Brent W. Brougher

Brent W. Brougher

Brent W. Brougher focuses his practice on commercial litigation and arbitration with an emphasis on insurance coverage disputes on behalf of policyholders.

Selected Experience

During more than 15 years of practice, Mr. Brougher has represented clients in a broad range of insurance matters and other commercial disputes. With respect to the insurance coverage area, he has handled numerous coverage disputes on behalf of policyholders involving commercial general liability policies, excess policies, directors and officers policies, builder's risk policies, property insurance, liability insurance, life insurance and employee insurance. These matters have included pre-litigation attempts at resolution and litigation, which often have included allegations of bad faith. For example, Mr. Brougher is representing or recently has represented:

· An international supplier of office products in Florida state court suit against major insurance broker and carriers, asserting claims under Florida state law relating to the investigation of the insurance brokerage industry by the New York State Attorney General. See Office Depot, Inc. v. Marsh & McLennan Cos., 937 So.2d 1139 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 2006).

· A large manufacturer of flooring tiles in a lawsuit alleging coverage and bad faith damages under commercial general liability policies and excess policies in connection with property damages sustained at several installation sites.

· A NASDAQ-listed company in a suit in connection with the insurer's failure to pay losses under a D&O policy in connection with the government's criminal investigatory demands.

· A major U.S. contractor attempting to secure benefits under various policies, including builder's risk policies, in connection with design and construction of a manufacturing plant in South America.

· A financial services company in a State of Washington jury trial alleging $400 million in damages with respect to a dispute over the validity and enforceability of a contract to reinsure workers' compensation carve-out losses. This case settled favorably during trial.

· A financial services company in an arbitral proceeding venue in New York in a dispute over the enforceability of a contract ceding worker's compensation losses. The dispute is described in Cologne Life Reinsurance v. Zurich Reinsurance, 286 A.D.2d 118, 730 N.Y.S.2d 61 (2001). We were successful in avoiding arbitration of the dispute.

· A semiconductor chip manufacturer in a bad faith suit arising out of a toxic tort putative class action brought against the manufacturer, in which the manufacturer sought coverage under its worker's compensation/ employee liability policy. The case is described in Zilog v. Superior Court, 86 Cal.App.4th 1309 (2001). It settled favorably before trial.

· A large grocery chain in a bad faith suit to secure benefits under its commercial general liability policy for the cost of defense and indemnity in an underlying class action arising out of alleged food contamination. This case settled favorably on the first day of trial.

With respect to non-insurance matters, Mr. Brougher has handled and tried numerous complex commercial disputes, including cases involving alleged breaches of contract, breaches of fiduciary duty, professional malpractice, lender liability actions, unfair business practices and misappropriation of trade secrets. For example, Mr. Brougher is representing or recently has represented:

· An international telecommunications provider in an arbitration alleging over $1.3 billion in damages in connection with the alleged right to exercise a stock put. The matter resolved favorably after phase I of the arbitral hearings in Miami, Florida.

· One of the nation's largest fast food franchisors and its franchisees in an investigation of the scope and damages associated with a fraudulent marketing test conducted by a major beverage company. The client secured a multimillion dollar settlement without litigation as a result of our efforts.

· A patent holder that filed a declaratory relief action to terminate a technology license agreement with its manufacturer. A Dallas-based arbitration tribunal awarded termination of the license agreement and a monetary award to client after a two-week arbitral hearing in Dallas, Texas.

· A plaintiff alleging the theft of trade secrets and other business torts against a major international developer and manufacturer of handheld communication devices.

· A national accounting firm in 10-week accounting malpractice jury trial in San Francisco where the plaintiff alleged $300 million in damages. The trial court granted non-suit, which was upheld on appeal in IREF v. Andersen, 2002 Cal. App. Unpub. Lexis 11890.

· Indigent clients as pro bono counsel to a public defender's office, in which Mr. Brougher handled a full range of matters, including jury trials.

Background

· Mr. Brougher practiced in San Francisco for nine years prior to joining Kilpatrick Stockton in January 2003.

· While in law school, Mr. Brougher was a member of the Hastings Law Journal.

· AV® rated by Martindale-Hubbell.