Tag: Gerald Nielsen

Those that dealt with insurers and their pet engineering firms after Katrina can certainly relate

Newsday Front Page Courtesy of a Reader
Newsday Front Page Courtesy of a Reader

A Long Island engineering company and one of its former executives were charged on Monday in a scheme to minimize insurance payments to homeowners whose residences were damaged by Hurricane Sandy in 2012.

The full Indictment is available here.

I reckon Nielsen and the rest of the gang has got a sharp eye peeled on this latest turn of events. After Katrina the DoJ, then under President Bushie, preferred not to take on any large campaign contributors insurance companies, even if they defrauded the taxpayers. That really has not changed under Obama with the development of the twin legal theories in “too big to fail” and “too big to jail” so the New York AG’s referral of other potential criminal acts to the US DoJ is certain to die on the vine. Continue reading “Those that dealt with insurers and their pet engineering firms after Katrina can certainly relate”

Monday Altered Engineering Report Three Pack: Significant layoffs at Gerald Nielsen’s shop

Slabbed had an inkling things were shaking back last August and by November United States Magistrate Gary Brown joined the Super Storm Sandy party. Then on February 27th, 60 minutes blew the doors off the bad faith claims handling by the NFIP by highlighting all the changed and back-filled engineering reports. If all this sounds vaguely familiar to those of you that regularly read Slabbed it should as the only difference is the angle on the same scam.

About the time that 60 minutes report ran Slabbed began receiving reports of layoffs at Nielsen, Carter and Treas as our own Magnum looks to be the one staggering out of the ring victorious in this legal slug fest. If the courts in the northeast re-visit the issue of Plaintiff’s attorney fees then the victory becomes complete.

Make no mistake folks, the battle ground is in the northeast but this is a good ol’ fashioned Louisiana blood feud.  I’ll continue to follow this story, updating as time allows.

Anyone seen Rossie lately?

Gerald Nielsen, the NFIP Katrina and Sandy claims handling topical again here on Slabbed

The chickens are coming home to roost:

FEMA Sets Up Review Process for Sandy Flood Claims ~ Insurance Journal

In light of recent allegations that some insurers in the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) may have denied or rejected Superstorm Sandy flood damage claims based on falsified reports, the Federal Emergency Management Agency is now prepared to reopen “every flood insurance claim” filed by Sandy victims, officials announced.

You don’t say. Meantime last night a new commenter stopped in on an old insurance post sharing some information that is worth highlighting:

As someone in the industry who has represented liberty mutual on dozens of their cases it is with certainty that I can say they are the worst slimeballs in the industry second only to State Farm. I have heard their newbie adjusters tell elderly insureds they did not have a claim despite having lost their teeth and fractures to their jaws from slipping on wet floors that had been mopped in dark rooms. I have seen them deny claims that were clearly covered. I have seen them justify and defend cheating beneficiaries of their benefits and I have seen them cheat their own employees.

State Farm just had another reorg and guess who got cut. All of the employees from Mississippi who had to defend Eds Russ and Lecky’s decisions to cheat policyholders. That is how they rewarded their loyal senior staff. It was sad that the local adjusters managers and agents got the shaft for Ed and lecky’s unscrupulous behavior.

Additional vital background can be found here and more recently here.

Magnum scores a TKO in the War by the Shore! (Part 1)

Any U. S. Magistrate from South Texas to the Southern District of Alabama could have written this exact same Order and Opinion in the aftermath of Hurricanes Katrina, Rita, Wilma and then Ike but discovery abuses were tolerated in the Fifth Circuit by and large. Cases were kneecapped out of the gate on the theory that money cases should settle and in the process bad faith claims handling was institutionalized under the law. Magistrate Gary Brown from the Eastern District of New York took a look at the case from a different angle and he came to a far different conclusion. Here is the salient verbiage:

The context remains important: according to the City of Long Beach, the losses here totaled approximately $205,000, while the testimony at trial suggested that the insurer has already paid out about $80,000. Pl’s Ex. 1. Thus, based on these rough figures, the most that could be at issue here amounted to approximately $125,000 and, based on the coverage limits of $250,000, no more than about $170,000 could be at stake. To a government-backed insurer, these are trifling figures, and in the world of federal cases, such figures are unimpressive, particularly when compared to the exorbitant costs of litigation. On the other hand, to individual homeowners, these are staggeringly large sums.

Before I present the 27 page Judicial beatdown of the National Flood Insurance Program and it’s lawyers over at Gerald Nielsen’s law firm, I’ll opine that what we have here is the tail wagging the dog. Magnum and his people over at Gauthier Houghtaling and Williams certainly expended a fortune to uncover the unsavory claims practices including the bullshit revised engineering reports insurers relied upon to deny coverage after Superstorm Sandy (and here on the coast after Hurricane Katrina) and they deserve props for the time, money and effort. Click the pic to nab the 27 page pdf:

In Re Hurricane Sandy (Raimey) 14-mc-41 Doc 655 In Re Hurricane Sandy (Raimey) 14-mc-41 Doc 655

In this episode of Magnum J.D.: A bare knuckle brawl on the Atlantic Shore

In the green corner is the Magnum “Master of Disaster” J.D.!!!!!!!!!!!!!

In the blue corner wearing the State Farm red trunks is Gerald “Flood in Cold Blood” Nielsen!!!!!!!!!

Its on folks and here at Slabbed I have the best seat in the house. :mrgreen:

Stay tuned.

Do not touch the children: A Grand Isle Pedophilia Coverup Scandal Update

In Paul Purpura’s latest update to the saga of David Carmadelle’s stepdad Molestin’ Jerry Dantin we have a new player enter the field in the Nielsen Law Firm, which is evidently representing the town of Grand Isle in the related deprivation of civil rights lawsuit. Let’s circle Gerald Nielsen’s folks for now.  I’ve had a front row seat on this for some time now so for our newer readers such as our new friend Noladishu here is a quick recap of what we know:

Last year not long before the oil spill Grand Isle Mayor David Carmadelle’s stepdad molested a 6 year old boy. We know this because despite the best efforts of police chief Euris Dubois to gum up the works, Dantin confessed to his crimes in front of the child’s mother, who will remain nameless to protect the identity of the minor child. Since then Dantin’s lawyers have been trying to get the confession excluded but he has lost each step of the way including to the LA Supremes which refused to grant writs.

Because of the related deprivation of civil rights lawsuit against Dubois, Carmadelle and the Town of Grand Isle, my mind is open to the possibility there was indeed an official attempted coverup involving Dubois and Carmadelle.  There are other politicians rumored to be involved in that general aspect of this case but I won’t name them at this time. Continue reading “Do not touch the children: A Grand Isle Pedophilia Coverup Scandal Update”

Evidence of bad faith is not a trade secret or highly confidential as Slabbed welcomes back the insurance bastards from Liberty Mutual.

Courtesy of Mr Liberty Mutual: http://mrlibertymutual.com/

Folks we have proof positive that alittle Slabbin’ coupled with sunshine makes a difference as yesterday, Liberty Mutual filed a motion to seal the evidence that we presented Monday regarding a policyholder in New Orleans that Liberty Mutual had arrested simply because the policyholder dared to filed a claim for the wind damage that Liberty Mutual promised to cover in their homeowners policy but never did.   

Isn’t this so typical of a socially deviant corporate predator insurance company to behave badly and then try to shield their behavior from the public trying to designate their bullshit a trade secret or otherwise confidential. Unfortunately these criminals (and folks lets call this what it is) have enablers in the federal court system, usually in the form of former insurance defense lawyers that bought their way onto the court with the fortunes they made defending insurance companies while in private practice.

US Magistrate Robert Walker is such an example here in Mississippi and there is no shortage of such types in the Louisiana Eastern District such as Judge Kurt Engelhardt. These people provide insurers with the magic jurisdiction needed to hush up the bad behavior. Unfortunately Judge Vance’s Magistrate in Ex Rel Branch, Sally Sushan has proven herself  one such enabler. Is it any wonder that out here on Main Street the public’s confidence in getting a  fair shake out of our court system is at an all time low.

It is not lost on us that rather than protecting the cause of justice the federal court system instead protects the perpetrators with the use of seals and protective orders. Simply put our courts have sold out to the highest bidder and transparency has been sacrificed at the altar of money and greed.  Continue reading “Evidence of bad faith is not a trade secret or highly confidential as Slabbed welcomes back the insurance bastards from Liberty Mutual.”

Judge Vance has her Reasons – orders Nielsen to dance with Branch; band is playing fraud

Qui tam plaintiffs move to strike Fidelity’s Third-Party Complaint against its policyholders… Because Fidelity’s claims do not meet the appropriate standard under the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and because third-party practice is considerably restricted in False Claims Act actions, the motion is GRANTED.

With 24-pages of Reasons supporting her Order, no one can call Judge Sarah Vance a party pooper for turning  down Nielsen’s “morally correct” [sic] Third Party Demand.

Fidelity has filed an answer to Branch’s complaint, and this answer includes a complaint asserting claims against third parties.1 R. Doc. 247. Specifically, Fidelity, acting in its “fiduciary capacity” as a “fiscal agent of the United States,” brings claims against certain of its own policyholders for breach of contract and unjust enrichment, as well as the common-law doctrine of payment by mistake. Fidelity proposes to sue those Fidelity policyholders whose property adjustments Branch put in issue in its complaint against Fidelity. Fidelity alleges that, if Branch proves that Fidelity overpaid its policyholders, these policyholders improperly received payments that are rightfully the property of the United States government.

In a footnote, Judge Vance point out, “These claims are brought by Fidelity only. None of the other defendants has brought a similar complaint against its own policyholders or has filed support for Fidelity’s.”  Surprisingly, however, Judge Vance goes no further.  Since she once again demonstrates mastery of a broad range of controlling decisions in discussing the Reasons for denial of Fidelity’s motion, the obvious assumption is she elected to spare the Company’s counsel, Gerald Nielsen, the embarrassment of revealing his apparent failure to read the Maurstad memo:

FEMA will not seek reimbursement from the company when a subsequent review identifies overpayments resulting from the company’s proper use of the FEMA depth data and a reasonable method of developing square foot value in concluding claims.

According to Nielsen, “Currently, virtually every major participant “Write-Your-Own Program” (“WYO”) insurance company in the NFIP utilizes Nielsen Law Firm, L.L.C. to handle its NFIP-related litigation on a national basis”  In that case, the embarrassment he was spared could just as easily been that his motion was an admission by omission.  In other words, Fidelity Fidelity did not properly use “the FEMA depth data and a reasonable method of developing square foot value”.

Whatever grace Nielsen was extended, however, was short-lives when Vance began the discussion of his motion on its merits: Continue reading “Judge Vance has her Reasons – orders Nielsen to dance with Branch; band is playing fraud”