Cumis Counsel Protects Your Interests as an Insured
Know your rights and that you may be entitled to Cumis Counsel.
What is Cumis Counsel?
Generally, the interests of the insured and the insurer are aligned. However, this is not always true and is especially problematic in the setting of RORs (Reservation of Rights). When a potential conflict such as this exists, the insured may have the right to independent counsel paid for by the insurance company. This is known as Cumis Counsel.
Help with Cumis Counsel
Reservation of Rights (“ROR”) letters are sent by an insurance company to an insured party when a claim may not be covered as part of that insured’s policy. ROR letters are intended to notify the insured that coverage for a claim may not apply. These letters allow the insurance company to investigate the facts of the claim further before determining whether coverage applies. In response to the ROR notice, the insured should take the necessary steps to protect their potentially uninsured interests.
CH Counsel can help you respond if you receive a “Reservation of Rights” letter from your insurance company. We can also represent you in connection with a litigated matter where there is an insurance policy covering the claim, but there is still a conflict of interest between the insurer and the insured.
What the Law Says
In the spirit of full transparency and hoping to make sure our clients gain a deeper understanding of the work we do, we have included below some more details—precedents and language—underlying Cumis Counsel. Please contact us if you would like more information.
Meet The Team
Alessa J. Huber, Co-Founder and Partner
Alessa is the co-founder of Cooper & Huber, LLP. Her vision was to create a firm that practices “preventive law.” In essence, helping clients identify gaps in their existing business practices and providing practical solutions for the individual client with the goal of preventing legal issues down the road. Alessa’s clients include privately held companies across multiple industries including health and wellness, real estate and construction.
Alessa graduated from Loyola Law School in Los Angeles after attending the University of California, Santa Barbara, where she received her undergraduate degree with honors. While in law school, Alessa served on various student organizations include the Consumer Law Society and Young Lawyers mentoring program. Additionally, she served as a Staff Writer and Editor to Loyola’s International and Comparative Law Review and participated in the Hobbs Trial Advocacy Practicum.
Alessa dedicated the first half of her legal career to litigation prior to transitioning to general counsel services. She draws on her litigation experience regularly when identifying and mitigating risk, negotiating contractual provisions and counseling her clients.
Alessa lives in Huntington Beach with her husband, Ian, and their faithful German Shepherd, Greta. When she’s not working, you can find her skiing on the slopes or (attempting) to catch a wave. She also enjoys Lagree method Pilates and sampling her husband’s delicious cooking.
Daniel A. Cooper, Co-Founder and Partner
Daniel A. Cooper is a relationship driven outside general counsel and litigator who represents closely held businesses, healthcare organizations and real estate entities to oversee their day to day legal challenges and mitigate future risk. Daniel is well known for explaining difficult concepts in simple terms at a reasonable cost.
As a civil litigator, he has prevailed on matters involving breach of contract, negligence, breach of fiduciary duty and medical malpractice. He also has handled claims for Fraud, Invasion of Privacy, Assault, Battery and Violation of Business and Professions Code 17200. When appropriate, Daniel advises those who need an attorney to quickly understand their concerns and guide them challenging times both personally and professionally.
A Sample of Outside General Counsel Services include:
- Contract Review and drafting including non-disclosure agreements, business service and associate agreements, asset management agreements and purchase-sale agreements
- Facilitating proper corporate structure and business formation such as LLC’s, S-Corps and Partnerships
- Preparing and responding to Demand Letters
- Facilitating and coordinating estate plans for individuals to develop proper business planning
- Insurance Coverage analysis and review
- Hiring and managing local counsel
- Risk Management Advice including HIPAA compliance
- Informed consent review and updates
- Social media policy drafting and updating
- Real Estate Due Diligence and lease negotiations
- Representing and preparing professional medical staff for depositions
- Advising and responding to deposition subpoenas for medical, billing, pharmacy and employment records
- Medical Reporting Requirements
Civil Litigation
Daniel’s background is rooted in litigating complex medical matters for over 12 years. He is currently assigned as lead trial counsel for matters related to medical malpractice, breach of contract, breach of privacy and general negligence claims. He is asked to represent physicians who have coverage issues, are underinsured, benefit from Cumis Counsel or require a second opinion.
Daniel has received multiple Super Lawyers Rising Stars awards and in 2019, was awarded a Pre-Eminent AV Rating, which is the highest possible rating for both legal ability and ethical standards.
- Trial Counsel in March 2020 in which he secured a $1,000,000 + verdict for physician client at which time it was confirmed defendant breached the contract and his fiduciary duties.
- Successfully Represented Estate in wrongful death shooting in Long Beach.
- Obtained complete dismissal for emergency room physician alleged of violating a patient’s advanced healthcare directive.
- Successfully represented gastroenterologist whose insurance company was liquidated leaving him without coverage on the verge of trial
- Obtained Judgment for spine surgeon based on the negligent installation of spinal hardware
- Obtained complete reimbursement for funds spent by commercial landlord whose roof was damaged by the conduct of the roofing company.
- Secured Settlement for homeowners against the City of Inglewood for tree root intrusion causing damage to the foundation based on theory of inverse condemnation.
- Secured 6-figure settlement on behalf of real estate investors who asserted claims of fraud and breach of contract against manager of a real estate investment trust
- Secured dismissal of Medical Spa Director who was alleged to have failed to properly manage on-site nursing staff.
- Obtained Preliminary Injunction to stop the non-judicial foreclosure of a long-standing Los Angeles family restaurant
- Negotiated the resolution of a contentious medical spa dissolution on behalf of a nurse.
- Negotiated the complete dismissal of a major apparel retailer in Los Angeles with no money paid to Plaintiff.
PERSONAL
Daniel was born in New York City and raised in the South Bay Area of Los Angeles. Outside the office, he enjoys skiing, spending time with his wife Sarah and their children Jack and Angelina. He has climbed Mt. Whitney, Run with the Bulls in Pamplona and The New York Marathon.
Cara M. Crownover, Of Counsel
Cara M. Crownover’s practice includes corporate and business law, real estate law, and estate planning.
Cara graduated cum laude from Columbia University in New York in 2010 majoring in English and Comparative Literature. Cara went on to graduate from Loyola Law School in Los Angeles. Her focus was in Corporate Law and International Law and she graduated in the International Law Concentration with Honors. Also while in law school, Cara interned and externed in the Enforcement Division of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in Los Angeles. While there, Cara was involved with multiple cases involving securities fraud including insider trading, pyramid and Ponzi schemes, broker embezzlement and hedge fund fraud.
Since becoming an attorney, Cara has been a part of corporate transactional and civil litigation departments and has acted as outside and interim general counsel for multiple companies in Los Angeles and Orange Counties placing her in a unique position to lend support to a variety of the clients’ needs.
Cara continues her legal involvement outside of the office as a board member of Women Lawyers Long Beach serving on the board from 2016-2019 and as President from 2018-2019. She lives with her husband, Bill, and their dogs in Huntington Beach and enjoys food, wine tasting and boating.
PROFESSIONAL & COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT
Long Beach Bar Association
Women Lawyer Long Beach
EDUCATION
Loyola Law School, Los Angeles, Honors in International Law Concentration (Juris Doctor, 2014)
Columbia University, New York, English and Comparative Literature, cum laude (Bachelor of Arts, 2010)
BAR ADMISSIONS
California, 2014