Nicholas helps businesses and financial institutions navigate complex disputes with their insurance carriers. He has recovered hundreds of millions of dollars in insurance proceeds on behalf of businesses and financial institutions in policyholder insurance coverage disputes as a result of the successful resolution of litigation and pre-litigation claims. He represents policyholders in all types of first- and third-party insurance claims, including under cyber, CGL, D&O, E&O/professional liability, EPL, fidelity and crime, political risk, product recall, property damage / business interruption, R&W, and other manuscript lines of coverage.
Nicholas also regularly advises companies on risk management needs arising out of policy renewals and M&A transactions, including negotiating best-in-class terms and conditions for all lines of commercial insurance with U.S. and international insurers, as well as on indemnification and advancement issues, particularly under Delaware law.
In addition to his insurance coverage practice, Nicholas is a skilled litigator who has developed effective case strategies in litigation around the country, including in class actions, contract disputes, business torts, post-merger, false claims act, and fraudulent conveyance disputes.
Nicholas was recently recognized in The Best Lawyers in America 2021 “Ones to Watch List” for commercial litigation.
Experience
- Assisted clients in confidential matters in the pursuit of insurance recovery for first- and third-party losses under crime, cyber, CGL, EPL, D&O, E&O, hull & machinery, product recall, property, and reps & warranties policies.
- Representing a Fortune 500 print and digital document company in insurance recovery litigation under a D&O policy regarding underlying lawsuits arising from proposed M&A transaction.
- Representing hospital system in insurance recovery litigation under management liability policies for multimillion-dollar losses incurred in underlying qui tam False Claims Act litigation.
- Representing private equity portfolio company in insurance recovery litigation under commercial property policy.
- Represented Fortune 500 pulp and paper company in insurance recovery and indemnification litigation as an additional insured under a CGL policy, including defeating insurer’s motion to dismiss bad faith claim and client’s status as an additional insured under excess liability policy.
- Representation of a multinational beverage corporation in various insurance recovery matters, including under cyber/data privacy, political risk, and CGL lines of coverages.
- Represented multinational beverage corporation in a federal court lawsuit against Certain Underwriters at Lloyd’s for business interruption losses incurred in Nepal under a political risk insurance policy.
- Obtained precedent-setting decision regarding D&O defense costs allocation for one of the largest providers of short-term and long-term health care services in the U.S., in insurance recovery litigation for multi-million dollar losses incurred in underlying New York litigation.
- Represented a bank holding company in multiple insurance recovery litigation matters involving bankers professional liability (E&O) and D&O coverages for claims arising, in part, from the 2008 credit crisis, as well as other financial-related litigation.
- Represented real estate investment company in insurance recovery litigation under run-off and go-forward D&O policies for losses incurred in underlying litigation relating to international real estate development project.
- Represented chemical manufacturing company in post-merger litigation in the Delaware Court of Chancery.
- Represented Fortune 50 company in defense of false claims act litigation relating to sales and use tax.
- Won motion to dismiss for the world’s largest equipment rental company in a putative nationwide class action alleging consumer fraud claims.
- Represented a Canadian cigarette manufacturing company in litigation in San Francisco state court brought by a former subsidiary seeking to recover more than $1 billion on claims of fraudulent conveyance, illegal dividends, and alter ego arising out of inter-corporate transfers.
- Obtained complete dismissal for the largest home improvement retailer in the United States in putative class action in federal district court in Texas.
- Won a motion to compel arbitration in a putative nationwide class action filed in California alleging claims under the TCPA.
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The University of North Carolina School of LawJD
with high honors, Order of the Coif
2012 - The University of North Carolina at Chapel HillBA2008
Selected for inclusion, Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch, Commercial Litigation, 2021-2024; Insurance Law, 2024; Woodward/White, Inc.
Selected for inclusion in “Legal 500 United States,” Insurance: Advice to Policyholders, 2023
- Author, Financial Institutions and Bank Directors and Officers in the Crosshairs – Are Their Insurance Policies Really Primed and Ready?, Pro Policyholder, March 17, 2023
- Author, Ohio Supreme Court: Insurance Policy Does Not Cover Ransomware Attack on Software, Pro Policyholder, January 12, 2023
- Author, N.C. Supreme Court Provides Guidance on Maximizing Insurance Coverage for Long-Tail Claims, Pro Policyholder, January 9, 2023
- Author, Russia and the Insurance Angle — Tapping Political Risk and Other Insurance Coverages, McGuireWoods Legal Alert, March 18, 2022
- Author, Beyond the Eight Corners: Determining Whether a Liability Insurer’s Duty to Defend Is Triggered, McGuireWoods Legal Alert, March 1, 2022
- Author, "Texas Supreme Court Finds Anadarko is Entitled to Over $100 Million in Deepwater Horizon Defense Costs Based on Undefined Term in Insurance Policy", Energy Law Exchange, March 2019
- Author, "Litigating Product Liability Claims With Foreign Entities", Claims Magazine, June 1, 2018
- Author, "Crisis Management & Incident Response: Using Insurance as a Loss Mitigation & Business Resiliency Tool", American College of Coverage & Extracontractual Counsel Symposium, October 2017
- Author, "Board Governance Must Include Cyber Security Risk Management & Insurance Strategy", Financier Worldwide, February 2016
- Author, "Navigating the Changing Landscape of Commercial Insurance", Aspatore Thought Leadership, Insurance Law, Thompson Reuters/Aspatore, 2015
- Author, "Keep Your Eye on Exclusions When Buying Cyberinsurance", Law360, July 16, 2015
- Author, "#Insurance Coverage for Emerging Social Media Risks", Corporate Counsel Section of the State Bar of Texas Newsletter, 2014
- Author, "Avoid the ‘Insolvency Exclusion’ Trap in E&O Policies", The Journal of Bankruptcy Law, November/December 2014
- Georgia
- U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee
- U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia
- Supreme Court of Georgia
- Speaker, Emerging Insurance Recovery Issues One Year Into COVID-19, July 15, 2021
- Speaker, How to Mitigate Business Risk in a Post-2020 World, April 28, 2021