EXPERT WITNESS

Hurricane Katrina

Mark Williams was instructed by the plaintiff’s lawyers in litigation against insurers in a US court. The issue was whether certain activities following the collapse of a number of offshore platforms in the hurricane Katrina constituted Removal of Wreck or Plugging and Abandonment of wells and whether the claim was fairly stated. Mark provided a narrative report to demonstrate that the plaintiff had followed normal industry best practice in its approach to the work and that the allocation of costs to policy heads of claim was reasonable. He also developed a comprehensive and detailed statement of the quantum of the claim and the evidence he provided assisted in the resolution of the litigation in a satisfactory out of court settlement.

An African copper mining company suffered property damage and business interruption losses when water damage and a small explosion occurred in its processing plant. The insured initiated litigation when its loss of gross revenue claim was rejected by one of a panel of co-insurers, the Assured’s Legal advisers asked Mark Williams to report on the value of the claim. On reviewing the policy cover and the circumstances of the loss, Mark was able to resolve difficulties arising from a specific disputed point, review the production profiles and confirm that the original claim had been under stated. His report enabled the claimant to agree its claim with the dissenting insurer.