Media Coverage of the Lisanby v USAA Verdict Continues (Updated)

We have two media reports on yesterday’s verdict each containing some new tidbits of information including the fact the presiding judge BIlly Bridges hails from Rankin County, which is very conservative and not known for electing judicial activists to the bench.

First we check in with Karen Nelson at the Sun Herald who reports on the length of jury deliberations, the courtroom reaction and USAA’s request for the judge, rather than the jury to make the decision on punis:

The total Friday for the Lisanbys came to roughly $910,000, awarded by the jurors. But it’s not over.

On Monday attorneys will argue and the jury will decide whether USAA should also pay the Lisanbys punitive damages.

Greg Copeland, attorney for USAA, urged the judge Friday morning to make the decision on that issue himself and not give it to the jury. He first argued no one had proven malice on the part of USAA, so punitive damages weren’t an issue.

But Tom Thrash, attorney for the Lisanbys, launched quickly into a listing of “reckless disregard for the client” by USAA, which he believed would justify an award of money against the insurance company as a punishment.

Thrash said USAA based its decision to deny the Lisanbys’ claim on shoddy information and uninformed engineering. He said the company lied to James Lisanby, causing him to use the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to tear down his home quickly, when his insurance policy included a debris clause that would have paid and given them more time and options. And he pointed out how USAA had encouraged Gladys Lisanby to fill out more than 100 pages of items lost when it had no intention of paying.

Rankin County Judge Billy Bridges decided the issue will be argued extensively before the jury Monday and ordered all involved in the case, including the Lisanbys, not to speak with the media.

Katrina destroyed the Lisanbys’ retirement home and outbuildings on the Pascagoula beach. USAA paid only about $46,000, because it said the damage to the home and belongings was done by water, which the couple’s homeowner policy didn’t cover. The Lisanbys claimed there was damage done solely by the wind, and after two weeks of technical testimony, the jury agreed. Jurors considered the issue for 3½ hours before rendering their decision.

The reaction in the local legal community was short, sweet and to the point:

Attorney John Clark, who has clients suing their insurance companies over unpaid Katrina losses as well, said the verdict was significant to more than the Lisanbys.

The case is the first in Jackson County and one of the first Katrina insurance cases to go to a jury in state court. Most of the Katrina cases have been in federal court because home offices of insurance companies are usually out of state. But USAA is member-owned, making it a state citizen of sorts.

Standing outside the courtroom, Clark said, “It’s going to help plaintiffs everywhere.”

A colleague approached and Clark announced, “They just nailed that insurance company.”

April Havens and Cherie Ward report for the Mississippi Press including a quote from Insurance Commissioner Chaney and more from Attorney John Clark . They also break down the jury verdict to the penny:

“This is a shot across the bow of the insurance ship,” said Pascagoula attorney John Clark, who is representing several clients suing insurance companies in separate Katrina-related cases. “Insurance companies now know that they will pay the price later down the road if they do not do the proper investigations. This is helpful to more than just a few.”

Mississippi Insurance Commissioner Mike Chaney said although this was the first Katrina-related insurance case in Jackson County, he does not think it will have a far-reaching impact.

“Each case is weighed on its merits, and this case doesn’t necessarily set a tone,” he said. “I don’t see it having any bearing on insurance rates on the coast in the future.”

Included in the jury’s verdict was $86,000 to each of the Lisanbys for emotional distress as they contended that USAA underpaid their claim on hurricane damages to their beachfront property.

The decision also gave them $478,000 for damages to their Beach Boulevard home, $50,000 for an adjacent garage and cottage, $197,000 for contents and $12,000 for increased living expenses.

The total verdict was $909,641.

The Lisanbys had a USAA policy worth $883,000 in coverage. USAA paid $45,000 on the claim for second-floor structural and contents damage to the Lisanbys’ home.

Reporter Havens ended her report with another John Clark quote that summed up why USAA lost: Shoddy and/or incomplete adjustment of the claim.

During the trial, Thrash called expert witnesses and presented reports from local officials that reported wind speeds of up to 140 mph in the area.

Copeland used photographs of the home pre-Katrina and post-Katrina to argue that less structural damage to the second floor compared to the first floor proved storm surge, not wind, damaged the ground-level floor.

“USAA had no facts to back up their claims,” Clark said. “They relied on poor investigations that came back to haunt them. This should wake insurance companies up.”

Somehow I think we’re past the point of waking up insurers on the cases that remain. The off record word we’re getting at slabbed is the litigation is becoming more viscious as insurers like State Farm and others dig in their heels.

Update: Thanks to the sharp eye of slabbed friend Humpty Dumpty from Phunk & Wagnalls we have this update via the Sun Herald. Judge Bridges has experienced second thoughts about the jury deciding punis and has dismissed them. As always we and our No Hat friends are on the case.

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