Haddick, Akrasi Successfully Defend Insurance Broker in $20M Workers’ Compensation Coverage Suit

The Third Circuit Court of Appeals has affirmed judgment in favor of a Western Pennsylvania insurance agency represented by Dickie, McCamey & Chilcote (“DMC”) in a $20 million professional negligence claim arising out of an underlying catastrophic workers’ compensation injury. The agency, Ebensburg Insurance Agency, was represented by DMC attorneys Charles E. Haddick, Jr. and Charlene N.A. Akrasi.

In June 2015, Ebensburg arranged for workers’ compensation insurance coverage for agency customer Custom Installations through American Builders Insurance Company of Georgia. After a Custom Installations employee suffered a catastrophic fall injury in September 2015 rendering him quadriplegic, American Builders paid the claim but sued Custom, and later Ebensburg, for indemnification, alleging that material misrepresentations were made in the insurance application concerning the heights at which Custom’s employees worked.

DMC attorneys Haddick and Akrasi moved for summary judgment in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania on multiple grounds, including the statute of limitations. Mr. Haddick and Ms. Akrasi argued that American Builders was on notice of a potential claim against both Custom and Ebensburg as early as September 2015 when it filed suit against Custom in November 2015, but it inexplicably failed to commence an action against the agency until nearly four years later in August 2019. In August 2023, Judge Matthew Brann of the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania granted summary judgment in favor of Ebensburg, ruling American Builders’ claims untimely. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit affirmed that judgment this week on August 22.

Ebensburg Insurance Agency was also represented by attorneys Jeff Hubbard of Hubbard, Mitchell, Williams & Strain, PLLC of Ridgeland, Mississippi, and attorneys Robert Byer (Pittsburgh) and Will Heaston (Philadelphia) of Duane Morris, LLC.

About Dickie, McCamey & Chilcote, P.C.
Dickie, McCamey & Chilcote, P.C. is a nationally-recognized law firm providing comprehensive legal expertise in a multitude of practice areas. Headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and founded more than 100 years ago, the firm serves industry-leading clients across the country from offices throughout the mid-Atlantic region in Pennsylvania, Delaware, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina, West Virginia, and the Southwestern region of California. For more information: 800-243-5412 or www.dmclaw.com.