As I enter the second half of my term as President of the New Jersey Defense Association, I would like to provide a brief summary of what we have been able to accomplish as an organization.

Our annual insurance coverage seminar on November 20, 2007 was another great success. The attendees were given a comprehensive presentation regarding New Jersey’s new UM/UIM statute, potential coverage of punitive damages and the various issues surrounding the impact of contractual indemnification clauses, with additional insured coverage. The oral presentations were only bolstered by the written materials provided by our panel of speakers. This seminar is just another example of how our organization provides the most up to date continuing legal education on the issues facing the civil defense bar in New Jersey.

The Trial College was conducted on February 12, 2008. The Trial College provides a unique opportunity for both our newest members and our veteran members to brush up on their trial skills. In today’s practice, the opportunities to gain trial experience, especially for young attorneys, are becoming few and far between. The Trial College provides this experience, under the mentoring of our Association’s most experienced trial attorneys. The reviews from this year’s attendees praised the assistance and advice given by our instructors in developing their skills in the courtroom.

The Association’s legal education component continued with a seminar presented by our Employment Law Committee on April 4, 2008. The seminar was hosted in conjunction with the New Jersey Corporate Counsel Association. The distinguished panel covered various legal topics within employment law from understanding emotional distress claims, addressing lost wage claims, strategies to protect employers from claims arising out of computer misuse/abuse and damages trends in the employer liability case.

The Association continued with our efforts to represent the voice of the civil defense bar and insurance industry by opposing the proposed amendment to the Wrongful Death Act, allowing for the recovery of “grief” damages. I firmly believe our organization’s efforts in opposing the amendment played a critical role in educating members of the State Legislature, and the Governor himself, of the effects the proposal would have had in creating claims with unlimited and unpredictable damages.

In the remaining months of my term, I want to concentrate on providing our membership with services that will enable them to work in an ever changing legal environment. To achieve this endeavor, please feel free to contact me through our Executive Director with any suggestions, concerns or thoughts on how I or the Association can best serve your needs.