Citizens Insurance Company Refuses to Pay Defense Law Firm
Citizens Insurance Company is known for the unfair way it treats its own policyholders, whether it be delayed payment, refusal to pay the full amount owed, or outright denial of payment. Who would think they treat their own lawyers the same way? The defense law firm McIntosh, Sawran and Cartaya (MCS) represented the insurance company in a multitude of cases, but after years of Citizens Insurance Company outright denying payment for the legal work of their own defense firm it finally decided to take a stand. MSC was left with no choice but to fire Citizens Insurance Company as a client and file a breach of contract lawsuit to recover the compensation they were owed.
Coker Law Steps Up to the Plate
MSC originally hired another law firm to represent them in the breach of contract lawsuit against Citizens. Unfortunately, the case had stalled, and Citizens refused to pay MCS anything at all. As the lawsuit was stuck pending in Tallahassee, MSC knew they needed an experienced trial law firm and an attorney with a strong background in insurance disputes that would be able to help them receive the compensation they were rightfully owed. MCS called Coker Law and firm partner Matthew Posgay stepped up to take the case.
Coker Law Reviews Thousands of Pages to Prove Breach of Contract
Having done work for insurance companies in the past, Posgay was extremely familiar with Citizens’ typical unreasonable billing tactics. Posgay, with the help of paralegal Kim Heine and the rest of the legal team at Coker Law, reviewed thousands of pages of documents. After extensive research, they discovered that Citizens had consistently failed to pay what was owed to MSC and needed to answer for their breach of contract.
A Light at the End of the Tunnel
Before Coker Law got involved, the case had been going on for years and it seemed there was no end in sight. There was no trial date and there hadn’t been any type of payment offers from Citizens to MCS. Once Posgay took the case, he was able to get the case moving forward. Thanks to the extensive research by Coker Law and outcomes of the depositions of Citizens’ employees, Posgay secured MCS a trial date. When Citizens realized they could no longer deny the issue at hand, they decided to amicably resolve the case. Due to Posgay’s hard work and dedication, Citizens ultimately agreed to pay MCS $212,500 to settle the breach of contract case.
“The partners at McIntosh, Sawran and Cartaya were excellent to work with throughout the litigation,” said Posgay. “They were actively involved, but also provided me with the latitude necessary to prove the case. It was a true collaborative approach and Coker Law was honored to be selected by the well-respected firm of McIntosh, Sawran and Cartaya to fight this battle against Citizens Insurance Company.”
Many firms don’t have the ability to fight cases that may involve a long, hard, and expensive battle like Coker Law does. The time and attention it takes to research thousands of pages is too tedious for most firms to even consider. However, Coker Law is dedicated to fighting for their clients and will stop at nothing for them to receive the justice they deserve. Our attorneys have in-depth experience and strong case results in each of our practice areas.
To learn more about how Coker Law handles insurance disputes such as this one, click here.
Case Title: McIntosh, Sawran and Cartaya v Citizens Insurance Company
Attorneys/staff involved in case: Matthew Posgay, Denora Buben, Kim Heine
Date of Settlement or Jury Verdict: January 2018
Amount of Settlement or Jury Verdict: $212,500
