New Jersey Commercial Property & Large-Loss Insurance Attorneys

Yes, frequently. Brokers know our practice and refer commercial property losses; we collaborate without disturbing the broker relationship and brief brokers throughout the claim. Public adjusters often partner with us on technical estimating where coverage litigation is also needed — PAs handle the loss-side estimate, we handle the coverage-side legal posture. We don't compete with brokers or PAs; we add the litigation backstop they don't provide.

On contingency: no upfront cost, and no attorney's fee unless we recover money for you. If there is no recovery, you remain responsible for case costs and litigation expenses. Commercial claims vary in size and complexity, so we'll walk through exactly how the engagement works, in writing, on your first call — which is free.

These are formal investigation tools the carrier can require under most commercial policies. An EUO is a recorded examination under oath; a Sworn Proof of Loss is a notarized formal claim statement. Both are mandatory if properly demanded, but both have significant procedural requirements the carrier often gets wrong. We attend EUOs with our clients, prepare the witness, and challenge defective demands. We assist with Sworn Proofs of Loss to ensure the carrier cannot use a technical defect to deny the claim. Treat any EUO or SPL demand as a serious moment to engage counsel — the carrier is preserving its denial position.

Depends on the loss profile. Appraisal under most commercial policies is a binding three-person process — each side appoints an appraiser, the appraisers choose an umpire — and it sets the amount of the loss, not whether the loss is covered. Sometimes accepting appraisal is the right move (clear coverage, just an amount dispute, where you have a strong appraiser). Often it's not (causation contested, business income complex, bad-faith leverage available). We run the math on both sides before responding to a carrier appraisal demand, and we handle the appraisal process if that's where the case goes.

BI calculations turn on three things: the period of restoration (how long until the business returns to pre-loss operations), the gross earnings or gross profit method your policy uses, and the extra-expense component. Disputes typically concentrate on compressed restoration periods, methodology disagreements, the make-up sales offset, seasonal adjustments, and the documentation behind projected earnings. New Jersey courts require direct physical loss or damage — in Mac Property Group v. Selective (2022), the Appellate Division held that COVID-19 closure orders didn't qualify — but fire, wind, water, and equipment-breakdown losses do. We work with forensic accountants on the calculation from the start of the engagement.

Yes. Alongside our commercial work, we take on catastrophic residential losses: total-loss fire, storm and fallen-tree damage, severe wind, and severe water damage. These cases run through the same New Jersey claim-handling framework and the same litigation team we use every day for commercial claims, so homeowners get the same muscle behind their claim.

We represent only policyholders — never carriers, never adjuster panels, never insurance defense. This eliminates the most common conflict in commercial property work: the same carriers appear repeatedly across files, and defense firms that work with those carriers cannot represent you against them. We're not conflicted out by an existing carrier relationship because we don't have any. We also screen new matters carefully — if you've been referred by your broker or PA, we confirm there's no conflict on their side before engaging.

New Jersey treats a policy as a contract and regulates how claims are handled — N.J.A.C. 11:2-17 sets deadlines to acknowledge, investigate, and pay, and requires a written explanation when a claim can't be resolved on time. An insurer that denies or delays a valid claim without a fairly debatable reason can face a bad-faith claim under Pickett v. Lloyd's (1993). Two practical points: many commercial property policies require suit within 12 months of the loss, with the clock paused only from notice until a formal denial, and a documented record — scope, business income, and every carrier delay — is the strongest leverage you have.