Insurance Property, Fire and Casualty Consultants: 17

MCS Associates is a nationally recognized consulting group that has provided financial, operations and regulatory/compliance consulting services nationwide to financial institutions, insurance companies and regulatory agencies as well as real estate and financial services organizations for over 40 years. Expert Witness and Litigation Consulting are a primary focus of our services. We undertake expert witness assignments throughout the United States and our clients include several hundred leading law firms around the country, working on behalf of both plaintiff and defendant financial institutions, borrowers, depositors, investors, developers, insurance companies and their insured, securities/insurance/real estate brokers/agents, regulators and government agencies, and individuals. 

Together with MCS Associates’ specialized resources in banking, financial services and real estate, we also draw on key strategic alliances in insurance, economics, academia and the securities industry to meet a wide range of expert witness needs. Our litigation experts include experienced bankers, lenders, consultants, regulators, managers, brokers & agents in insurance, real estate, and securities; insurance claims and underwriting managers; economists, accountants, appraisers, real estate analysts, and academics. 

Areas of Expertise Include:

• Banking Operations/Administration
• Check Fraud
• Lending Policies, Custom and Practice
• Loan Underwriting & Credit Administration
• Loan Securitizations & Servicing
• Bankruptcy, Foreclosures and Workouts
• Trust & Fiduciary Issues / Operations
• Securities Brokerage & Investments
• Valuations & Damages Analysis
• Forensic Accounting
• Employment / Compensation
• Real Estate Brokerage & Management
• Title Insurance & Escrow
• Real Estate Appraisal & Transactions
• Insurance Industry Custom & Practice
• Insurance Coverages / Claims Handling
• Insurance Bad Faith

Paul F. Amoruso, CPCU, has more than 45 years of experience working for several major insurance carriers as a Senior Vice President of Claims and Operations. As a licensed insurance agent in Massachusetts, Connecticut, Florida, an New Jersey and licensed public adjuster, he is uniquely qualified to assist either plaintiff or defense attorneys on insurance related issues on local or national issues.

If you are an insurance company, insured, or law firm and need an independent review of an insurance issue regarding litigation, agency or company operations, practices or procedures, he is available to assist.

Mr. Amoruso has served as an Expert Witness in many states in both State and Federal court . Having worked in all operation areas of the insurance industry he is able to testify to the generally observed and accepted industry practices.

Areas of Expertise:

• Insurance Customs and Practices
• Company Policies
• Management Involvement
• Proper Staffing
• Coverage Denial
• Agency and Insurance Company Relationships
• Case Evaluation
• Reserve Policies
• Workers Compensation
• Liability Personal or Commercial
• Commercial and Personal Property Losses
• Authority Level
• Industry Ethics and Norms
• Bad Faith
• Claims Handling Practices
• Insurance Company Operations

Mr. Beringer is the Principal of Beringer & Associates (B&A) and Liability Program Management (LPM). He is an approved consultant by the A.M. Best organization, since 2006, for claims, liability, and insurance program management, including matters involving construction, OCIP, TPA, JPA, Captives, Memorandum of Coverage, and insurance coverage analysis. The Cayman Island Monetary Authority approved Mr. Beringer as a licensed captive owner in 2002 for Segregated Portfolio Company Creative Solutions, SPC.

Mr. Beringer holds an LPCS, RPA; is a founding member of CLM, a published author in various publications, and presenter at the CIMA, CPA, A.M. Best, and other conferences.

Mr. Beringer, as B&A, has provided expert services for risk analysis and management services to the insurance, reinsurance, construction, and transportation industry since 2000. Previous to the formation of B&A, he worked in the insurance industry for 30 plus years as a region Litigation Manager with Automobile Club, Industrial Indemnity, Great American, and The Hartford's Speciality Risk Service. Since B&A’s formation, Mr. Beringer assisted Reliance, AIG, Swiss Reinsurance, and Sterling Insurance for review of their insurance programs, analysis, and performance of claims systems and operations.

Mr. Beringer has participated in over 300 mediations, managed handling of over 30,000 cases in federal, state, and local venues on behalf of clients, and provided expert services to plaintiff and defense counsel.

BTI Appraisal is a broad-based appraisal company which provides a consistently high level of Real Estate Appraisals, Business Valuations, and Machinery and Equipment Appraisals for Business, Professional, Public and Private Sectors. When you choose BTI Appraisal, you benefit from a strong tradition of experience and accuracy. 

A corporate philosophy stressing efficiency and attentive service has made BTI a leader among independent appraisers. They are proud of our reputation for stability, responsiveness, and accomplishment in and out of the courtroom. At BTI, their seasoned staff of success-oriented professionals treats each assignment with precise attention to detail, providing needed research and responsive service on a wide range of appraisal needs.

Appraisal Services:

• Real Estate:  Valuation, Research, and  Technical Capabilities from homes to high rise office buildings of all sizes and in most locations. BTI can determine value for either “as is” or “as proposed” construction as well as Market Analysis and Feasibility Studies, Construction Defects, Lost Profits Analysis, Property Tax Reductions, Lack of Disclosure or Misrepresentation
• Personal Property: Residential Contents, Automobiles, Works of Art or Collectibles, Private Planes, Yachts, Inventory for Insurance Coverage, Loans, Sales, Donations, and Litigation Purposes
• Business Valuation: BTI is often called upon to appraise business entities for a variety of purposes Bankruptcy, Eminent Domain, Estate Planning, Dispute Resolution, Loan Support, Marital or Corporate Dissolutions, Mergers, Purchase or Sale
• Machinery and Equipment: BTI's diverse experience in appraising all types of machinery and equipment extends to leasehold improvements, furniture, fixtures and other tangible assets, and a wide range of specialized machinery and equipment including Lasers, Food Processing & Packaging Assembly lines, Cranes, Medical Equipment, Agricultural Equipment, Photography Equipment, Telecommunications Equipment
• Financial Analysis: Sales, profits and expenses often need to be projected, or analyzed, based on external events that trigger losses or gains. BTI regularly performs this type of work for a wide variety of business types.They also analyze contract disputes that financially impact the parties.Commercial creditors even use BTI’s services to analyze and value accounts receivable and related assets that secure their loans to operating businesses.

BTI’s Founder and Chairman, Ben F. Tunnell III, has headed the firm since 1974. Previously, he spent eight years with First Interstate Bank of California as vice president at their corporate headquarters in Los Angeles. He served on the board of arbitrators for both the American Arbitration Association and the Better Business Bureau. He has also been a Registered Investment Advisor and Broker/Dealer with the Securities and Exchange Commission and a licensed, California Real Estate Broker. Mr. Tunnell is an ASA, the senior designation of the American Society of Appraisers, and a California Certified General Real Estate Appraiser #AG-6964. 

View Ben Tunnell's Expert Witness Profile.

CMC Advisors Inc. (CMC) provides expert Insurance Consulting and offers clients the upper hand in managing their assets and liabilities. They assist clients in managing investment portfolios by helping to determine if current Financial Retirement plans such as IRA, Roth IRA, Rollover IRA, 401(K), Keogh Plans, Pensions and Profit Sharing Plans are meeting retirement goals. Consulting Areas:

Annuities Life Insurance Term Insurance Single Premium Variable Insurance

Retirement Disability Insurance Consultant Expert Witness Services

Wayne Citron has 45 years of experience as an expert in Forensic Reconstruction of Insurance Transactions. He is an insurance expert and consultant. Mr. Citron established the Citron Agency and CMC Advisors Inc. in 1972, where his duties included executive and managerial responsibilities, sales, service, compliance with all insurance matters as well as securities laws and regulations. Both firms are leaders in life, health, disability and property and casualty insurance.

Mr. Citron has served as an instructor for Prudential Insurance Company Brooklyn Agency (1973) educating personnel in general insurance matters, underwriting, and insurance law. He has worked with companies including Prudential Insurance Company, United States Life Insurance Company, North American Company for Life and Health Insurance, American General Life Insurance Company, William Penn Life Insurance Company, American Life Insurance Company, Chubb Insurance Company, Travelers Insurance Company, Mass Mutual Insurance Company, John Hancock Insurance Company, and American International Group (AIG), among other. Mr. Citron recently volunteered for Ocean County Long Term Recovery Group (OCLTRG) to reopen Super Storm Sandy flood claims and examine National Flood Insurance Policies, as well as deal with FEMA in these matters (2015 & 2016).

View Wayne Citron's Expert Witness Profile.

Gulf Coast Risk Management (GCRM) provides research, analysis, and advice to commerce, industry, government and individuals, property managers, and general contractors regarding Insurance Placement, Interpretation, and Recommended Contractual Insurance Requirements, while explaining the relationship and alignment with indemnity and insurance provisions. 

GCRM operates COIs R Us, a certificate of insurance (COI) compliance and tracking company. COIs R Us compares the contractual obligations of a lease agreement with the COI. COIs R Us processes thousands of COIs for landlords and general contractors for compliance annually.

Business Consultant Services

Certificate of Insurance Tracking and Compliance Insurance Renewal Negotiations

Risk Manager Services Start Up Business Services

Certificate of Insurance Tracking - No More Excel

Scott S. Margraves, CIC, has over 32 years of Commercial Property and Casualty Insurance experience. He is the Principal Consultant and Founder of GCRM. Mr. Margraves is well-versed in the placement of insurance policies from an insured's perspective. As a front-line producer, he weathered five major hurricanes, three “five-hundred-year floods” and multiple catastrophic fire claims.

Agency roles include insurance broker, claims supervisor, agency partner, and risk manager. He is Past President of the Independent Insurance Agents of Houston, Past Vice Chairmen of IIAT IMPACT Region 10, Member of Insurance Academy, and Lifetime Committeemen for the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

Mr. Margraves started his second career as a full-time consultant in 2021. He is an insurance industry expert that brings extensive experience in all aspects of property casualty insurance interpretation, policy forms, claims, safety programs, HR coordination and contract integration.

View Scott S. Margraves' Expert Witness Profile.

Ivan E. Cohen, RF, ARM, CRM, CIC, AIC, AAI, MLIS, CRIS, is a nationally recognized Insurance Expert with 44 years of Insurance and Risk Management experience.

In 1979, he opened his own agency where he still serves as president. Mr. Cohen has also been an Insurance educator for 41 years, serving as a senior adjunct professor at Westchester Community College in the Banking, Insurance, and Real Estate curriculum, and also on the curriculum advisory committee. He has taught for the Risk and Insurance Management Society, The National Alliance, Professional Insurance Agents of New York, Connecticut and New Jersey, Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of New York, and provides training and continuing education courses for agencies and companies. 

Mr. Cohen is a member of the Global Risk Management Institute, an associate member of the Risk and Insurance Management Society and holds the distinction of being a RIMS Fellow and has been a contributing insurance columnist for Risk Management Magazine.

Mr. Cohen delivers presentations and seminars throughout the country on topics including: 

Errors & Omissions - Agency Management - Risk Management - Law & Ethics - Casualty Coverage - Property Coverage

View Ivan Cohen's Expert Witness Profile.

Janice A. Ramsay founded the law firm of Ramsay and Johnson, ALC in 1984. She merged her practice and that firm with Berger Kahn LLC in 1999. Since the late fall of 2007, she has primarily worked independently as an expert witness and consultant to other attorneys.

During her career, Ms. Ramsay has given advice on coverage questions, underwriting procedures, rescission rights, claims handling, and insurers legal and policy obligations. She is experienced with both commercial and personal lines policies. Ms. Ramsay is familiar with the business of insurance and the legal framework of that business and has performed the procedures that are unique to the claims process such as examinations under oath, and appraisals. She has drafted or revised insurance policies for several insurance companies and has handled coverage litigation.

Litigation Support - Ms. Ramsay has been retained in over 150 matters as an expert work during her law practice beginning as early as 1989. She has testified frequently in both deposition and trial on the standards and practices of the insurance industry. She has testified for insurers, insureds,brokers, and agents.

Types of Losses:

Fire Losses Organized Insurance Fraud Landslides Earthquakes Water Damage / Mold Defective Construction

Latent Defects Riots Acts of Civil Authority Business Interruption Suit Limitation Issues Mortgagee Rights

Speaking Engagements - Ms. Ramsay has frequently been a speaker and/or panelist for the Orange County Bar Association, PLRB Annual Conference, the Combined Claims Conference, and many more. She has also given in-house seminars for several insurers.

Mary LaPorte offers Consulting Services to insurance agencies, including assistance in Work Flow, Operations and E&O Loss Prevention, and General Agency Management and Supervision. With over 40 years in the Insurance Industry, Ms. LaPorte helps agencies develop best practices and established procedures. She regularly conducts E&O audits for agencies and assists in developing internal E&O loss control practices. Having worked within the independent agency system and interacted with insurance carriers following industry standards, she assists agencies with refining and developing procedure. Ms. LaPorte is heavily involved in insurance education, is on the national faculty for the Society of CIC, (Certified Insurance Counselor), and teaches agency standards to insurance professionals. Her services are also available to private clients and small, private entrepreneurial companies. Consulting Services:

• Insurance Agency Consulting
• E&O Loss Control
• E&O Loss Prevention
• E&O Audits
• Insurance Continuing Education
• House / Condo/ Co-op Insurance
• Home Insurance
• Insurance Education

View Expert Witness Profile.

Jeffrey D. Diamond specializes in Insurance Coverage Disputes and Litigation. He has established his law firm as one of the premier Insurance Coverage law firms in the Metro Atlanta area on behalf of policyholders, as well as throughout the State of Georgia and, as he was initially admitted to the State Bar of California in 1978, he serves policyholders in California, as well. 

In addition to his full time law practice, Mr. Diamond has served as an Adjunct Professor of Insurance Law since 1995 in both California and Georgia, having joined the Georgia State University College of Law faculty in 2009 as an Adjunct Professor of Insurance Law and, in 2012, he joined Atlanta’s John Marshall Law School in a similar capacity. 

Mr. Diamond  is also a law instructor for the National Association of Certified Valuators and Analysts (NACVA), a national educational organization which conducts continuing education programs for financial professionals across the country, teaching in NACVA’s Expert Witness Bootcamp program. Mr. Diamond has been an invited guest speaker on topics of interest at numerous insurance conferences throughout the country. 

Over his 37 year career, Mr. Diamond has successfully represented policyholders, and formerly Insurance companies, in a wide variety of insurance coverage and bad faith actions including:

• Business Insurance Litigation
• Homeowners Insurance Litigation 
• Construction Defect Litigation
• General Business Property and Liability Claims
• Long Term Disability Claims
• Life Insurance Claims

 Litigation Support - Mr. Diamond's experience as an insurance litigator and insurance law professor allows him a unique perspective as a consulting expert witness. His extensive knowledge of insurance law and keen insights into insurance policy interpretation, as well as the covenant of good faith and fair dealing under each State’s insurance related statutes and case law, make him an exceptional consulting expert witness with regard to insurance coverage disputes and issues concerning insurance bad faith issues.

 View Jeffrey Diamond's Expert Witness Profile.

Jim Leatzow has 46 years of "hands-on" practical, property / casualty insurance agency experience. Leatzow has literally worn "every hat there is to wear in the P/C insurance business. He provides expert & arbitration services nationally & internationally with no charge for travel time. He is articulate, efficient & equally comfortable within the U.S. & in foreign venues. His experience includes:

• 46 years national Property/Casualty insurance industry experience
• 30 years national, Property/Casualty insurance Agency Owner
• 23 years national, Property/Casualty Managing General Agent (MGA)
• 20 years national, Third Party Administrator (TPA) insurance claim adjuster
• 26 years Reinsurance experience & Company Founder/President
• 17 years Certified insurance Arbitrator (U.S. / U.K. / Bermuda) 
• 55 years Licensed Pilot with Commercial, Instrument, Multi & Seaplane Ratings 
• Still licensed in Illinois (46 years) & Wisconsin (38 years) 
• Licensed in all states for 20-25 years until 2005 (agency sold)
• Rule 26 Report specialization on complex cases 
• Bad Faith Expert qualified nationally 
• History of representing plaintiff & defense equally
• No charge for travel time "coast to coast"

Leatzow's specialties include: Agent-Broker-MGA standards of care / Bad Faith / Coverage / Agent-Broker E&O Claims / Agent-Broker custom & practice / Professional (E&O) Liability / Claims Adjusting Standard of Care / Claims-made coverage / Surplus Lines issues / Underwriting / Licensing / Property / General Liability /Aviation Insurance

Lieberman Financial & Consulting Services, LLC provides high quality Financial Planning services and Insurance Investment to advice to clients in all walks of life. Principal, Maurice Lieberman, CLU, ChFC, RHU, LUTCF, has over 40 years of experience specializing in Life Insurance, Annuities, and Health Coverage. 

Mr. Lieberman also offers Financial Planning Workshops and conduct large and small group seminars. He provides individual and family financial counseling sessions to active duty members of the United States Military (all branches.) Mr. Lieberman holds three professional designations from the American College, Chartered Life Underwriter, Chartered Financial Consultant, and Registered Health Underwriter. He is a Life Insurance Training Council Fellow, and a member of the American College of Financial Services Professionals, Forensic Expert Witness Association, and the American College of Forensic Examiners International. 

Background Experience - Mr. Lieberman started as an insurance agent for Metropolitan Life and then advanced in his career to manage brokers. He successfully built agencies for Aetna, and Principal Financial Group. He was later promoted to Regional Director for New England Financial, and CSAA Life. Over the years he mentored hundreds of insurance agents, brokers, financial planners and agency managers to build their own successful careers and agencies. He was also a member of the Million Dollar Round Table and utilized his selling and management experience to train insurance agents, brokers and financial planners in advanced areas of estate, business insurance, and financial planning.

View Maurice Lieberman's Expert Witness Profile.

Key Coleman, CPA, CFA, CPCU, ARe is Executive Director and Founder of Litigation Economic & Forensic Consulting Group LLC. While his firm is located in Greater Philadelphia, his practice is nationwide. Mr. Coleman focuses his consulting practice on damages analysis in the context of commercial disputes, contract audits and investigations. Mr. Coleman has a specialty in the Insurance and Reinsurance Industry, having worked in or around the industry for over 30 years. Prior to starting his own firm, he spent the bulk of his career in Chicago where he was a partner at a Big Four accounting firm and subsequently held high level positions at other nationally recognized accounting and consulting firms. Prior to his consulting career, he spent more than eight years in the insurance and reinsurance industry. His major investigative work includes having spent 4 years on the then-largest insurance investigation in history.  He is one of the few experts nationwide who holds both the CPA and the CPCU designations; he has significant depth in reinsurance, as well, enabling him to gain the 'big picture' when dealing with insurance and reinsurance issues.  He has performed inspections of MGAs, TPAs, ceding companies, and insureds. An abbreviated list of his investigative and insurance specialties include:

Accounting, Forenisic Accounting and Investigations Analysis of accounting records Forensic accounting Investigative analysis Contract audits Consulting Services in Insurance and Reinsurance MGA/MGU audits or inspections Underwriting audits

Claims analysis Ceding company audits Premium audit analysis Insolvency and run-off analysis Workers’ Compensation Professional Employment Organizations (PEOs) Damages Analysis in Inurance and Reinsurance

View Key Coleman's Expert Witness Profile.

Florida Office:
Andrew Avalon, PE, PSP
Chairman & CEO
8633 Willow Kane Court
Orlando, FL 32835
aavalon@long-intl.com
T: (407) 445-0825     F: (407) 650-3399

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Long International provides expert engineering and construction claims analysis, expert testimony, project management consulting, and insurance claims analysis services. We focus on projects in the following industries: building and construction; gas, gasification, GTL, LNG, and NGL; industrial and manufacturing; mineral and mineral processing; offshore oil and gas; oil sands; pipelines and utilities; power; refineries, petrochemical, and chemical; transportation; and water, wastewater, dams, and marine.  We analyze claims, not limited to, disputed change orders, schedule delay, acceleration, time extensions, liquidated damages, loss of productivity, defective specifications, and deficient project management performance.

Richard J. Long, P.E., P.Eng., Founder of Long International, has over 50 years of U.S. and international consulting experience involving construction contract disputes analysis and resolution, arbitration/litigation support and expert testimony, project management, engineering/construction management, cost and schedule control, and process engineering. As an internationally recognized expert in the analysis and resolution of complex construction disputes for over 35 years, Mr. Long has served as the lead expert on over 300 projects having claims ranging in size from US$100,000 to over US$2 billion. He has presented and published numerous articles on claims analysis, entitlement issues, CPM schedule and damages analyses, cumulative impact claims, and claims prevention.

Rod C. Carter, CCP, PSP is President of Long International and has over 20 years of experience in construction project controls, contract disputes and resolution, negotiations, mediation, arbitration support, and expert testimony on scheduling, loss of productivity, and quantum issues.  He has experience in entitlement, schedule, and damages analyses on over 30 construction disputes ranging in value from US$100,000 to US$7 billion, related to oil and gas, oil refinery, LNG, heavy civil, nuclear, environmental, chemical, power, industrial, commercial, and residential construction projects.  Mr. Carter is proficient in the use of Primavera P6 and P3 software, and he has extensive experience in assessing the impact to engineering and construction works of RFIs, change orders and other events.  Mr. Carter specializes in loss of productivity, cumulative impact, and quantum calculations, and had a lead role in assessing damages on more than a dozen major disputes.  In addition, Mr. Carter has developed cost and schedule risk analysis models using Monte Carlo simulations to address the uncertainty of estimates and claims.

Scott M. Francis, P.E., PSP is a Vice President of Long International and has over 20 years of experience in project management, contract disputes analysis and resolution, CPM schedule preparation, execution, and analysis, productivity analysis, contract administration, design engineering, construction management, and government contracting.  He provides schedule development and assurance services, cost estimating, and claims analysis services on projects for both owners and contractors.  Specific responsibilities include CPM development and reviews, CPM schedule delay and acceleration analyses, change order impact analysis, issue identification, correlation of impacts to schedule activities, and productivity evaluations.

PozmantierWilliams Insurance Consultants, LLC is an Insurance / Risk Management firm that offers clients negotiating expertise and depth of knowledge to optimize their coverage while in many cases reducing costs. Services Include:

• Design / Implement / Audit Insurance / Risk Management Programs
• Contractual Review and Recommendations
• Lease Analysis
• Broker Selection / Broker Services Review Advice
• Competitive Marketing of Insurance Programs
• Merger and Acquisition Due Diligence
• Executive Insurance Review
• Claims Services
• Captive / Alternative Risk Planning Services

Joe L. Williams, CPCU, partner in PozmantierWilliams Insurance Consultants, LLC, has over 49 years of experience as an Insurance Agent / Broker and Insurance Consultant. From 1970 until 2007, he was a principal shareholder in a large Houston firm, Wisenberg Insurance + Risk Management, and was Chairman and CEO when the firm was sold to a subsidiary of Wells Fargo Bank. Mr. Williams is very familiar with all phases of the insurance industry, including consulting on bad faith, customs and practices, and standards of care. He has particular expertise in property coverage, business interruption, non-subscription, and risk transfer techniques. During the past several years, Mr. Williams has been a media contact for radio, television and news publications as an authoritative source of information about various insurance and risk management topics. He has taught numerous seminars on Business Insurance at the University of Houston. He has lectured and been a seminar leader on various insurance topics. View Joe Williams' Expert Witness Profile.