American Bar Association’s 2016 Workers’ Compensation Midwinter Seminar and Conference, held March 11-12 in New Orleans. The College was established to honor attorneys who have distinguished themselves in the practice of workers’ compensation law. Niki is among a select group of attorneys in Pennsylvania, and across the country, who have earned this prestigious honor.

Matthew P. Keris (Scranton, PA), has been elected President of the Pennsylvania Association for Health Care Risk Management (PAHCRM). Matt took office on January 1 and will serve a one-year term. An affiliate of the American Society for Healthcare Risk Management (ASHRM), Matt has been involved with PAHCRM since 2009. As president, he is responsible for leading the state chapter, developing educational programs and facilitating interaction between health care risk management, insurance, claims and the legal community on issues of common interest.

Speaking Engagements

Niki Ingram (Philadelphia, PA), Eric Fitzgerald (Philadelphia, PA), and Claudia Costa (Roseland, NJ) spoke at two separate sessions at the Claims & Litigation Management Alliance’s (CLM) annual conference in Orlando, Florida. Niki joined a panel discussion, “The First 48 Hours: CSI,” which focused on workers’ compensation and the essential information to be obtained from an incident report from both the claims and litigation perspectives. Eric participated in a panel discussion on the ethical pitfalls that claims professionals and defense attorneys can encounter when defending claims under eroding limits professional liability policies. Claudia was a panelist for an employment professional liability session on transgender issues in the workplace, and the challenges facing employers.

Jacqueline Canter (Philadelphia, PA) recently presented at the annual National Retail and Restaurant Defense Association conference. She spoke on a panel “Assessing the Pros and Pitfalls of Conflict Waivers,” which addressed the issues that can arise when conflicts of interest are waived or when circumstances change during the course of litigation, creating a conflict that did not previously exist. Additionally, Jacqui was the moderator for “Choosing the Right Expert,” a panel discussion addressing what specialty engineering disciplines exist that could assist a defense attorney in retail and restaurant litigation.

James H. Cole (Doylestown, PA) and Jennie Philip (Philadelphia, PA) made a presentation at Pennsylvania’s 2016 Insurance Fraud Conference, jointly hosted by the Pennsylvania Insurance Fraud Prevention Authority and the Delaware Valley and Greater Pittsburgh Chapters of the International Association of Special Investigation Units. Jim presented on “Managing the Irrational Claimant - A Psychological & Legal Perspective.” Jennie’s topic focused on fraud and social media titled “OMG, LOL, Not Another Social Networking Class!”

Lary Zucker (Cherry Hill, NJ) was a featured speaker at the 2016 meeting of the Roller Skating Association International (RSA) East Coast Sections held in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Over 150 skating rink operators from Georgia to Massachusetts heard Lary’s presentation on the recent updates to the RSA Risk Management Guidelines. Lary co-authored the RSA Guidelines and serves on the RSA Safety and Risk Management Committee. He has been presenting seminars for the RSA for more than 30 years.

Amelia Leonard (Cleveland, OH), who serves as Chair of the Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association’s (CMBA) Women in Law section, played an integral role in the planning, development and execution of the CMBA’s Women’s Leadership Conference held in early March. The conference was developed in celebration of International Women’s Day, with a day-long program devoted to leadership, education and personal development. More than 120 women attended the event, which included presentations on the importance of corporate board service and sessions on mentoring, career negotiations, rainmaking, practice management and more. In addition to helping to organize the event, Amelia delivered the welcoming speech, served as a session moderator and presented the “Women Honoring Women” awards.

Niki Ingram (Philadelphia, PA) was a featured speaker at the 13th Annual National Workers’ Compensation Insurance ExecuSummit at the Mohegan Sun Convention Center & Hotel in Connecticut. In her presentation, “Exploring the Rising Use and Costs of Compounded Medications in Workers’ Compensation,” Niki addressed the recent trend of utilizing compounded medication as a reasonable alternative to traditional prescription care. She discussed what compounded medications are, how they are impacting the workers’ compensation system, best practices in identifying compounded medications claims exposures, and how the legislature and judiciary are responding to such claims. The event was attended by workers’ compensation professionals from across the country.

New Jersey Super Lawyers 2016

Twelve attorneys from our New Jersey offices have been recognized in the 2016 edition of New Jersey Super Lawyers magazine. A Thomson Reuters business, New Jersey Super Lawyers is a rating service of outstanding lawyers from more than 70 practice areas who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. Each year, no more than five percent of the lawyers in the state are selected as Super Lawyers and no more than 2.5 percent are selected for Super Lawyer Rising Stars. The selection process is multi-phased and includes independent research, peer nominations and peer evaluations.

The attorneys recognized as 2016 New Jersey Super Lawyers are:

  • John L. Slimm, Professional Liability Defense. Jack has devoted the majority of his 40-year career to the representation of attorneys, accountants, architects and engineers, directors and officers, and investment and insurance professionals in litigation.
  • Lary Zucker, Personal Injury Defense and Entertainment & Sports Defense. Lary chairs the firm’s Amusements, Sports & Recreation Practice Group and has 35 years of litigation experience.
  • Scott Eichhorn, Personal Injury, Medical Malpractice Defense. For 31 years, Scott has defended physicians and other health care practitioners in various health care liability matters.
  • Bruce Seidman, Personal Injury Defense. An experienced trial attorney, Bruce oversees the firm’s Professional Liability Practice Group in our Roseland office. He has more than 35 years of experience litigating professional liability and general liability matters.
  • Marshall Dennehey attorneys recognized as 2016 New Jersey Super Lawyer Rising Stars include:
  • Ian Antonoff, Professional Liability Defense. Ian represents design professionals and contractors in construction defect actions.
  • Ariel Brownstein, Insurance Coverage. Ariel focuses his practice on insurance fraud and SIU litigation, with an emphasis on medical provider fraud and large loss fraud.
  • Alicia Calaf, Personal Injury General Defense. Alicia primarily focuses her practice on medical malpractice and nursing home litigation.
  • Monica Fillmore, Personal Injury, Medical Malpractice Defense. Monica concentrates on medical malpractice, long-term care and health care litigation.
  • Ryan Gannon, Personal Injury, Medical Malpractice Defense. Ryan focuses on medical malpractice and nursing home malpractice litigation.
  • Christopher Gonnella, Construction Litigation, Business. Chris defends architects and engineers in complex construction and construction defect matters.
  • Nicholas Rimassa, Personal Injury, Medical Malpractice Defense. Nick focuses on medical malpractice defense and nursing home malpractice litigation.
  • Kristy Olivo Salvitti, Workers’ Compensation. Kristy devotes the entirety of her practice to the defense of employers in workers’ compensation matters.

 

Defense Digest, Vol. 22, No. 2, June 2016

Defense Digest is prepared by Marshall Dennehey Warner Coleman & Goggin to provide information on recent legal developments of interest to our readers. This publication is not intended to provide legal advice for a specific situation or to create an attorney-client relationship. ATTORNEY ADVERTISING pursuant to New York RPC 7.1. © 2016 Marshall Dennehey Warner Coleman & Goggin. All Rights Reserved. This article may not be reprinted without the express written permission of our firm. For reprints, contact tamontemuro@mdwcg.com.