Lowenstein Sandler’s Insurance Recovery Group embarked on an exciting new endeavor in 2021. We launched our very own podcast, “Don’t Take No for an Answer,” which strives to provide our listeners with brief but informative discussions on timely insurance topics and bedrock principles that underlie all insurance claim disputes in a digestible and fun format. So far, we have launched 29 episodes featuring a variety of guests, ranging from insurance industry experts such as insurance brokers and insurance company representatives to legal practitioners, who discussed how insurance issues intersect with other areas of the law. Our goal in broadcasting this podcast has been to offer straightforward and practical advice on common insurance issues that arise when negotiating coverage on the front end and handling claims disputes down the road. We’ve highlighted a few of our most popular episodes below to provide you with a flavor of what to expect if you decide to tune in.
The Ransomware Attack Part 1 – How to Keep the Enemy at the Gates
(March 4, 2021)
This episode featured guests Bridget Choi, Deputy Counsel and Managing Director of Strategy at Kivu Consulting, and David Anderson, then VP with Lockton Insurance’s Cyber Technology Group. We discussed the current state of the cyber insurance market and, in particular, the effect of the recent surge in ransomware claims. Our guests offered practical advice on what companies can do to both avoid and handle ransomware attacks and provided some helpful pointers on how companies can present themselves as good risks during the cyber insurance underwriting process. Our guests also discussed what they’ve learned about cyber criminals and how they’ve operated during this unprecedented year of cyber-related crime. This is an episode you won’t want to miss if you want to learn more about the intersection of cybersecurity and insurance recovery.
Reps & Warranties Insurance: Sealing the Deal (July 9, 2021)
This episode featured guest Michael Wakefield, Senior Vice President and Transactional Insurance Practice Leader at CAC Specialty, and Lowenstein Sandler Insurance partner Eric Jesse, who joined to discuss the current state of play in the reps and warranties insurance (RWI) market and where we think the market is going. We talked about how RWI has become an increasingly popular product in competitive M&A, what factors a buyer should consider when selecting an RWI underwriter, and some of the big changes we’ve recently seen in the RWI underwriting process, due to both COVID-19- and non-COVID-19-related market factors. We also provided some critical thoughts on how the RWI underwriting process must keep pace with the deal, which is often fast-paced and ever changing, and how RWI is beginning to emerge in SPAC transactions. This is a great episode to listen to if you are interested in learning about how insurance has evolved with the recent surge in M&A deal activity.
The D&O Renewal Market: Will the Wild Ride of Premium Increases, Stretched Capacity and Restrictive Terms Continue? (March 18, 2021)
This episode featured guest Robert Crocitto, Principal Broker and Chief Sales Officer at ARC Excess & Surplus, LLC, and focused on the unprecedented challenges that 2020 brought to every business and industry and what impact the year had on the directors and officers (D&O) liability insurance renewal market during 2021. We discussed how D&O carriers have started to try to limit coverage, especially on the entity side of D&O policies, and to implement new policy exclusions as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. We also spoke about some positive developments in the market, such as how this year has allowed new players to enter the market, especially on the excess side. Rob shared some insight on which industries have been hit the hardest by the COVID-19 pandemic and what sorts of questions companies can expect from insurers as part of their annual D&O renewal process. This episode will be valuable to companies that are interested in learning about recent changes in the D&O market or to anyone interested in learning about the impact of COVID-19 on the commercial insurance market more generally.
Can’t We All Just Get Along? Effective Ways to Navigate the Tri-Partite Relationship Among Policyholders, Insurers, and Insurer Chosen Defense Counsel (September 23, 2021)
This episode featured guests Loren Pierce, a partner at Bressler, Amery & Ross, and Tom Quinn, a partner at Wilson Elser, and centered on the “tripartite relationship” that exists between a policyholder, its insurer, and the insured’s defense counsel in a lawsuit covered under an insurance policy. We discussed some of the difficult dilemmas that can arise within this complex relationship and shared techniques for keeping harmony between these three parties that have both shared and competing interests. We discussed the importance of communication and transparency at all times, who is the true “client” in the arrangement, the important relationship between coverage counsel and defense counsel, and how a harmonious relationship can help the insured obtain the best outcome on all fronts of litigation. This is an “insurance basics” episode that sheds light on the sorts of issues attorneys face when an insurer is responsible for funding a legal defense but coverage issues may lurk in the background.
Brokers: Friend, Foe, or Frenemy? (February 18, 2021)
In this episode, our co-hosts, Lynda Bennett and Michael Lichtenstein, discussed the unique role that insurance brokers play in policy placement and the claims dispute process. A theme of the episode was the importance of the broker relationship in obtaining favorable coverage on the front end and when dealing with insurers in the event of a claim. We discussed the benefits of teaming up with a large, full-service broker and when it may make more sense to work with a smaller, more specialized broker, especially with respect to certain emerging insurance products. We also discussed the benefits of working with a broker with an established network that may have better information on pricing and can place coverage with the best insurers. We highlighted the issue of attorney-client privilege in the negotiation and claims-handling processes and offered helpful pointers on how to avoid inadvertently waiving that privilege when communicating with the broker. This episode is a great introduction to the world of brokers and offers valuable insights even if you have been working with brokers for a long time.
We invite you to take a listen to our podcasts, which we think you will find practical and packed with useful information, all while being easy to listen to and understand. You can find our episodes on the Lowenstein Sandler website, Apple Podcasts/iTunes, Google Podcasts, Pandora, SoundCloud, Spotify, and YouTube.
As we continue to produce new episodes in 2022, we would love to hear your feedback on your favorite episodes and what topics you may like us to address in future episodes. You can share your thoughts with us by clicking here. In the meantime, we wish you all a very happy holiday season and a healthy and prosperous New Year!
