INSURANCE AGENTS & BROKERS
For over 25 years MRR has represented and counseled insurance agents and brokers in a wide variety of professional liability errors and omissions and contract claims, administrative actions, and for regulatory and legal compliance. MRR has defended agents in Errors & Omissions lawsuits and in connection with subpoenas for deposition and demands to produce documents in matters where the agent was not a party, but needed counsel to protect their interests. Additionally, MRR has defended licensed professionals, such as brokers and agents, agencies, consultants, and insurers in both state and federal courts as well as before administrative agencies such as the Ohio Department of Insurance. While many such E&O and contract claims involve false or doubtful allegations, we recognize both that the reputation of the business or individual is at stake, and that the potential exists for incurring significant legal defense costs. Accordingly, MRR always strives to achieve a cost-effective solution that also provides efficiency and satisfaction for all parties concerned. In 2013 MRR expanded its services and created a new Insurance Agents and Brokers practice group devoted to a comprehensive scope of representation for agents, brokers, and agencies well beyond E&O and administrative defense and counseling. MRR now provides a full range of legal services to Insurance Agents and Brokers in all aspects of business, contractual, transactional, and commercial areas, as well as E&O and administrative litigation, defense, and counseling.
Representative Services
- Errors & Omissions defense and counseling
- Defense of subpoenas for deposition or production of documents
- Representation in administrative proceedings before the Ohio Department of Insurance, including consultation and guidance regarding compliance with insurance regulations under the Ohio Revised Code and in connection with proceedings by the ODI and in ODI investigations and license suspension/revocation cases
- Review of insurance policies, reservation of rights letters, and denials of coverage
- Forming businesses or arranging cluster agencies
- Drafting operating, close corporation, and buy-sell agreements
- Mergers, sales, and acquisitions of agencies and books of business
- Drafting options to purchase, rights of first refusal, and account ownership agreements
- Evaluating and preparing producer and solicitor agreements, non-solicitation, non-competition, and non-piracy agreements, and confidentiality agreements
- Separation of partners, members, agents, and clusters (drafting contracts and pursuing litigation)
- Disputes with captive carriers from whom the agent is separating or ending a line of business
- Disputes with producers
- Evaluating and preparing agency procedure and employment manuals
- Advising on regulatory and compliance issues under state insurance law (such as charging and disclosing agency fees, notice to clients of security breach of personal information, and carrier practices)