The hallmark of RDB has been its Directors and Officers (“D&O”) insurance practice. For more than twenty years, we have provided counsel to domestic and international insurers on thousands of claims involving D&O policies and related lines of coverage.

The roots of our D&O practice date back to the early 1970s, when name partner Stuart Philip Ross represented certain London Underwriters in the first D&O rescission suit ever filed, Bird v. Penn Central Co. In the 1980s and 1990s, RDB lawyers represented D&O insurers in scores of litigated cases throughout the country to enforce regulatory and insured v. insured exclusions against the FDIC, FSLIC, and Resolution Trust Corporation, who were seeking to collect the proceeds of D&O policies issued to failed financial institutions. More recently, in the few years that have passed since Enron became a household word, RDB attorneys have represented insurers in nearly all of the highest-profile accounting scandal cases. Characteristics of our D&O practice include:

• We have represented primary and excess D&O insurers in thousands of claims, including those arising from securities class action litigation, shareholder derivative actions, mergers and acquisitions, employment discrimination, governmental investigations and litigation, ERISA litigation, health care fraud, and False Claims Act litigation.
• RDB is well known to the leading shareholder litigation bar, both plaintiffs and defense, and our extensive experience in these cases inures to our clients’ benefit in the underlying litigation, and at the settlement table. For example, our involvement in, as well as knowledge of, securities cases and settlements nationwide enhances our clients’ ability to realistically assess the underlying liability and potential exposure faced by their insureds and under their D&O policies.
• Our lawyers represent D&O insurers in both litigated and non-litigated matters, and we routinely perform coverage analyses and assist in the evaluation and monitoring of complex claims.
• RDB regularly assists D&O insurers in drafting policy forms and endorsements. We also provide assistance to our clients in drafting manuscript policy provisions designed to meet the needs of a specific transaction or insured. Underwriters consult with RDB lawyers to gain a better understanding of the risks they are being asked to assume and develop strategies for controlling potential exposure.

In representing D&O insurers, we endeavor whenever possible to develop close and cooperative working relationships with insureds and their defense counsel. Our experience in D&O litigation coupled with these relationships allow us to be instrumental in negotiating the resolution of disputes to the mutual benefit of both the insureds and their insurers, usually without resorting to litigation. In the cases where litigation is unavoidable, we draw on our substantial experience litigating coverage disputes under D&O and other professional liability policies.