Associate Brittany Ehrenman, Esq., Managing Partner William Peterfriend, Esq., and Senior Partner James Sparkman, Esq., obtained a dismissal in a First-Party Property matter styled Island Roofing & Restoration, LLC a/a/o Betty Hoffman v. United Property & Casualty Insurance Company. The matter arose from a homeowner’s claim for damage allegedly from Hurricane Irma. Plaintiff, via a purported electronically signed assignment of benefits obtained from the Insured, sought to recover insurance proceeds in excess of $168,000, including the cost for a full roof replacement. The lawsuit was filed by Plaintiff in May 2019, and after several years of litigation, the matter was set to begin trial in March 2021. After taking the Insured’s deposition, it became clear that the Insured did not sign the assignment of benefits. Defendant prepared a Motion for Summary Judgment to argue that Plaintiff had no standing to bring the lawsuit. Just three weeks before trial, Plaintiff attempted to correct their standing issue and filed an Emergency Motion to Amend their Complaint. In preparation for trial, Defendant moved to present evidence of Plaintiff and Insured’s non-compliance with policy conditions and to exclude hearsay testimony regarding the alleged damages and lay opinion testimony. Following an eleventh hour emergency motion by opposing counsel to withdraw from the case, Plaintiff filed a voluntary dismissal. Read more