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Professional Profile
Mr. Giller has over 20 years experience as an insurance coverage attorney. He has analyzed and opined on the applicability of most standard commercial insurance policy provisions. While Mr. Giller´s insurance background has involved mostly CGL policies, he has also examined and is familiar with a number of other policy forms as well, including D&O, E&O, Professional Liability, and EPLI coverages, title insurance, umbrella and excess policies, environmental liability insurance, and wrap-up, OCIP, CCIP, and other construction industry insurance products. In addition, Mr. Giller has drafted specialized liability endorsements respecting coverage and has reviewed proposed manuscript policy language. He also has substantial experience in litigating coverage issues on a myriad of complex insurance issues and he has been involved in a number of significant appellate court decisions involving important insurance issues.
Mr. Giller has extensive experience in continuous injury cases, such as environmental exposures, toxic mold, and asbestos coverage issues. He has significant insurance litigation experience concerning successor liability issues and has also been involved in a number of construction insurance disputes. Mr. Giller has litigated the issues of whether a release was "sudden and accidental," whether a contractor´s pollution policy applies to pre-existing contamination, whether the absolute pollution exclusion bars coverage for the wrongful entry onto the property of another, whether remediation costs are reimbursable as defense costs, and a host of other insurance issues arising out of environmental contamination. He is on the approved list of coverage counsel for several organizations.
Mr. Giller has tried a number of state and federal insurance coverage cases, including a week long Northridge Earthquake case in U.S. District Court for the Central District of California in January 2007. He has also participated in a two week trial before retired California Supreme Court Justice David Eagleson and has substantial arbitration and mediation experience in resolving insurance disputes, including fee disputes.
Education
J.D., Southwestern University School of Law, cum laude, Law Review (1984)
King´s College, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, Scotland (1979-1980)
B.A., College of the Holy Cross (1981)
Admissions
California Supreme Court
United States Supreme Court
Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals
Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals
U.S. District Courts of California
Professional Memberships and Activities
Risk & Insurance Management Society
American Bar Association, Tort and Insurance Practice Section
Recent Publications
"When is a Hole in a Roof Covered . . . By Insurance?" California Real Estate Journal(July 2006).
"New Hope for Obtaining Insurance Coverage for Responding to Administrative Cleanup and Abatement Orders Issued in California," Mealey´s Litigation Report, California Insurance (Dec. 2005).
"Rescission, Severability and D&O Claims," Risk Management Magazine (April 2005).
"Rainstorm Damage Insurance: It´s a Slippery Slope," Pacific Coast Business Times (Jan. 2005).
"Equity Seeps Into Insurance Coverage for Environmental and Toxic Tort Claims," Mealey´s Litigation Report--Insurance (Sept. 2003).
"Does Insurance Exist for Mold Claims?" Real Estate Southern California: Legal Corner (Oct. 2003). | 