To thrive at a large legal malpractice defense firm, legal malpractice attorney need to do more than simply be good advocates—they need to develop their own books of business. And that means developing good relationships with insurance claims adjusters.

4 Ways Insurance Claims Adjusters Appoint Counsel

Different insurance policy terms dictate the selection of counsel into four categories.

Insured Select

Insured select means exactly that: the insured gets to pick the attorney. Insured select provisions usually are contained in insurance policies written for larger law firms and are accompanied by substantial premiums. This type of policy will either contain specific language giving the insured the right to select counsel, or, on occasion, will contain an endorsement that specifies the name of the lawyer or firm who will defend the insured against any claim or lawsuit.

Mutual Select

As the name suggests, mutual select provisions give both the insurance company and the insured control over the select of counsel. This type of provision gives the insured some control, but gives the insurance company the ability to participate in the decision as to counsel.

Panel Counsel

The insured has the least amount of control when the policy states that he or she will be defended by panel counsel. This is typically found in a duty to defend policy, which provides that the carrier has the right and the duty to defend the insured. When a policy calls for the appointment of panel counsel, the carrier often will select counsel without any input from the insured lawyer or firm. However, oftentimes insurance companies may allow their insured to select from a list of panel counsel, if the insurance company has more than one option in the state. In situations like this, it is recommended that counsel volunteer to be interviewed by the insured, rather than leaving him or her to blindly select a name from a list.

Independent Counsel

The fourth type of counsel appointment is when the insurance company has to provide the insured with independent counsel. This situation is usually triggered when there are coverage issues, but the requirement to appoint independent counsel varies by state. The independent counsel typically is charged with doing whatever is ‘‘reasonable and necessary’’ on behalf of the insured and sometimes does not have to comply with all of the insurance company’s litigation or billing guidelines.

Melissa Lessell is an AV-rated partner in the firm's New Orleans office and is a member of the Commercial Litigation
and Professional Liability Department where her practice focuses on professional liability defense, the defense of disciplinary proceedings, complex commercial litigation and insurance coverage.