Micah Skidmore represents policyholders in significant insurance coverage disputes involving a variety of claims from commercial general liability, directors and officers liability, employment practices liability, and errors and omissions liability to first-party property claims, trade credit, and crime and fidelity claims. In addition to representing clients in general business litigation matters, Mr. Skidmore also regularly advises clients on the insurance implications of corporate transactions, including mergers and acquisitions; consults with brokers and policyholders in negotiations involving underwriting of directors and officers liability insurance policies and other sophisticated insurance products, including trade credit insurance; and counsels plaintiffs and policyholders in complex litigation on how to maximize insurance recovery for defense costs, settlements and judgments.

Micah is a contributor to The Dec Sheet, the firm's insurance law blog.

Bar Admissions
Texas

Education
J.D., Brigham Young University, 2004, magna cum laude; Order of the Coif, B.S., Economics, Brigham Young University, 2001

Significant Accomplishments
Represented a multi-national petroleum company in the recovery of tens of millions of dollars of defense costs incurred in underlying securities litigation

Withstood summary judgment on statutory bad faith claims and obtained settlement for the owner of a multifamily housing development in Houston for roof damage caused by Hurricane Ike

Obtained multiple summary judgment rulings for a national multifamily housing developer, faced with an FHA/ADA enforcement action, including orders finding the insurer in breach of its contract for failing to pay defense costs and compelling payment of ongoing attorneys’ fees in connection with the underlying enforcement action

Prevailed in summary judgment on claim for declaratory relief by an insured multifamily housing developer seeking to avoid changes made in the renewal of a professional liability policy without express notice to the insured

Achieved dismissals of declaratory judgment actions filed against two separate clients by insurers both seeking declarations denying the client insureds coverage for underlying liability suits, including a legal malpractice suit and a putative class-action construction defect suit

Established liability on summary judgment against a commercial property insurance carrier for a multi-million dollar claim involving damage to a natural gas pipeline over objections that the subject damage was caused by defective workmanship or construction

Obtained summary judgment in a published decision from Judge Schneider in the Eastern District of Texas on an excess insurer’s claims of “prejudice” allegedly resulting from “late notice” in a dispute over coverage for defense and indemnity in connection with an underlying medical malpractice claim

Obtained coverage for the entirety of an underlying settlement of federal and state employment discrimination and Equal Pay Act claims against a roofing contractor

Represented a natural gas utility in a dispute over coverage for defense costs incurred in connection with a series of underlying lawsuits arising out of a natural gas leak resulting in bodily injuries and property damage

Represented restaurant franchise and its chief executive in a dispute over coverage under a directors and officers liability policy for defense costs incurred in connection with an underlying suit seeking injunctive relief and claiming breach of contract and trade secret misappropriation

Represented a manufacturer of metal and related products in a dispute over coverage for a multi-million dollar debt under a trade credit policy

Represented an oil, gas and power engineering firm in connection with coverage for underlying multi-million dollar professional services claims arising out of the construction of an inter-state pipeline

Represented a leading manufacturer of pumps, valves, seals and related components in obtaining coverage under directors and officers liability policies for tens of millions of dollars in defense costs arising out of underlying securities class action litigation

Represented a theater company in a dispute over coverage under a directors and officers liability policy for the settlement of underlying litigation alleging fraud and breach of fiduciary duty

Negotiated payment of a developer’s self-insured retention from the proceeds of a subrogation action maintained by the insured’s general liability carrier against subcontractors’ policies naming the developer as an additional insured

Represented a multifamily housing developer in a dispute with its general liability carrier over the amount of deductible applicable to an underlying construction defect arbitration proceeding

Obtained policy limits under a homeowners policy for damage to a residence, alleged by the insurer to have been damaged only in part by a multiple-fatality fire

Represented a leading food and beverage company in consultation and litigation regarding coverage for a multi-million dollar judgment awarded against the insured in an underlying auto-fatality lawsuit

Represented a leading manufacturer of recycled wood composite building products in coverage litigation to recover defense costs and settlement amounts relating to product-defect claims under various umbrella liability policies

Represented a leading manufacturer of automotive lubricants and car care products in coverage litigation over the amount of deductible owed under a pollution legal liability policy in connection with five underlying pollution lawsuits

Obtained a multi-million dollar recovery for a leading real estate developer under commercial property policies for damage to a multi-family housing project located in downtown New Orleans damaged by Hurricane Katrina

Obtained payment for defense costs, settlement amounts and costs to comply with EPA Administrative Orders for an independent, international oil and gas exploration and production company in connection with a civil lawsuit and various administrative orders issued by the EPA in connection with alleged groundwater contamination in Montana

Represented a leading provider of advanced compression, on-demand and interactive television solutions in a coverage dispute to obtain defense costs and settlement amounts incurred in connection with underlying employment claims

Represented a global telecommunications company in coverage litigation to obtain defense costs and reimbursement of a multi-million dollar arbitration award in an underlying licensing and trade secret dispute

Obtained summary judgment in a published decision by Judge Fitzwater finding a duty to defend allegations of discrimination and violations of the Fair Housing Act and Americans with Disabilities Act against a leading developer of multi-family housing

Obtained a recovery in coverage litigation for an independent oil and gas production company of the cost incurred to relocate a tank battery under a voluntary clean-up cost reimbursement provision found within an oil and gas endorsement in a general liability policy

Obtained summary judgment finding a duty to defend allegations of violations of the Fair Housing Action in connection with the “property damage” coverage provided by a general liability policy

Represented a multi-family housing developer in a variety of first-party claims involving multiple properties and losses ranging from soil subsidence to water infiltration/damage

Obtained settlement proceeds after withstanding a motion for summary judgment in the representation of an oil and gas exploration services company in litigation involving coverage for third-party claims for property damage resulting from the blowout of a gas well in west Texas

Obtained a published summary judgment for a leading supplier of mobile telecommunications systems finding a duty to defend allegations of “cellular injury” purportedly caused by radio frequency radiation emanating from cell phones asserted in five-class action lawsuits

Represented a manufacturer of roofing products and other building materials in first-party commercial property claims asserted in connection with the collapse of a steel silo containing the insured’s product.

• Airborne COVID-19: Is “Physical Loss” a Factual Question for the Experts?

  By Micah Skidmore |July 2020

• Three Tips for Healthcare Providers in Recovering Business Interruption Loss from the Public Health Crisis

  By Micah Skidmore |May 2020

• Insurance Recovery & The Corona Effect: Responding To Coverage Defenses For Business Interruption Claims

  By Micah Skidmore |April 2020

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