Spotlight: Transportation (Philadelphia) - Professors ­

Speaker Bios

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Fellows

Lars DanielEnvista Forensics
Bert DizonCardinal Captive Strategies
Dr. Nancy GrugleExigent Group
Liz LoperfidoGallagher Bassett
Gracemarie MendeArch Insurance Group Inc.

Members

Jim FosterCassiday Schade LLP
Joseph R. FowlerFowler Hirtzel McNulty & Spaulding, LLC
Justin KaszubaCassiday Schade LLP
Edward LeonardTyson & Mendes LLP
Theodore SchaerZarwin, Baum, DeVito, Kaplan, Schaer & Toddy
Nicholas SulpizioRicci Tyrrell Johnson & Grey
Kenneth WilliamsSegal McCambridge

Lars Daniel

Practice Leader - Digital Forensics

Envista Forensics

Lars Daniel is speaking in the following session(s) :

Session 5 - After the Crash: Spoliation Proofing Digital Evidence Jul 19 2023 2:35PM

Lars Daniel, Practice Leader of Digital Forensics, joined Envista in 2016. He guides the growth and development of the practice, keeping Envista’s digital forensic capabilities on the cutting-edge through a combination of technological solutions and the growth and development of world-class experts. 

Before becoming a part of the Envista Family, Lars worked at Guardian Digital Forensics for seven years, which was acquired by Envista in 2016. While at Guardian, Lars was instrumental in the success and operation of the business, both in his roles as testifying expert and as an educator, teaching CLE (Continuing Legal Education) classes to attorneys across the United States, and through his books and articles.   

He is the co-author of the book Digital Forensics for Legal Professionals: Understanding Digital Evidence from the Warrant to the Courtroom, published by Syngress. He is also co-author of the book Digital Forensics Trial Graphics: Educating the Jury Through Effective Use of Visuals, Published by Academic Press. 

Lars holds numerous certifications in Digital Forensics, including the EnCase Certified Examiner (EnCE), Cellebrite Certified Operator (CCO), Cellebrite Certified Physical Analyst (CCPA), Certified Telecommunications Network Specialist (CTNS), Certified Wireless Analyst (CWA), Certified Internet Protocol Telecommunications Specialist (CIPTS), and the Certified Telecommunications Analyst (CTA) certifications.

He has qualified as an expert witness and testified in both state and federal courts, qualifying as a digital forensics expert, computer forensics expert, cell phone forensics expert, video forensics expert, and photo forensics expert. He has testified for both the defense and prosecution in criminal cases, and the plaintiff and defense in civil cases. 

Every year, Lars teaches dozens of CLE and CE classes. In his career, Lars has provided training to many thousands of attorneys and claims professionals with over 300 classes taught, providing CLE (Continuing Legal Education) and CE (Continuing Education) classes.
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Bert Dizon

Claims Manager

Cardinal Captive Strategies

Bert Dizon is speaking in the following session(s) :

Session 6 - Who’s Driving Now: Autonomous Vehicle Liability and Coverage Issues Jul 19 2023 3:35PM

Bert Dizon is currently the Claims Manager for Cardinal Captive Strategies, where he manages claims and risk for multiple construction captives throughout the US.

Previously, Bert was the client account manager for Arch Insurance under the Alternative Market/Captive, Construction and Transportation space for all lines of coverage including Worker Compensation, Commercial Auto/Trucking and General Liability. He has extensive knowledge in claims management and coverage investigation in multiple lines of insurance including Construction/Construction Defect, personal lines auto (standard/non-standard), Commercial Auto and Trucking, General Liability, Professional Liability, Franchise Risk, Cyber and Cannabis. Since 2001, he has had various roles in carrier and TPA claims operations, brokerage and business development, where he managed different aspects of Claims Operations, including claims resolution and management, leadership, operational excellence, technology development, data analytics, and legal and vendor relations. In addition, he has traveled the county mediating claims in California, Arizona, Texas, Florida, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Washington. In 2016, he represented the carrier for over 300 mediations with a 95% success rate and averaged a 30% total incurred reduction in his efforts. 

He currently serves as the Rising Insurance Star Executive (RISE) Education Co-Chair and a faculty member for the CLM Claims College Schools of Leadership and Transportation. He was the former Vice President of the Orange County CLM Chapter from 2019 - 2022.  Bert is also on the Racial Equity Committee for DiveIn and the Include@GB Steering Committee. He is an industry speaker for various conferences, speaking on topics ranging from DE&I, Claims Management, Construction Defect, Transportation, Mediation and Young Professional Development. In 2017, he was an inaugural recipient of the Rising Insurance Star Executive (RISE) Award and a finalist for the Nexus Claims Innovative Leader of the Year. Bert was the CLM Claims Management Professional of the Year in 2022.  
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Jim Foster

Partner

Cassiday Schade LLP

Jim Foster is speaking in the following session(s) :

Session 3 - Legal and Practical Conflicts of Interest in Transportation Cases Jul 19 2023 11:15AM

James A. Foster is a partner in the firm’s Chicago office and chair of the Transportation practice group. Jim focuses his practice on civil litigation, with an emphasis on transportation and product liability litigation. He leads immediate response teams for trucking companies on catastrophic losses and has published articles on punitive damages and spoliation of evidence. Jim also frequently presents at industry conferences on topics relating to the Reptile Theory, early case analysis, mediation and electronic discovery. Jim represents trucking companies in complex personal injury and in breach of contract matters. He has successfully defended product liability cases at trial involving the design of an automatic door and a milling machine.

Jim is actively involved and has held leadership roles with several industry organizations including, former chair of the American Bar Association (ABA) Tort and Insurance Practice Section's Commercial Transportation Litigation Committee; former member of Board of Directors of the Trucking Industry Defense Association (TIDA) and editor of the State Law Summary of Illinois; former dean of the Federation of Defense and Corporate Counsel (FDCC) Graduate Program of Litigation Management College; former Chair of the Defense Research Institute (DRI) Hand and Power Tools Section; Chair of the Claims & Litigation Management Alliance (CLM) Transportation Community;  and Co-Dean of CLM Claims College's School of Transportation.
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Joseph R. Fowler

Partner Attorney

Fowler Hirtzel McNulty & Spaulding, LLC

Joseph R. Fowler is speaking in the following session(s) :

Session 2 - Immediate Response and Accident Investigation: Why It Matters Jul 19 2023 10:15AM

Joseph R. Fowler is a founding partner of the firm and the managing partner of the firm’s Philadelphia office. Mr. Fowler focuses his practice on the defense and investigation of commercial vehicle and construction accident cases for trucking companies, public transportation companies and their insurers. He also represents construction companies and sub-contractors in catastrophic losses. Mr. Fowler defends bad faith and UM/UIM cases and is routinely appointed as a defense arbitrator for numerous insurance carriers. He regularly represents commercial property owners in severe injury cases.
For over 24 years, Mr. Fowler has directed the investigation and defense of catastrophic commercial vehicle accidents from the date of loss. This includes the immediate counseling of drivers and safety directors, the retention of accident reconstruction experts and evidence preservation. Mr. Fowler regularly counsels a variety of national commercial transportation companies to ensure their compliance with Department of Transportation and Federal Motor Carrier Safety Act regulations. In addition to his transportation work, Mr. Fowler routinely represents and counsels general contractors and subcontractors during their post-accident and OSHA investigations.
Mr. Fowler has extensive trial and appellate experience in both the Pennsylvania federal and state courts. He recently obtained a defense verdict in a case in which plaintiff claimed catastrophic injuries as a result of being rear-ended by a bus operated by the defendant bus company. Phillips Trial (2013). Mr. Fowler also successfully defended a construction company receiving a defense verdict where the defendant’s truck struck a low hanging cable line resulting in the death of a Verizon worker. Hetrick Trial (2012).

Mr. Fowler has drafted multiple white papers regarding the transportation industry. He speaks internationally on transportation-related topics for a variety of organizations including the Transportation Lawyers Association, Mealey’s Publications, Dispute Resolution Institute, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Lorman Education as well as numerous insurance companies and self-insureds.
 
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Nancy Grugle

Human Factors Expert

Exigent Group

Nancy Grugle is speaking in the following session(s) :

Session 5 - After the Crash: Spoliation Proofing Digital Evidence Jul 19 2023 2:35PM

Dr. Grugle is a human factors expert with Exigent Group. She has experience investigating cases involving motor vehicle crashes, product design, and premises safety. Her areas of specialization include fatigue, sleep deprivation and drowsy driving as well as distracted driving, looming, visibility/conspicuity and driver behavior. Dr. Grugle has conducted hundreds of investigations on cases involving these issues as well as cases involving transportation safety (expectancy and positive guidance), autonomous vehicles, and work zone safety.

Dr. Grugle is a Board Certified Human Factors Professional (CHFP) with over 20 years of academic, research and industry experience in human factors engineering. She was awarded competitive human factors research grants from the National Science Foundation, the Ohio Department of Transportation, and the Cleveland State University Transportation Center and her research has been published in national and international peer-reviewed journals. Dr. Grugle conducts investigations for both plaintiff and defense counsel and has testified in both state and federal courts.
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Justin Kaszuba

Partner

Cassiday Schade LLP

Justin Kaszuba is speaking in the following session(s) :

Session 3 - Legal and Practical Conflicts of Interest in Transportation Cases Jul 19 2023 11:15AM

Justin Kaszuba is a Partner at Cassiday Schade firm's Chicago office. He focuses his practice in civil litigation with an emphasis on commercial transportation and commercial litigation matters. He also has experience handling employment law matters. Prior to joining Cassiday Schade, Justin was an associate for a boutique civil litigation defense firm where he focused his practice on transportation, premises liability, and general liability tort defense. He has also served as a judicial extern for the Honorable Daniel J. Pierce of the Illinois Appellate Court, the Honorable James P. Flannery, Presiding Judge of the Law Division of the Circuit Court of Cook County, and the Honorable Franklin U. Valderrama of the Circuit Court of Cook County. While in law school, Justin served as an Associate Barrister of the Trial Advocacy and Dispute Resolution Honors Board, the Vice-Justice of Phi Alpha Delta (Lincoln Chapter), and was a member of the Moot Court Honors Council. In 2016, he was the Regional Champion of the American Bar Associations Client Counsel Competition. Justin was also named to the Dean's List and received the Call Award for the Highest Grade in Employment Law. Justin is actively involved in several professional organizations including the Chicago Bar Association, the Federal Bar Association, and the DuPage County Bar Association. 
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Edward Leonard

Partner

Tyson & Mendes LLP

Edward Leonard is speaking in the following session(s) :

Session 4 - Keep on Trucking: Prepping the Witness for the Reptile Theory Jul 19 2023 1:05PM

Edward Leonard is a Partner in Tyson & Mendes’ Orange County office with 42 years of litigation and trial experience. His practice focuses on general liability matters with a long-term emphasis on transportation cases involving the trucking industry and logistics.
 
Mr. Leonard has tried over 95 civil cases to verdict throughout the State of California and has served as a trial lawyer his entire career. His career began at Harrington, Foxx, Dubrow & Canter where he served as a trial attorney and Managing Partner for the mid-sized litigation firm. More recently, Mr. Leonard practiced law for Poliquin & DeGrave, LLP. Mr. Leonard has successfully defended numerous cases and is well known for being involved in a trial involving a repressed memory medical malpractice case. This case was the subject of numerous publications and is frequently referenced in medical/psychological/neurologic texts to this day.
 
Mr. Leonard has been a member of the Trucking Industry Defense Association (TIDA) from its inception in 1993 and has served on the Board as Secretary from 2002-2011. He remains a frequent lecturer for TIDA and for the Orange County Bar Association. He is an American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA) attorney and served as the President of the Orange County Chapter in 2011. Mr. Leonard remains on the Board of the Orange County ABOTA Chapter and serves on various committees within the Orange County Chapter. He is also on the Board of the Association of Southern California Defense Counsel and has served as a civilian responder for the Orange County Sheriff Department’s Reserve Bureau.
 
Mr. Leonard received his B.A. in History from San Diego State University and received his J.D. from the University of San Diego School of Law.
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Liz Loperfido

Assistant Branch Manager

Gallagher Bassett

Liz Loperfido is speaking in the following session(s) :

Session 2 - Immediate Response and Accident Investigation: Why It Matters Jul 19 2023 10:15AM

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Gracemarie Mende

Director of Auto Claims

Arch Insurance Group Inc.

Gracemarie Mende is speaking in the following session(s) :

Session 2 - Immediate Response and Accident Investigation: Why It Matters Jul 19 2023 10:15AM

Gracemarie is the Senior Claim Manager for Watford US companies at Arch Insurance Group overseeing multi-line programs including General Liability, Professional Liability, Property, Liquor Liability, and Transportation. Managing both staff and TPAs, Gracemarie focuses on both senior technical claim handling as well as growth and development of her claims organization. With 10 years of claims experience, Gracemarie brings both seasoned experience and a fresh perspective to the handling of claims encouraging her adjusters to think outside the box. As a stellar negotiator, she has been responsible for cases ranging from multi-million dollar high profile cases to the little mom and pop slip and falls. Through CLM, Gracemarie has earned the Certified Claims Professional designation for Casualty Claims and is currently working on Transportation and Professional Liability. Keep an eye out for her other panel talks on Bridging the Generation Gaps, how to avoid ethical and harassment issues.
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Theodore Schaer

Director

Zarwin, Baum, DeVito, Kaplan, Schaer & Toddy

Theodore Schaer is speaking in the following session(s) :

Session 1 - The Changing Landscape of Jury Trials and Verdicts in Philadelphia (and everywhere else) Jul 19 2023 8:45AM

Large loss and catastrophic claims require a special kind of counsel. Theodore M. Schaer is regularly hired by some of the nation’s largest insurers, third party administrators, motor carriers and businesses when they face such matters. Ted also serves as National Emergency Response Counsel for Coach USA/Megabus and holds appointments as National and Regional Counsel for several large transportation companies and third party administrators defending, personal injury suits arising from truck and bus accidents.

Under Ted’s guidance and supervision, Zarwin Baum has a uniquely experienced Catastrophic Accident Response Team (“CAT Team”) staffed 24/7, 365 days per year. Working with a team of experts and investigators, numerous carriers and self insureds rely on Ted’s expertise to direct the CAT team’s early investigation and manage large claim exposure. Ted serves as National Trial Counsel for a leading insurance company defending and coordinating the defense of liquor liability claims throughout the country. He is TIPS certified in alcohol intervention procedures for bartenders and servers. Since 1987, Ted has routinely handled a variety of retail, strict liability, professional and construction related claims.

When a matter cannot be resolved, Zarwin Baum’s impressive list of casualty defense clients rely on Ted’s expertise in the courtroom. He has tried more than 50 jury trials in a number of states and has selected an additional 40 jury panels where the case has resolved during trial. Ted is an AV rated attorney who is a Certified Trial Attorney by the National Board of Trial Advocacy. He has taught trial advocacy for the National Institute for Trial Advocacy (NITA) and also teaches Communications Law at Temple University.

Ted joined Zarwin Baum as a third year law student and has risen to co-chair its Property and Casualty Defense department. Ted is a graduate of The American University and Temple University School of Law where he was an assistant editor of the International Law Review. He has been named to New Jersey and Pennsylvania "Super Lawyers" in transportation each year since 2005. In 2006, Ted was named one of the Top 100 Lawyers in the State of New Jersey.

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Nicholas Sulpizio

Attorney

Ricci Tyrrell Johnson & Grey

Nicholas Sulpizio is speaking in the following session(s) :

Session 6 - Who’s Driving Now: Autonomous Vehicle Liability and Coverage Issues Jul 19 2023 3:35PM

Nicholas Sulpizio is an Associate at Ricci Tyrrell Johnson & Grey. His practice primarily focuses on products liability, premises liability and sports and event liability and risk management.  Mr. Sulpizio is also the Solicitor for the Borough of Fieldsboro, New Jersey where he advises the Borough on a continual basis on various municipal matters.  Prior to joining the firm, Mr. Sulpizio was an associate attorney practicing at other defense litigation firms in New Jersey.

Mr. Sulpizio earned his Juris Doctor from Marquette University Law School in 2017.  Mr. Sulpizio was a semifinalist in the 2017 Robert F. Wagner National Labor & Employment Law Moot Court Competition and won the Best Brief award in the competition.  Mr. Sulpizio received the 2016 Pro Bono Publico Award from the Milwaukee Bar Association as well as a CALI award (highest grade) in Labor Law.

In 2014, Mr. Sulpizio graduated from University of Delaware, where he earned his Bachelor of Science in Sports Management and completed a minor in Legal Studies.  He also is a member of the Delta Sigma Pi business fraternity.

Mr. Sulpizio played on the University of Delaware football team from 2010 to 2013. Go Hens!  In his free time, Mr. Sulpizio enjoys playing with his dog, Kelce, and supporting all Philadelphia sports teams.
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Kenneth Williams

Partner

Segal McCambridge

Kenneth Williams is speaking in the following session(s) :

Session 6 - Who’s Driving Now: Autonomous Vehicle Liability and Coverage Issues Jul 19 2023 3:35PM

Kenneth Williams defends corporations in complex coverage, property, product liability and commercial litigation matters. He represents insurance carriers and individual corporations in coverage and personal injury litigation.

Ken is regularly tapped for consulting and research on current and upcoming industry trends, technology, standards, best practices, concepts and solutions for risk management and compliance. He serves as co-chair of the firm’s Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Committee.

His extensive experience in federal and state courts includes a successful civil jury trial practice in Michigan, Illinois and Florida.

In addition to his trial litigation practice, his experience includes cybersecurity coverage consulting and litigation, counseling insurers on an array of coverage issues, rideshare coverage and injury litigation, and representing insurers in bad faith and declaratory relief lawsuits in cases involving general liability, homeowner, auto and E&O policies.

Ken is a national conference speaker for several insurance and casualty organizations and has held speaking engagements across the United States educating insurance carriers and claim representatives in matters and best practices relating to litigation.

Earlier in his career, Ken had significant experience at the appellate level, including post-appellate submission work that required an oral argument before the Michigan Court of Appeals. He previously served as a managing attorney for a national insurance carrier. 
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