Social Inflation in Insurance Litigation: Mitigation Strategies and Practical Tactics for Defense Counsel

Mr. Behrens co-chairs Shook's Washington, D.C.-based Public Policy Practice Group. He has been involved in civil justice issues, liability law and defense litigation for more than 25 years. A substantial part of Mr. Behrens' practice is working to improve the civil litigation environment through state and federal legislation; in the courts through amicus curiae briefs on behalf of business, civil justice and defense lawyer organizations; through legal scholarship and judicial education; and in the court of public opinion.

Ms. Caffrey concentrates her practice in the areas of mass tort, products liability and toxic tort litigation, with extensive trial experience in cases in these practice areas. She previously served as the national coordinating counsel for PLIVA, Inc. in its PPA litigation, was one Ford Motor Company's national trial counsel, and served as GM's trial counsel in asbestos litigation.

Dr. Colangelo has a doctorate in legal psychology from Florida International University and a B.A. in psychology and sociology from the University of Virginia. Her education involved extensive coursework and research training, specifically in the area of jury decision-making. Dr. Colangelo has over a decade of experience in litigation consulting. She has provided litigation support for a variety of civil and criminal matters across the country in the form of jury research, including focus groups, mock trials, damages assessment studies, and community attitude surveys, as well as other trial preparation strategies such as voir dire consultation, jury selection, witness preparation, shadow juries, and trial monitoring. Dr. Colangelo has consulted on numerous multi-million dollar and high profile cases, including commercial litigation, property and contract disputes, anti-trust, securities, and intellectual property matters, accounting fraud and malpractice, legal and medical malpractice, negligence, personal injury, and product liability. She has a wealth of experience in all aspects of litigation consulting, including pre-trial jury research, case analysis and theme/storyline development, trial strategy, including preparation of opening statements and closing arguments as well as witness preparation and communication training, voir dire and jury selection assistance, in-court assistance via daily trial monitoring or use of a shadow jury, and post-trial juror interviews. Dr. Colangelo is a member of the American Psychology-Law Society, a division of the American Psychological Association, as well as the American Society of Trial Consultants. In addition to conducting scientific research at the intersection of psychology and law and teaching several undergraduate and graduate courses in psychology, she has authored several publications and presented several papers at various research conferences.