Articles Posted in Researching Experts

Liability insurance expert witnesses may testify on personal liability insurance, automobile liability policies, and more. In Liability Insurance or Personal Umbrella Liability Policy, InsuranceLocal.com explains:

There are many factors to consider when calculation a premium: the state in which you live, the number of liability exposures you have (cars, drivers) etc. Usually the best rates occur when the customer insures both auto and home with the same insurance company and the personal umbrella liability policy. This is a requirement for many insurers offering umbrella coverage.

Read more: InsuranceLocal.com.

In The Advantages of Strategic Advisory Boards For Agency Owners insurance agencies expert witness Andres Barile, MBA, CPCU, writes:

Finding new insurance company markets – As the owner of a wholesale agency, you have put aside a specific budget for searching for new carriers and even investing in initial public offerings of newly-formed insurance holding companies. The strategic advisory director can help in identifying new insurance carriers that have just received their “A” rating, and are looking to build a new distribution system. This expertise is not with the owner of the agency, whether it be retailer, wholesaler, or managing general agency. The dedication to search out newly-formed insurance companies is an expertise, starting with knowing state insurance department officials. Your strategic advisory director can find new carriers better than you, the owner of the agency, can;

Read more: insuranceexpertnetwork.com.

In A Comparison of Self-Funded and Insured Health and Welfare Plans, health benefits expert witnessMark Johnson, J.D., Ph.D., ERISA Benefits Consulting, Inc., writes:

Under state law, insurance companies are regulated and are subject to rules governing benefits, network adequacy, prompt payment of claims, etc. Although fully insured plans in the private sector are still covered by ERISA they are also subject to state insurance regulation. While the state cannot tell an employer what the provisions must be in its ERISA plan, it can tell insurance companies what must be in policies they are authorized to sell; in essence back door regulation.
In a self-funded healthcare plan an employer provides health and other welfare benefits to employees with its own funds. For self-funded plans, the financial risk falls on the employer, with employee cost sharing arrangements similar to the insured plan, i.e. deductibles, co-payments and employee monthly contributions (the latter are functionally the same as premiums). The cost of the plan consists of benefits actually paid to health care providers, administrative fees, stop-loss premiums if the employer elects on an aggregate or individual basis to shift financial responsibility to an insurance policy after a trigger is met, and other variable costs.

Credit risk expert witnesses may opine on risk assessment, risk management, and risk analysis. In the news this week, CoreLogic debuted the new product, CoreScore Credit Report which they say will use public records to add previously hidden data not included in traditional credit reports. Lenders may soon have access to new details on credit behavior, e.g. rental history, taxes and child support payments.

Telecommunications expert witness David Lucantoni, Ph.D., DLT Consulting, writes on the most important items that need to be understood by both attorneys and infringement and validity experts.

1. Architecture for both the structures in the patent and of the accused infringing system – The hardware components need to be understood, ACD, VRU, CTI, etc. Are connections between components direct, through the PSTN, etc.?

2. Call or message flows – What are the specific messages, sequence, source and destination between components to achieve each important transaction under study.

General liability insurance expert witnesses may write reports and testify on acts of omission, risk financing, insurance policies, and associated matters. General liability insurance may be defined as:

Insurance policy that covers claims arising from an insured’s liability due to damage or injury (caused by negligence or acts of omission) during performance of his or her duties or business.

Read more: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liability_insurance

Bodily injury coverage expert witnesses may opine on bodily injury claims, bodily liability insurance coverage, and related issues. allinsuranceinfo.org explains:

Bodily Injury Liability Insurance (BI) is a must on the roads. In most states purchasing a minimal amount of this coverage is a requirement. Bodily Injury Liability combined with Property Damage Liability coverage is the Auto Insurance policy basis.

Read more: allinsuranceinfo.org.

In The Advantages of Strategic Advisory Boards For Agency Owners insurance agencies expert witness Andres Barile, MBA, CPCU, writes:

Carrier Relationships

• Negotiating existing insurance carrier agency agreements – Your retail insurance agency has just received the bad news that your largest carrier is leaving the state because of reinsurance costs and insurance product pricing. As the owner of the agency, you turn to your strategic advisory board to come up with a solution to delay the carrier’s withdrawal from the state. In fact, the strategic director would be aware of the carrier withdrawal before it makes the decision to withdraw. Experienced strategic directors know all the signs because they have experienced this before in their younger years. Delaying the withdrawal means commission dollars saved, and value added;

In A Comparison of Self-Funded and Insured Health and Welfare Plans, health benefits expert witnessMark Johnson, J.D., Ph.D., ERISA Benefits Consulting, Inc., writes:

Employee welfare benefit plans can be either fully insured, or self-funded. This article explains and compares the differences between the two types.

Most companies have a fully insured employee benefit plan, where the employer arranges for health coverage from an insurance company. The insurance company assumes the risk for payment of claims based on an actuarial analysis of the policy terms and covered group. The insurance company collects a monthly premium, which is typically shared by the employer and the employee, and pays for claims based on the policy terms. The covered employee is responsible for any deductibles and co-payments.

Indemnity expert witnesses may opine on indemnification, indemnity health insurance, and associated matters. ProfessionalIsuranceIndemnity.org writes:

The term professional indemnity has many definitions ranging from a sum of money paid for damages caused by a professional in the course of his or her work to a legal exemption for liability for damages. Irrespective of the definition, however, professional indemnity insurance covers you for any financial claims made against you for your actions carried out in the course of your professional duties.

What if you were not personally responsible for any errors made by your employees, or even contractors employed by you to carry out certain work? What then? Are you still liable in law? In a simple word, yes! So who comes under the umbrella of ‘professional”?