CSK Defense Team
Miami Partner George Hooker
Fort Lauderdale East Partner Jose Campos
Miami Partner Daniel Maher
Case Summary
Plaintiff homeowners submitted a first party property insurance claim following a roof leak at their residence. The Defendant insurance carrier accepted coverage and exercised its contractual option to repair, despite an initial estimate below the policy deductible. The Plaintiffs later obtained a competing estimate and filed a breach of contract action, disputing the scope and handling of the claim.
The Defendant enforced its option to repair and invoked appraisal under the policy. After several years of litigation, the Defendant prevailed on all issues, successfully completed appraisal, and performed the repairs with no exposure to damages or attorney’s fees.
Despite this outcome, the Plaintiffs filed a subsequent first party bad faith lawsuit alleging improper claim handling, deficient estimating, and misconduct during the underlying litigation. The Plaintiffs sought extensive damages, including alleged repair deficiencies, loss of rental income, unpaid invoices, increased utility costs, medical expenses, attorney’s fees, and punitive damages.
Defense Strategy
The CSK Defense Team implemented a focused and disciplined strategy centered on demonstrating that the Defendant acted reasonably, promptly, and in full compliance with Florida law throughout the claim process.
Given the broad exposure typically associated with first party bad faith claims, the Defense prioritized early issue narrowing. Through targeted motion practice, the team successfully reduced the case to a single alleged statutory violation—that the Defendant failed to settle the claim when it allegedly could and should have done so.
The Defense also challenged each category of claimed damages. The court ultimately excluded all damages except approximately $4,000 in tarping invoices—costs the Plaintiffs acknowledged were never paid. This significantly streamlined the issues presented to the jury and limited consideration to admissible, supported evidence.
Outcome
Following a concise trial, the Pinellas County jury returned a complete defense verdict, finding no bad faith by the Defendant. The verdict was reached in less than 40 minutes, even after the jury replayed recorded phone calls during deliberations.
This result underscores the value of early issue narrowing, strategic motion practice, and rigorous challenges to unsupported damages. For insurers, it reinforces that well-documented claim handling and a consistent litigation strategy can successfully defeat bad faith allegations—even in cases involving expansive discovery and the potential for significant extra-contractual exposure.
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