Insurance Health

Mark B. Bennett, Esq.

********@***.**.*** ● 858-***-****

**** ******* ***** ****., **. 285, San Diego, CA 92131

Senior Litigator

Adept and resourceful civil litigator with 20+ years’ experience and 40+ jury trials in state and federal courts. Proficient in diverse aspects of practice, including litigation tactics, trials, appeals, settlement negotiations, motions practice, case management, discovery and depositions, and legal research and writing. Skilled at preparing clients and witnesses and communicating with opposing counsel. Extensive hands-on experience with all stages of case management, from intake through pleadings, discovery, and resolution. Creative thinker, innovative legal strategist, and persuasive and zealous advocate.

Areas of Expertise

Insurance Defense – Trial Practice – Appellate Practice -- Mediations -- Wrongful Death – Homeowner Land Disputes Medical Malpractice – Construction Defects -- Business Torts – Products Liability – Wrongful Termination Sexual Harassment

Professional Experience

Law Offices of Mark Bennett – San Diego, CA 2010 to present

Solo practice providing mediation services.

Owner / Certified Mediator (from 2010 to 2011 simultaneous with position at Infinity Insurance)

Receive cases referred by personal injury / business panel of San Diego Superior Court Mediation Department; meet with parties to evaluate facts and relevant law; and facilitate case settlements.

Infinity Insurance – San Diego, CA 2008 to 2011

Birmingham, Alabama-based automobile and commercial insurer with a primary customer base of high-risk insureds.

In-House Counsel

Managed most personal injury litigation for San Diego and Imperial Counties, all Southern California subrogation cases, and some Northern California subrogation cases. Directed all phases of litigation. Conducted initial fact finding. Drafted pleadings, discovery demands and responses, and pre-trial motions. Took and defended depositions of parties, witnesses, and experts. Prepared witnesses for testimony and appeared in court. Provided coverage opinions on suspected fraud cases. Conducted in-house training for San Diego claims office. Prepared detailed monthly activity reports for home office.

• Recovered $300K+ from uninsured drivers throughout California in 2008-2011.

• Conducted examination of insured under oath in auto theft claim, which revealed insured’s attempted fraud and convinced him to drop the claim.

• Obtained favorable “cost of defense” settlement in case where defendant struck plaintiff’s vehicle after suffering an unexpected heart attack.

Automobile Club of Southern California – Costa Mesa, CA 2000 to 2008

Provider of automobile and homeowners’ insurance policies throughout Southern California.

In-House Counsel

Led trials of “homeowners’ referred” and auto insurance defense cases. Drafted pleadings, motions, and discovery requests and responses. Took and defended depositions of parties, witnesses, and experts. Managed day to day operations of office of 3 attorneys and staff of 2. Conducted 15+ jury trials.

• Defeated claim in uninsured arbitration hearing lasting 3 days, in which claimant demanded $100K for injuries allegedly requiring back surgery.

• Prevailed, both at trial and on appeal, in defense of homeowner on the reasonable scope of a landscape easement.

• Obtained defense verdicts in 4 one-week trials of claims of soft tissue injuries from low speed rear end collisions.

• Won defense verdict in jury trial of rear end collision case, in which plaintiff had rejected $25K offer prior to verdict.

• Defended auto accident case in 1-week trial in which jury found negligence but no damages.

Mark B. Bennett, Esq. – Page 2 ********@***.**.*** ● 858-***-****

Cigna Insurance Companies – San Diego, CA 1987 to 2000

Major national provider of a wide variety of insurance products.

In-House Counsel

Litigated complex commercial general liability and health insurance coverage defenses on behalf of large corporate insureds. Practice areas included medical malpractice, products liability, business litigation, bad faith litigation, wrongful termination, racial discrimination, and wrongful denial of healthcare benefits. Conducted all phases of litigation, including initial investigations, witness interviews, pleadings and motions, discovery requests and responses, trial preparation and trial defense. Prepared witnesses and experts for deposition and trial testimony, and drafted expert reports. Appeared at trial and in appeals. Managed caseload and office during periods when managing attorney was absent.

• Prevailed in one-week uninsured arbitration of claim of fibromyalgia allegedly caused by exposure to silicone due to rupture of breast implant following auto accident.

• Defended 3 appeals to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and won all 3.

• Obtained summary judgment in $200K claim for disability benefits in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California.

• Won defense verdict in 2-week trial claiming injury from structural defects in a hotel, in which video re-enactment provided evidence of no causation.

• Successfully defended 1-week slip-and-fall trial on behalf of San Diego Zoo, involving an injury at zoo’s amphitheater.

• Received summary judgment denying claim for racial discrimination in wrongful termination case in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California; represented employer on appeal and prevailed again in the 9th Circuit.

Education

Juris Doctor – Thomas Jefferson School of Law – San Diego, CA

Graduated top 10%

Member, Law Review

National Dean’s List

Bachelor of Arts – UCLA – Los Angeles, CA

Cum Laude

Recipient, Regent’s Scholarship

Bar Memberships and professional Affiliations

California Bar

United States District Court for the Southern District of California

United States Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit

San Diego County Bar Association

San Diego Defense Lawyers’ Association

Southern California Defense Lawyers’ Association

San Diego Superior Court Mediation Department, Certified Mediator

Louis Welsh Inn of Court, Barrister

San Diego Superior Court, Certified Abritrator (1990-2000)

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