Michael T. Mullaly

Coverage and Extracontractual Liability Litigation and Advice

• Represents insurers in coverage matters arising from litigation that involves complex underlying events and vast potential exposures, including alleged environmental contamination, products liability, anticompetitive conduct and student sexual abuse.
• Represents excess and umbrella insurers in connection with attachment disputes (including drop-down demands) and disputes concerning construction of follow-form provisions.
• Represents insurers in connection with extracontractual (bad faith) claims and claims for equitable contribution or equitable subrogation.

Insurance-related Litigation

• Defended a cedent in arbitration where the reinsurer alleged improper cessions and bad faith.
• Defended a reinsurer in arbitration concerning reinsurance limit and exhaustion of underlying reinsurance.
• Obtained pre-trial dismissal of a claim for punitive damages against a major life insurer.
• Defended an administrator of a major service contract program against threatened class action.
• Represented a CGL carrier in a suit to recover sizable audit premiums.
• Defended a Medicaid managed care organization in arbitration alleging improper and untimely reimbursements to a provider.
• Obtained preliminary injunctive relief enjoining release of documents in response to a public records request on the grounds that a state agency obtained the documents to conduct a financial examination of an insurer.
• Represented life insurers in connection with conflicting claim demands, where possible by settlement and otherwise through interpleader actions.

Appellate Practice

• Briefed an appeal on applicability of the federal officer statute to a Medicare Advantage organization sued in connection with its claims-processing activities.
• Briefed an appeal on limited liability of an e-publishing platform for alleged torts arising from materials submitted by an end user for publication.

Controversy-based Insurance Regulatory Advice and Advocacy

• Advised a public body on strategy in an area presenting complex issues of constitutional law and statutory construction.
• Represented a non-insurer client before the state insurance regulator on the issue of whether certain contractual provisions constitute insurance.
• Advised life insurers on the construction of and the regulatory framework surrounding various provisions in policy forms.

Internal Investigations and Government Enforcement Actions

• Led a yearlong internal investigation at a major insurer.
• Served on the dedicated team that represented a public company in an SEC investigation involving a wide range of alleged financial reporting and internal control issues.