CLM is nothing without its members and fellows, who collaborate on everything from webinars to conference programming to articles published right here in CLM Magazine. Let’s recognize and honor some of that excellence with our own end-of-year awards show.
Top Magazine Contributor
So many CLM professionals take the time to contribute thoughtful, interesting, and practical content to CLM Magazine, but some writers take it to the next level by developing a regular series of articles. This year’s nominees went beyond the call of duty to develop truly original content. They include:
• Teresa Beck, Co-Chair of California Litigation/Chair of Arizona Litigation, Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney, “The Blame Game”
• Jim Foster, Partner, Cassiday Schade LLP, “The Roundabout”
• Roger Lear, Cofounder, Great Insurance Jobs, “Careers”
And the winner is…Teresa Beck’s “The Blame Game” series! Published quarterly, this print series was developed from a successful webinar format that Beck pioneered, which included having audiences guess verdict amounts based on available case information. Adapted for print, “The Blame Game” features Beck partnering with claims professionals to give their best verdict guesses based on the facts of a series of litigated topics like sexual harassment, senior care, cannabis, and cyber. The series was even recently recognized for excellence by the American Society of Business Publication Editors.
Best National Event
Sure, the CLM Annual Conference and Claims College get a lot of deserved attention each year, but CLM’s other national conferences are hubs of activity and knowledge sharing. With each focusing on just one area of interest, these events are a one-stop shop for CLM members and fellows to grow their skill sets. This year’s nominees for Best National Event are:
• CLM Construction
• CLM Cyber, Management, and Professional Liability
• CLM Retail, Restaurant, and Hospitality
• CLM Workers Compensation
And the winner is…CLM Construction! This event was the third-largest conference by attendance this year for CLM, and advisory board members Stephen J. Henning of Wood Smith Henning & Berman, Phyllis Modlin of Markel, and Dan Ducommun of MC Consultants work tirelessly each year to ensure that conference topics are relevant and speakers are top-notch. For more information on CLM’s Construction Community, check out our sister publication Construction Claims at theclm.org/constructionclaims
Top Webinar of 2019
CLM’s webinar series is one of the association’s best ways to demonstrate a sharing of knowledge, as each event pairs a member with a fellow to deliver 30 minutes of clear and practical advice on targeted topics. This year’s nominees for Top Webinar of 2019 include (in order of date presented):
• Aggressive Claims Handling for Workers Compensation (presented on July 9, 2019, by Kirsten Kaiser Kus, Bryce Downey & Lenkov LLC; and Penny Wright-McCloud, Sunstate Equipment Company)
• Battle of the Forms: Business Owners Policy vs. Commercial Package Policy (presented on July 24, 2019, by Ashley Mason, Thompson, Coe, Cousins & Irons LLP; and Alex Niederman, Ironshore Insurance Co.)
• Social Media Investigations for Claims Personnel and Attorneys (presented on Aug. 15, 2019, by Dwight Geddes, Metro Claims & Risk Mgmt; and Jacob Malatesta, Hagwood and Tipton PC)
• With Reservations—An Overview of the Sufficiency of Reservations of Rights Letters (presented on Oct. 23, 2019, by Alexander Wilder, Markel Service Inc.; and Brian Hickman, Gordon & Polscer LLC)
And the winner is…“With Reservations—An Overview of the Sufficiency of Reservations of Rights Letters”! This webinar attracted 461 registrations from CLM’s membership, the most of any non-sponsored webinar for the year. It was also one of the most re-watched webinars on demand. With many of CLM’s webinars set to become CE-certified in 2020, next year’s list is bound to be another impressive one. To view CLM’s webinar archive, go to theclm.org/webinars.
Most Useful Department
Whether it’s posing a question to members and fellows, profiling their careers, updating readers on important legislative actions, or recapping the latest and greatest CLM webinar or conference, CLM Magazine’s editors work overtime to compile useful and interesting information from across the organization in each issue. Which recurring magazine department was the most useful for readers based on the number of pageviews and shares? The nominees are:
• Around the CLM
• Between the Lines
• CLM National
• Voices
And the winner is…CLM National! This monthly compilation is a hodgepodge of legislative, regulatory, and precedent-setting verdicts from across the country, and consistently ranks as the most-read article online each month. (In fact, July’s CLM National was the most-read article of 2019.) Put together by Managing Editor Phil Gusman, CLM National showcases the collaborative nature of our organization by spotlighting topics of importance submitted by members and fellows in easy-to-digest summaries.
As each award demonstrates, the CLM is an association that relies on its dynamic and engaged membership to help others achieve their best. The real winners each year are those who are willing to share that knowledge and expertise with the rest of us. “Alone we can do so little," said Helen Keller, "together we can do so much.”