Kathryn A. Underhill
Overview
Kathy Underhill is a commercial litigator with more than 30 years of experience representing insurance companies and risk retention groups in relation to major claims of their corporate and institutional policyholders. She is counsel of record in many high stakes and high profile insurance matters, and regularly represents clients in federal and state trial and appellate courts. She also counsels clients on insurance coverage matters. Her coverage matters have addressed underlying claims involving asbestos, noise-induced hearing loss, DES and other pharmaceuticals, contaminated blood, dioxin, petrochemicals, and various environmental contaminants. She also is heavily involved in insurance issues relating to educational institutions, including issues relating to sexual abuse allegations, Title IX, campus security, research agreements, intercollegiate and club sports, and employment issues.
Career & Education
- University of Miami, B.A., magna cum laude, 1981
- Duke University School of Law, J.D., High Honors, 1984
- District of Columbia
Representative Matters
- Successfully briefed and argued the frequently-cited Olin excess late notice case before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, and also successfully briefed the pollution exclusion issue before that court;
- Successfully briefed and argued the pollution exclusion and late notice issues before the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York;
- Successfully briefed the clean-up costs and pollution exclusion issues before the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, and the pollution exclusion issue before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit;
- Successfully briefed and argued against a bad faith claim made against an insurance carrier in a state trial court, and also successfully briefed the pollution exclusion and clean-up costs issues before the same court;
- Successfully tried to a jury a case involving the "number of occurrences" issue;
- First-chaired the medical expert phase of two large asbestos coverage trials involving trigger/allocation and coverage defenses;
- Examined or defended at deposition and/or trial, almost twenty of the most prominent medical experts on asbestos-related disease and noise-induced hearing loss;
- Successfully served as co-counsel in a multi-billion dollar asbestos mediation in connection with a pre-packaged bankruptcy;
- Successfully litigated numerous forum and discovery disputes;
- Involved in insurance coverage issues relating to claims against Duke University brought by members of 2006 Duke lacrosse team, including successfully moving to dismiss a coverage action brought by another carrier;
- Successfully tried three pro bono child custody/neglect cases in D.C. Superior Court;
- Successfully sought asylum for a pro bono client and his family based on political, religious, and other grounds.