Thought Leadership

RECOGNITION

Heather Byrer Carbone (Jacksonville, FL) was honored with the John J. Schickel Professionalism and Excellence Award by the E. Robert Williams Inn of Court. 

Peggy Smith Bush (Orlando, FL) and Heather Byrer Carbone (Jacksonville, FL) have been recognized as 2024 Florida Trend “Legal Elite NOTABLE - Women Leaders in Law.” Both were honored for their impact in the field of law, mentorship, and leadership in professional organizations and civic/community service initiatives. 

Congratulations to Jeremy J. Zacharias, RPLU, (Mount Laurel, NJ office) on his election to the Board of Trustees of the Professional Liability Underwriting Society. Jeremy has been an active member of PLUS since 2016. 
 

PUBLISHED ARTICLES

February 18, 2025 – The New Jersey Law Journal published David Levine’s (Roseland, NJ) article “Navigating Preexisting Conditions in New Jersey Workers’ Compensation Claims.” Read his article here.  

January 28, 2025 – Jillian Dinehart (Cleveland, OH) authored, “‘I Was Just Following Orders’ – Ohio’s Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals Applies Fourth Amendment’s Good-Faith Exception to First Amendment Retaliation Claims,” published in PLUS Blog. The article discusses Hall v. Navarre, where the Sixth Circuit found that a police officer who ticketed a protestor for disorderly conduct, despite not personally witnessing the conduct, had qualified immunity for the plaintiff’s First Amendment retaliation claim. Read Jillian’s article here.

November 27, 2024 – The Insurance Journal published Sean Greenwalt’s (Tampa, FL) article “Florida Appeals Court Nods Enforceability of Forum Selection Clauses in PIP Cases.” You can read Sean’s article here.

November 27, 2024 – The New Jersey Law Journal published “Opportunity Knocks: Modern Trends with Business Email Compromise in a Changing Cyber World” by David Shannon (Philadelphia, PA) and Jeremy Zacharias (Mount Laurel, NJ). You can read their article here.
 

SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS

February 24, 2025 – Mohamed Bakry (Philadelphia, PA) co-moderated “Behind the Bench: A Candid Look at What Federal Judges Expect from Lawyers” at the Federation of Defense & Corporate Counsel’s (FDCC) Annual Winter Meeting. 

February 23–27, 2025 – John Delany, III (Philadelphia, PA), chair of our Catastrophic Claims Practice Group, moderated a compelling session at the Federation of Defense & Corporate Counsel Winter Meeting. Jack joined author Colum McCann, American Book Award-winning author of Let the Great World Spin, to discuss his book, American Mother. The session’s theme focused on how a more empathetic approach to practicing law cannot only increase understanding and good will between plaintiffs and defendants but also lower the likelihood of a nuclear verdict and bring about resolutions that all parties can feel better about.

February 19, 2025 – Jeffrey Rapattoni (Mount Laurel, NJ) co-presented the webinar “Bad Faith Legal Update” to members of International Association of Special Investigation Units (IASIU). Topics included current legislation affecting the SIU and anti-fraud professionals, case-specific legal decisions affecting the SIU community, as well as trending decisions and pending legislation.

February 12, 2025 – Michele Punturi (Philadelphia, PA) joined a panel at Claims Litigation Management’s (CLM) 2025 Focus Conference: Work Comp, Casualty and Risk Management. In “Workers’ Comp Risk Management Best Practices: Insights from High-Risk Industries,” the panel addressed the ongoing challenges of workers’ compensation in high-risk industries. 

February 11, 2025 – Rachel Insalaco (Scranton, PA) co-presented “Special Education Law: The Ultimate Guide” at a National Business Institute CLE. Rachel’s presentation addressed bullying and/or harassment involving students with special needs.

February 10, 2025 – Sara Mazzolla (Roseland, NJ) joined a panel of International Amusement & Leisure Defense Association professionals to present “Risk Management and Understanding the Claims Process” at the NAFDMA Agritourism Association Convention & Expo.

January 30, 2025 – Jacqueline Reynolds (King of Prussia, PA) co-presented “The Lawyer’s Guide to Mitigating Burnout: Caring for Ourselves and Our Clients in Challenging Times 2025” for the Pennsylvania Bar Institute.

January 28, 2025 – Samuel Cohen (Philadelphia, PA) participated in the session “Best Interest Reviews: Decoding FINRA 2330” at Level Up at OneVoice Annual Kickoff 2025.

January 16, 2025 – Josh J.T. Byrne (Philadelphia, PA) was a featured speaker in the Philadelphia Bar Association’s webcast “Recent Ethics Developments 2024.” Hosted by the Professional Guidance and Responsibility Committee, the program highlighted key cases, ethics opinions, disciplinary decisions, and changes in the rules of professional conduct from 2024. 

January 16, 2025 – Jon Cross (Philadelphia, PA) and Thomas Brown (Orlando, FL) were speakers during the three-hour presentation at the “Legal Roundtable” held at the Amusement Industry Manufacturers and Suppliers (AIMS) Conference.

January 16, 2025 – Jeffrey Rapattoni (Mount Laurel, NJ) discussed “Ethical Considerations for the SIU” at the National Insurance Crime Bureau’s (NICB) Mid-Atlantic Major Medical Fraud Task Force Training Event. Designed for NICB agents covering Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware, the program provided information and strategies related to the prevention, detection, and prosecution of insurance fraud and crime. 

January 15, 2025 – A.C. Nash, Ryan Burns and Edwyna Estime (all of Fort Lauderdale, FL) headlined at the RIMS - Broward County chapter meeting. They co-presented “New Year, New Rules – Florida’s New Civil Procedure Rules,” which examined the Florida Supreme Court’s changes to the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure.

January 10, 2025 – Josh J.T. Byrne (Philadelphia, PA) co-presented “Dealing with Difficult Opposing Counsel 2025” for the Pennsylvania Bar Institute. 

December 18, 2024 – “Restoration After the Data Breach!” In the final episode of his 2024 PLUS podcast series, David Shannon (Philadelphia, PA) spoke with disaster restoration expert Heath Renfrow about managing sophisticated cyber attacks. Listen to the PLUS podcast here or read the transcript here.

December 18, 2024 – Josh J.T. Byrne (Philadelphia, PA) presented “Legal Malpractice Avoidance” at a Dauphin County Bar Association CLE webinar.

December 17, 2024 – Sara Mazzolla (Mount Laurel, NJ) participated in the Sports and Entertainment Risk Management Alliance (SERMA®)’s webinar “Roller Skating and Ice Skating Risk Management.”

December 9, 2024 – Matthew Keris (Scranton, PA) was a panelist for a webinar hosted by the Pennsylvania Coalition for Civil Justice Reform. In “A-Z on AI! Artificial Intelligence Litigation Trends and Ethical Issues,” Matt and his co-panelists led a discussion on AI from a medical liability perspective, including how the defense can weaponize AI and the ethical issues of AI in legal practice.

December 6, 2024 – Jack Delany (Philadelphia, PA) presented “Empathy in High-Stakes Trials” at the Litigation Counsel of America’s Renaissance Symposium XVIII. The symposium offered a full day of trial tactics and strategies, led by some of the country’s leading trial lawyers with years of experience, successes, and verdicts.

November 26, 2024 – Kimberly Kanoff Berman (Fort Lauderdale, FL) of our Florida Appellate Law practice presented at the National Business Institute course, “Obtaining Evidence from Electronic Devices in Florida.” The program focused on how to gather evidence from electronic devices and get it authenticated when hiring an expert is not feasible.

November 21, 2024 – Sara Mazzolla (Mount Laurel, NJ) and her International Amusement & Leisure Defense Association (IALDA) colleagues presented a Legal Roundtable at the International Association of Amusement Parks & Attractions (IAAPA) Expo 2024. The panel covered topics including including a three-part presentation on demystifying the science of acceleration forces; combatting reptile theory; using AI for demonstrative exhibits and jury consultants; updates on ASTM proposals and waivers; and case law in various jurisdictions.

November 20, 2024 – Anthony Natale (King of Prussia, PA) was one of the key speakers at the annual Delaware Valley Workers’ Compensation Trust’s (DVWCT) Claim Prevention seminar. This live event was attended by risk control employees, managers, police chiefs, command staff, department heads, and local government leadership in the townships and municipalities that are administered by the DVWCT. Tony spoke on the importance of presenting unified and global defenses between workers’ compensation, unemployment compensation, internal grievance arbitration, and employment law where applicable in cases involving workplace injuries. Tony was able to give examples of this unified directive, citing a current case in litigation involving all of these areas of law and the blue print used to provide a global defense. 

_{Defense Digest, Vol. 31, No. 1, March 2025, is prepared by Marshall Dennehey 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. © 2025 Marshall Dennehey. All Rights Reserved. This article may not be reprinted without the express written permission of our firm. For reprints, contact tamontemuro@mdwcg.com.}