The Freund, Freeze & Arnold Insurance Agents/E&O Practice Group is devoted to consulting with and representing insurance agents and agencies both inside and outside the litigation context. While we pride ourselves on our trial practice and litigation skills and accomplishments, the lawyers in this Practice Group also have the experience and expertise to avoid an unnecessary lawsuit for an agent client. Our attorneys understand and realize that an insurance agent is often times caught between the insurer issuing the policy and the insured for whom coverage has been obtained. They are sensitive to that relationship and appreciate that it can give rise to claims against the agent from either or both sides.

The attorneys in this Practice Group have had the privilege of being selected by some of the finest E&O carriers in the country to represent their insured agents when they have been sued by insureds or insurers. Attorneys in this group have devoted over 30 years of practice to such disputes and lawsuits with such favorable results that those same E&O carriers continue to rely on us for representation in these E&O situations.

Given our experience, we are intimately familiar with the duties and obligations that are imposed upon an agent in dealing with the insured, whether an individual or a large commercial enterprise. The application process, issues of authority, underwriting standards and guidelines, the issuance of policies, and follow-up after delivery of the policy to the insured can all give rise to E&O claims.

This Practice Group has handled numerous lawsuits involving all of these issues to the satisfaction of the insurance agents involved in such litigation. E&O lawsuits are often avoided by good communication skills and practices with an insured and insurer and also by good record keeping practices. We consult on such issues. In addition, we consult on insurance coverage issues and represent agents caught in the middle of a coverage dispute between the insurer that does not want to provide coverage for a particular claim and an insured seeking such coverage. Consultation with an attorney in our Practice Group may avoid an eventual lawsuit involving such a coverage dispute.

Although this firm is devoted to a litigation practice, this Practice Group is also devoted to and very experienced with alternative dispute resolution. We often participate in mediation of disputes which, in the proper cases, avoid the expense, time, interest, bother, and uncertainty that often accompany a trial and its preparation.

Because this firm has such a broad and varied insurance defense practice, Freund, Freeze & Arnold is well experienced with virtually all types of insurance policies in the property and casualty context and whether in the personal lines or commercial lines area. This insurance experience enables the attorneys in this Practice Group to quickly identify, appreciate, and analyze insurance coverage issues that may arise in the insured/agent/insurer context. Because our firm is dedicated to a litigation only practice, if those coverage issues result in litigation, the agent defendant will be well served by our insurance background and knowledge as well as our litigation skills.

The attorneys at Freund, Freeze & Arnold possess the experience and expertise to properly counsel and well defend an insurance agent sued by a formerly happy but now dissatisfied insured, or even by an insurer that the agent thought would never be inclined to file a suit against an agent. Our attorneys can also save the agent a lawsuit by early communication and consultation when insurance coverage issues or disputes first arise. Regardless of the situation presented, this Practice Group is committed to achieving the best possible outcome for that agent and we have the knowledge, expertise, and experience to do so.

For more information about the firm's insurance agents/E&O services, contact the practice group chairperson: Stephen V. Freeze at (937) 222-2424 (e-mail sfreeze@ffalaw.com) at our Dayton office.