Roland C. Goss
Partner

Washington, D.C.

Email: rcg@jordenusa.com
Phone: 202.965.8148
Fax: 202.965.8104

Rollie Goss specializes in reinsurance disputes and the defense of class actions and other complex litigation. He also has experience with insurance coverage and other general commercial litigation. Mr. Goss is chair of Jorden Burt's Reinsurance industry group and co-chair of the firm's technology committee. Mr. Goss created and is the blogmaster of Reinsurance Focus, an Internet blog focusing on reinsurance and arbitration matters. He is well versed and experienced with alternative methods of computerized support for our complex litigation. Mr. Goss lectures on electronic discovery issues, and is a member of the Editorial Board of West's Insurance Coverage Litigation Reporter.

Representative Matters

• John Hancock Life Insurance Co. v. American Reliable Insurance Co. (arbitrations - arbitration of personal accident risk reinsurance dispute)
• First Allmerica Insurance v. Minnesota Life Insurance Co. (arbitrations - AAA arbitration of dispute over the price for a block of defined benefit plan contracts purchased by one insurance company from another)
• Snell v. Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America, in United States District Court, District Minnesota (class settlements - assisted in negotiation and responsible for administration of nationwide class settlement of "vanishing premium" life insurance case)
• Conner Bond Litigation (United States District Court and Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina) (complex financial litigation - consolidation of approximately 28 cases resulting from the bankruptcy of a vertically integrated mobile home company that resulted in approximately $180 million of collateralized bonds being of questionable value, with two document depositories, several millions of pages of documents produced and over 320 days of deposition testimony)
• Adelstein v. Unicare Life & Health Insurance Company (United States District Court, Middle District of Florida) (health care class actions - defeated class certification and prevailed on summary judgment in medical recovery subrogation case, with both rulings affirmed on appeal)
• Personal Accident reinsurance market (reinsurance - counseling and strategic planning with respect to disputes regarding reinsurance of personal accident and occupational accident risks through the London market, which resulted in both arbitrations and litigation)
• In re Pine Top Insurance Company (State of Illinois special liquidator) (insurance company insolvency - recovery of substantial claim for insurance company in insolvency proceeding of another insurance company)
• White v. CUNA Mutual (Florida state court, Palm Beach County) (insurance coverage - secured pre-emptive denial of class certification in disability claim/policy interpretation case)
• Larson v. Union Security Life Insurance Company (Minnesota state court, Minneapolis) (insurance sales practices (non-class action) - secured summary judgment for insurance company in case alleging that the company charged a premium in excess of the amount allowed by Minnesota law)
• James Oliver and Linda Wells v. American Bankers Insurance Company (Circuit Court for Jefferson County, Mississippi) (jury trials - jury trial of insurance sales practice dispute in difficult Mississippi venue, resulting in verdict for plaintiff in an amount of less than 1% of the amount sought, which was reversed entirely to become a defense verdict by the Mississippi Supreme Court)

Speeches and Publications

• Contributing Author: "Definition of Total Disability in a Disability Policy Which Required That the Insured Not Be Able to Perform 'The Duties of Any Gainful Occupation for Which [He Is] Reasonably Fitted by Education, Training, or Experience' Was Not Ambiguous, as a Matter of Law." Insurance Litigation Reporter, vol. 29, no. 21, pages 837-838 (2007)
• Contributing Author: "Follow-the-fortunes Doctrine Does Not Apply in a Situation in Which the Reinsured Has Deliberately Taken Inconsistent Positions as to the Number of Occurrences to Minimize its Reinsurance Recovery," Insurance Litigation Reporter, vol. 29, no. 12, pages 476-477 (2007)
• Contributing Author: "Spoliation of Evidence," Insurance Litigation Reporter, vol. 29, no. 10, pages 417-418 (2007)
• Frequent speaker at CLE programs on issues relating to electronic discovery (program organizer and/or speaker on a number of programs sponsored by the American Bar Association and other bar associations from January 2005 to January 2007, with another program in preparation for May 2007), class certification (August 2001), insurance bad faith (August 2000), and insurance coverage (August 1997). All speaking engagements include substantial papers, some of which were republished in magazines and journals in different forms. Less formal speaking engagements at a number of ABA TIPS committee meetings. Further details of these speaking engagements are available upon request.
• Contributing Author: "Insolvency/Drop Down Coverage," Insurance Litigation Reporter, vol. 29, no. 4, pages 188-189 (2007)
• Contributing Author: "Liquidator of an Insurer May Recoup Claims Payments Made to its Insureds under the Voidable Preference Doctrine, While Retaining Payments Received from its Reinsurers Relating to the Same Claims," Insurance Litigation Reporter, vol. 28, no. 20, pages 787-788-691 (2006)
• Contributing Author: "Competing Claims by Insureds to Interpleaded Policy Benefits Are Not Subject to Arbitration under the Policy's Arbitration Provision", Insurance Litigation Reporter, vol. 28, no. 18, pages 690-691 (2006)
• Contributing Author: "Arbitration Award Vacated Due to Close Relationship Between Arbitrator and Insurer" & "Follow-the-Fortunes Doctrine Entitles Ceding Insurer to Summary Judgment Against Reinsurer," Insurance Litigation Reporter, vol. 28, no. 13, pages 469 & 488 (2006)
• Contributing Author: "Arbitrary and Capricious Standard of Review Applies to Challenge to Termination of Disability Benefits Even Insurer Served as Both Claims Administrator and Funding Source" & "De Novo Standard of Review Applied to Decision to Deny Long-term Disability Benefits," Insurance Litigation Reporter, vol. 28, no. 12, pages 431-433 (2006)
• Moderator: "Has my Electronic Evidence Gone Bad? Hot Topics in E-Discovery and Spoliation," ABA Annual Meeting, August 2006
• Contributing Author: "A Broker's Liability for Failure to Procure Insurance Is Limited to the Amount of Coverage Which Should Have Been Procured," Insurance Litigation Reporter, vol. 28, no. 8, pages 266-267 (2006)
• Contributing Author: "Bad Faith/Duty to Settle," Insurance Litigation Reporter, vol. 28, no. 5, pages 180-181 (2006)
• Electronic discovery-moderate and participate in CLE programs for American Bar Association, Connecticut Bar and Hartford Bar
• Contributing Author: "Liability Insurance/Advertising Injury," Insurance Litigation Reporter, vol. 28, no. 2, pages 71-72 (2006)
• Co-Author: "Recent Developments in Internet Law," Tort Trial & Insur. Prac. L. J., vol. 40, no. 2 at 621 (Winter 2005)
• Contributing Author: "Liability Insurance/Advertising Injury," Insurance Litigation Reporter, vol. 27, no. 1, pages 50-51 (2005)
• Contributing Author: "Liability Insurance/Advertising Injury," Insurance Litigation Reporter, vol. 26, no. 21, pages 779-780 (2004)
• Co-Author: "The Enforcement of Nationwide Class Settlements to Bar Related Class Actions: An Example of Finality and Preclusion," Class Actions & Derivative Suits, Section of Litigation Committee, American Bar Association (Summer 2004, Vol. 14, No. 3)
• Co-Author: "Current Issues in Electronic Discovery," Insights (Summer 2004)
• Co-Author: Obtaining or Avoiding Class Certification: Insurance Coverage Cases, Tort & Insur. L. J., vol. 37, no. 1 at 79 (Fall 2001)
• Co-Author: "Recent Developments in e-Commerce Law," Tort & Insur. L. J., vol. 38, no. 2 at 263 (Winter 2003)
• Co-Author: "Recent Developments in Insurance Coverage Issues," Tort & Insur. L. J., vol. 30, no. 2 at 484 (Winter 1995)
• Contributing Author: "Liability Insurance/Advertising Injury," Insurance Litigation Reporter (vol. 15, no. 15, pages 449-451); Mr. Goss is a member of the Editorial Board of the Insurance Litigation Reporter, published by West Group. As a member of the Editorial Board, he contributes case notes to the Reporter several times a year on topics including insurance coverage, advertising coverage, intellectual property coverage, arbitration and reinsurance.
• Contributing Case Notes: Infringement of Manufacturer's House Mark and Product Mark Fell within Advertising Injury Policy's Coverage for "Trademarked Title" - Houbigant, Inc. v. Federal Insurance Company, 374 F.3d 192 (3rd Cir. 2004), Insurance Litigation Reporter, vol. 26, no. 16 (Md., Oct., 2004)
• Contributing Case Notes: Maryland High Court Finds No "Advertising Injury" Coverage for Insured's Use of Confidential Information to Solicit Former Employer's Customers - Walk v. Hartford Casualty Insurance Company, 2004 WL 1335842, Insurance Litigation Reporter, vol. 26, no. 11 (Md., June 16, 2004)
• Contributing Case Notes: Exhaustion of primary policy not necessary to reach excess policy - Cincinnati Insur. Co. v. Franck, 644 N.W.2d 471, Insurance Litigation Reporter, vol. 24, no. 8 (Minn. App. 2002)
• Contributing Case Notes: Pollution exclusions in gas station's liability policies preclude coverage for gasoline spill - Wagner v. Erie Insur. Co., 2002 Pa. Super. 166, Insurance Litigation Reporter, vol. 24, no. 8 (Pa. Super. 2002)
• Contributing Case Notes: Criminal act exclusion not against public policy - Slayko v. Security Mutual Insur. Co., 2002 WL 1419127, Insurance Litigation Reporter, vol. 24, no. 12 (N.Y. July 2, 2002)
• Contributing Case Notes: Continuous trigger of coverage appropriate for pollution of landfill, with allocation among all triggered policies based on the number of days on the risk - Quincy Mutual Fire Insur. Co. v. Borough of Bellmawr, 799 A.2d 499, Insurance Litigation Reporter, vol. 24, no. 12 (N.J. 2002)
• Contributing Case Notes: Pollution exclusion in builder's commercial liability policy does not exclude coverage for personal injuries to homeowners injured by gradual carbon monoxide discharges - Leo Haus, Inc. v. Selective Insur., 801 A.2d 419, Insurance Litigation Reporter, vol. 24, no. 12 (N.J. Sup. Ct. App. Div. 2002)
• Contributing Case Notes: Reinsurer's equitable claim for restitution of monies mistakenly paid was not arbitrable - Gerling Global Reinsur. Corp. v. The Home Insur. Co., 2002 WL 31827836, Insurance Litigation Reporter, vol. 25, no. 1 (N.Y. Sup. Ct. App. Div. Dec. 17, 2002)
• Contributing Case Notes: Insurance company that paid fire claim could not obtain equitable contribution from another insurance company that insured same property because the companies did not cover same insured - Society Insur. v. Capitol Indemnity Corp., 2003 WL 327531, Insurance Litigation Reporter, vol. 25, no. 4 (Wis. App. Feb. 4, 2003)
• Contributing Case Notes: Putative class action contending that defendant health insurer's subrogation practice violated state statute not completely preempted by ERISA - McKandes v. Blue Cross and Blue Shield Assoc., 2003 WL 282679, Insurance Litigation Reporter, vol. 25, no. 4 (D. Md. Feb. 4, 2003)
• Contributing Case Notes: Comment on State Farm Mutual Auto. Insur. Co. v. Campbell, 123 S.Ct. 1513, Insurance Litigation Reporter, vol. 25, no. 8 (2003)
• Contributing Case Notes: Plaintiff was not entitled to pursue claim for punitive damages for failure to pay disability claim under ERISA benefit plan - McGuigan v. Reliance Standard Life Insur. Co., 2003 WL 1869886, Insurance Litigation Reporter, vol. 25, no. 9 (E.D. Pa. April 9, 2003)
• Contributing Case Notes: Failure to monitor and enforce insurance provisions of construction contracts results in loss of third party beneficiary rights to coverage - Cordero Mining Co. v. United States Fidelity and Guarantee Insur. Co., 67 P.3d 616, Insurance Litigation Reporter, vol. 25, no. 9 (Wy. 2003)
• Contributing Case Notes: Umpire cannot be disqualified due to alleged evident partiality or misconduct prior to issuance of final award and panel has no inherent authority to sanction party in a manner akin to civil contempt - Certain Underwriters at Lloyd's London v. Argonaut Insur. Co., 2003 WL 21219039, Insurance Litigation Reporter, vol. 25, no. 12 (N.D. Cal. May 13, 2003)
• Contributing Case Notes: No coverage under CGL policy for alleged trademark infringement, despite attempts to characterize claims as covered claims - Superformance International Inc. v. Hartford Cas. Insur. Co., 332 F.3d 215, Insurance Litigation Reporter, vol. 25, no. 15 (4th Cir. 2003)
• Contributing Case Notes: Infringing use of the Nissan name in Internet domain names givers rise to coverage under advertising provision of CGL policy - State Auto Property and Cas. Insur. Co. v. Travelers Indemnity Co. of America, 343 F.3d 249, Insurance Litigation Reporter, vol. 25, no. 15 (4th Cir. 2003)
• Contributing Case Notes: Insurance companies must release nonpublic personal information in response to discovery requests pursuant to judicial process exception - Martino v. Barnett, 2003 WL 23327487, Insurance Litigation Reporter, vol. 26, no. 5 (W. Va. Mar. 15, 2004)
• Contributing Case Notes: Liability policy's advertising injury coverage applies to liability for sending unsolicited junk faxes advertising sports tickets - TIG Insur. Co. v. Dallas Basketball, Ltd., 2004 WL 352079, Insurance Litigation Reporter, vol. 26, no. 5 (Tex. App. Feb. 25, 2004)
• Contributing Case Notes: Advertising injury coverage applies to claims that Amazon.com used patented software in the sale of products over its Internet site - Amazon.com International Inc. v. American Dynasty Surplus Lines Insur. Co., 85 P.3d 974, Insurance Litigation Reporter, vol. 26, no. 5 (Wash. App. 2004)
• Contributing Case Notes: Reinsurance contract obligates reinsurer to pay portion of the attorneys' fees and expenses ceding insurer incurred as a result of declaratory coverage proceedings and underlying tort actions - Employers Reinsur. Corp. v. Mid-Continent Cas. Co., 258 F.3d 757, Insurance Litigation Reporter, vol. 26, no. 5 (10th Cir. 2004)
• Contributing Case Notes: Bad Faith/Disability Insurance - disability insurer's misrepresentations to insured did not constitute bad faith because they did not impair the insured's contractual rights - Insurance Litigation Reporter, vol. 26, no. 7 at 247.
• Contributing Case Notes: Insurer was entitled to summary judgment since premium differential between insureds of different races was based upon risk differences, not upon race - Guidry v. Pellerin Life Ins. Co., 364 F.Supp.2d 592, Insurance Litigation Reporter, vol. 27, no. 8 (W.D. La. 2005)