Is My Drywall Chinese? - HB Litigation Conferences

FACULTY
Jeremy Alters is the founding and managing partner in the law firm of Alters, Boldt, Brown, Rash
& Culmo, P.A. (ABBRC) with three Florida offices in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach
counties. ABBRC handles medical malpractice, products liability, wrongful death, maritime and
tragic brain injury cases for individuals and families. For business owners, ABBRC represents
Plaintiffs in major business disputes where a trial lawyer is needed for the effective resolution of the
case whether by trial or settlement. In his career, he has resolved cases totaling well over 200 million
dollars. Mr. Alters has achieved dozens of multimillion dollar settlements and verdicts including
many noteworthy eight figure settlements. All of his significant settlements and verdicts have been
covered by the local and national media. One of his more notable settlements was for a 16-year-old
girl who was run over on the beach by an SUV, which resulted in a massive brain injury. The driver
only had 10,000 dollars in insurance coverage, however, Mr. Alters pursued the case tirelessly,
discovering that the insurance company had failed to act in good faith. As a result, he achieved a
17.5 million dollar settlement which was the largest pre-verdict settlement on a 10,000 dollar
insurance policy in United States history. It was also the single largest settlement in Florida history
for one plaintiff. As a trial lawyer, Mr. Alters has successfully tried to verdict more than 35 civil jury
trials in the areas of medical malpractice, products liability, wrongful death, tractor-trailer accidents
and tragic personal injury cases. Mr. Alters is known to be an effective and passionate advocate for
his clients, making their interests and pursuit of justice, the singular focus of each case. When a trial
lawyer is needed for the effective resolution of the case, whether by trial or settlement, in business
disputes, catastrophic loss or corporate malfeasance, Mr. Alters delivers representation that gets his
clients the results they deserve. Mr. Alters is currently expanding the firm's practice on a Global
scale. This initiative may be an unprecedented step for a law firm that handles exclusively Plaintiff's
cases. ABBRC Global represents individuals and families who have been catastrophically injured,
businesses embroiled in international disputes and foreign governments needing to pursue justice
against major corporations in the United States and around the world. Mr. Alters was a founding
shareholder in his prior firm, Ratzan & Alters, P.A. in 2001. He was born in Chicago, Illinois on
January 15, 1971. He received his BA from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst (1994) and
his JD from the University of Miami School of Law (1996).
Veronica Bates is a founding partner at Dallas-based law firm Hermes Sargent Bates, the largest
law firm in Texas with a female named partner. Previously voted one of the Top 50 Women
Lawyers in Texas by Texas Monthly, Ms. Bates devotes 100% of her practice to insurance-related
matters, including coverage and bad faith litigation, coverage opinions and related advice. She is a
frequent lecturer and author on insurance topics on a state and national level. Recently, Ms. Bates
served as a faculty member on a Texas Bar CLE Live Webcast and she was a speaker at the
Advanced Insurance Seminar and a Property Loss Research Bureau seminar. In addition, she was
featured in Claims Magazine for her opinion on construction defects coverage after the Texas
Supreme Court published its decision on the Lamar Homes, Inc. v. Mid-Continent Casualty Co. case. She
also recently co-authored the article, “Reservation of Rights Letters,” which was published in
ClaimsJournal.com. In 2008, Ms. Bates was selected by her peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in
America® in the field of Insurance Law and has claimed a spot on the Texas SuperLawyers list every
year since 2004. She was also named to Who's Who Legal for Insurance Law, a designation that
recognizes the foremost attorneys practicing Insurance Law in Texas. Ms. Bates graduated with a
BA from the University of Notre Dame and a JD from Southern Methodist University School of
Law. After graduation, Ms. Bates served as a briefing attorney at the Dallas Court of Appeals in
1987-1988.