Florida Developer Recovers $42.5 Million in Settlement on Hurricane Claim
Real estate developer Panama City Beach Condos, LP, recovered $42.5 million in a settlement with Axis Surplus Insurance Company in a case that was tried to verdict in a Florida federal court stemming from a Hurricane Dennis insurance claim.
The settlement was concluded on January 28, 2008 following a two-week jury trial in October 2007 in Panama City, Florida. After only about 90 minutes from receiving all of the evidence in the case, the eight-person jury returned an unanimous verdict in favor of Panama City Beach Condos for over $41.5 million. The Greenberg Traurig trial team, representing the developer, was headed by William Clayton, a shareholder in the firm’s Ft. Lauderdale and Las Vegas offices, and included shareholders Alaine Greenberg and David Batista and associate Sara Levy. The settlement was reached and concluded before The Honorable Richard Smoak ruled on pending post-trial motions and before an appeal.
Hurricane Dennis slammed into the Florida Panhandle as a Category 4 storm on July 9, 2005, causing significant damage and halting construction on the 31-story, 570-unit Tidewater Beach Condominiums project before making landfall near Pensacola the following day as a Category 3 hurricane.
Axis Surplus Insurance Company was informed that the cost to repair the hurricane damage was approximately $30 million. Axis Surplus Insurance decided not pay the developer any funds under the builder’s risk insurance policy. After Panama City Beach Condos submitted its claim, the insurance company also refused to renew the policy.
Panama City Beach Condos was forced to rebuild using new investor and loan funds totaling in excess of $35 million and filed suit in federal district court in September 2006.
Clayton is a board certified as a Civil Trial Advocate by the National Board of Trial Advocacy. He also is among a select group of trial lawyers who are Board Certified in both Business Litigation and as a Civil Trial Lawyer in Florida.
About Greenberg Traurig, LLP
Greenberg Traurig, LLP is an international, full-service law firm with more than 1750 attorneys and governmental affairs professionals in the U.S. and Europe. The firm was selected as the 2007 USA Law Firm of the Year by Chambers and Partners. For additional information, please visit the firm’s Web site at www.gtlaw.com.