The Defense Never Rests

What have you learned during your career in claims? I am not just talking the mechanics of handling and defending a claim. But practical real life lessons. Let's face it – during our careers we learn a lot more than just how to do the job and do it well. There is so much more to it than that. This week on the Defense Never Rests we are joined by Derrick Mullen, AVP at Seneca Insurance Company who...

In this episode replay of The Defense Never Rests podcast, hosts Meghan and Wendy are joined by Michael Siedlecki. Tune in to hear them discuss the challenges of a smaller carrier and how they are overcome.

What obstacles have you had to conquer to pave the way upwards in your career? This week on The Defense Never Rests, we are joined by @Tina Newsome-Lee and @Nicole Suisse – two fantastic career driven lawyers who seemingly have  parallel career progressions. Both these ladies came from humble beginnings without any "headstart" to get them where they are today. They had to utilize their own grit an...

Do you seize new opportunities when they are presented to you? Some of us can be skeptical when we are faced with an opportunity that may be too good to be true. Others jump on it. Story time… When I was looking for jobs during law school I was set on being a transactional attorney. I did not want to do litigation or anything like it. Why?  Who knows, transactional work just seemed "cool". But whe...

What do you think is an emerging area of claims? If we said pet insurance, would that surprise you? Probably! Most of us grew up in a time where pet insurance probably did not even exist! And let's face, if the family dog fell ill and it was going to cost a lot of money, that treatment was probably not going to happen. But times have changed. Nowadays that does not need to be the case. This week o...

What trends are you seeing in your workers' compensation claims? Are you seeing a rise in certain types of claims… Or maybe you are seeing a shift in how claimants seek treatment… Or just a rise (or fall) in claims in general? This week on the Defense Never Rests we return to our worker's compensation series and are joined by Andrea Emmett to dive into what is trending in WC right now. Spoiler – t...

Do you immerse yourself into your claims? I mean, do you REALLY know your insured's business inside and out? This week on the Defense Never Rests we are joined by LaToya Lee who is the Director of Claims at Raising Canes and she talks about the value of understanding the business operations when defending claims. This is down to how to operate the cashier to frying the chickens. Think about it…It...

Do you work for a start up insurance company? It seems these days there are A LOT of new insurance companies coming onto the market. Each with specific products and visions and new philosophies as to how to best serve their insureds. Very exciting times indeed. To be somewhere on the ground floor and help build the company, your team, the philosophy is invigorating. But this is not without challen...

What was the last team sport you played? Before you answer…if you are in claims I think it was more recent than you may think. In fact, it was probably today. Because claims is a team sport! We are not just working on silos on our own. No way. There is a team involved with every claim. This week on the Defense Never Rests we are joined by Corey Jeffers to discuss how claims are very much a team ef...

What does what do you look for in your defense counsel?      I am willing to bet lots of attorneys are waiting in the wings to find out the answers! Let's face getting on (and STAYING ON) panel is a giant hurdle. The process can be overwhelming, daunting and discouraging. Not only do you need to find the right person, build a genuine relationship, submit an impressive proposal and get to the point...

What personal attributes are most important when serving clients? I think trust is far up there. Think about it, if a client or insured trusts you they are going to listen to your advice. This is especially helpful before you are even faced with a lawsuit and you are working on risk prevention. This week on the Defense Never Rests, we are joined by Anthony Guzman who is on the broker side of claim...

What do you think of when you hear the term "forensic accounting"? I am willing to venture a guess that your first word associations would not be fascination or excitement. However, during this episode of the Defense Never Rests with Howard Silverstone you will learn that the forensic accounting world is far from mundane! In fact, he has encountered both guns and Prince William and thankfully not...

What were some of the lessons you learned early in your claims career? For our guest this week on The Defense Never Rests, Michael Benson, he shares that he learned early on that facts are not always the most important. Which can be a shocking discovery at first. In fact he admits it was one of his biggest failures putting so much stock into facts but not some of the extraneous information that ha...

Have you ever wondered what tactics have the most bang for your buck when trying to resolve a claim? Or….more importantly, what really puts a wedge in early negotiations. This week on the Defense Never Rests I am joined by my law school classmate David Kwalter. Like many of us, Dave had a bob and weave path to where he is now – in fact we even worked together after law school as document review at...

For many the response to that is: "what the heck is a captive?" OR perhaps you are in the position that you are evaluating your loss ratios with your premium costs and maybe you are intrigued with the idea of potentially joining a risk retention group. Maybe you've heard the term but really just do not have a full understanding as to how they work and want to hear more. This week on The Defense Ne...

Do you use social media to help promote your professional persona? Well…if you are reading this on Linkedin, chances are the answer to the question is yes. I think we all utilize this platform in similar but also different ways. Some use to gather information that is helpful to their practice. Others use it as a networking and marketing tool. Some of us use it to promote our professional accomplis...

What does outside counsel do that makes you want to pull your hair out? Multiple typos in reports? Retaining experts without consent? Long and wordy reports? Or how about failing to respond to repeated follow up requests? On this week's podcast episode of The Defense Never Rests, we return to discussing the "do's" and "don'ts'" of defense counsel. From adjusters' perspectives. And we are joined by...

What advice do you give your insureds to mitigate future risk? I think we all have some general line items that we tell insureds or clients that they could be doing differently. But usually, that is after the claim and sometimes that is too late! But what about someone to come in and actually evaluate the business practices and offer real suggestions that can lower future risk. I think that is pre...

What do you know about insuring cannabis products and navigating the related claims? Whether it is used for recreational or medical purposes, cannabis has an element of uncharted territory. But is it all that different from insuring another crop? Or how about a pharmaceutical product used for medical purposes? Some say not so much and others believe it is polar opposite. This week on the Defense N...

How are the risks of a public entity different? Or maybe the better question to ask is: how does one approach a claim against a public entity differently? This week on the Defense Never Rests, we are joined by Eileen Fay, SVP and Head of Claims at Berkley Public Entity and we dive into the nuances of public entity claims. In some respects, they are not all that different from claims against privat...

In this throwback episode, host Patricia Baxter is joined by cohost Oliver Brooks to welcome their guests. Two well-respected and widely used mediators, Judge Michael Snyder, the newly elected Chancellor of the Philadelphia Bar Association, and Barbara Lyons. Judge Snyder has been mediating cases at The Dispute Resolution Institute since 2014 after retiring from the bench and Barbara Lyons has bee...

Juggling family and career is tough for so many people. While this topic certainly isn't new, talking about it is still so important! In this throwback episode, host Patricia Baxter is joined by Kara White, Meghan Henry, and Scott Rybny. Tune in and listen to the experiences of 4 family-oriented, busy professionals with different backgrounds and struggles.

For our parents out there, what was the biggest challenge you faced professionally as a young parent? For many expecting mothers, the first challenge is TELLING your employer. What will they say? What type of reaction will you receive? When do you even break the news? What does this mean for your career trajectory? So many questions swirling around what is one of the happiest and exciting periods...

Which of your defense counsel's characteristics really impress you? Could it be an executive summary at the start of a report? Picking up the phone to discuss an issue or ask a question? Better yet - what do they do that you absolutely loathe? We attorneys may not want to admit it, but alas, that list may be longer. It might even get so bad that you explore switching counsel. This episode of "The...