Jill A. Schaar

Jill A. Schaar is a litigator and risk management counselor with more than 25 years of experience representing clients in insurance, commercial, construction, energy, environmental, maritime and real estate industry sectors. Regardless of the industry sector, Jill's focus is on providing value-based solutions that are compatible with her clients' business objectives and risk management strategies.

Insurance and Risk Management

Jill provides domestic and international litigation and counseling representation in connection with first-party property and business interruption risks; third-party liability risks; professional, D&O, marine and energy, and P&I risks; and treaty and facultative reinsurance disputes. Her experience extends to Lloyd's and the London market, European markets, offshore and captive risk management groups, and domestic markets.

Jill's work includes:

• Represents insurers in first-party and third-party "bad faith" lawsuits, including claims under state "prompt pay" and unfair claim settlement practices statutes
• Represents energy, construction and real estate industry clients in placement and coverage reviews of insurance policies, including D&O insurance, representation and warranty insurance, litigation buyout insurance, environmental transactional insurance and other specialty insurance products
• Represented an onshore and offshore oil and gas operator preparing master service agreements for use in more than a dozen jurisdictions, with particular emphasis on risk management under applicable state anti-indemnity statutes and the OCSLA
• Represented insurer in medical school's alleged $150 million property damage and business interruption claim resulting from flooding due to Tropical Storm Allison
• Represents insurers in various property damage and business interruption claims brought by multiple insureds as a result of tropical storms, hurricanes, windstorm and catastrophic weather events
• Represented insurers in coverage litigation arising out of nationwide asbestos and silica personal injury claims. Resolutions have included sophisticated coverage-in-place arrangements, policy buybacks and pre-packaged bankruptcy solutions 

Energy, Maritime and Environmental

In addition to insurers, Jill's clientele includes energy majors, independents and service companies. /She has acquired knowledge of upstream and downstream operations and has represented energy clients' needs before and after a dispute reaches the courthouse, including:

• Represented an independent operator in an offshore gas production platform explosion, handling litigation of multiple personal injury and property damage claims
• Represented international water service company in litigation arising out of hundreds of residential homeowners' complaints regarding water and wastewater treatment
• Represented international product manufacturer in litigation with oyster growers arising out of a U.S. government offshore dredging and environmental mitigation project
• Represented insurer in coverage litigation arising out of nationwide MTBE product liability lawsuits
• Obtained a reversal on appeal of an adverse liability verdict against a tugboat owner in a multiple death/personal injury case through application of the Shipowners' Limitation of Liability Act

Construction and Real Estate

Jill represents owners, general contractors, subcontractors, insurers, lenders and developers in the residential and commercial construction and real estate markets, including:

• Represented international hotel interests in premises liability lawsuits, including threshold assertions of personal jurisdictional objections in state and federal courts
• Represented insurer in construction defect coverage litigation arising out of homebuilder's use of synthetic stucco (EIFS) on thousands of homes over multiple years, resulting in a multi-party, consensual policy buyback arrangements
• Represented insurers in coverage litigation with construction contractors over foundation, grading and other workmanship claims
• Represented surety of payment and performance bonds in litigation arising out of mold claims during construction of a police substation
• Represented commercial landlords in landlord-tenant litigation and dispute resolution

Reported Decisions

• NES Rentals vs. Arch Specialty Insurance Co., 2020 WL 5500235 (N.D. Tex., September 11, 2020)
• Environmental Packaging Technologies, Ltd. vs. Arch Insurance Co., 2020 WL 3964038 (S.D. Tex., July 13, 2020)
• Denison Custom Homes, Inc. vs. Assurance Company of America, 2006 WL 1517495 (S.D. Tex., May 31, 2006)
• Fishermen's Harvest, Inc. vs. Weeks Marine, Inc., 401 F.Supp.2d 745 (S.D. Tex. 2005)
• Dal-Tile Corp. vs. Zurich American Insurance Co., 2004 WL 414900 (N.D. Tex., February 2, 2004) 
• Levesque vs. Wilkens, 57 S.W.3d 499 (Tex. App. -- Houston [14th Dist.] 2001, no pet.)
• In re Kristie Leigh Enterprises, Inc., 72 F.3d 479 (5th Cir. 1996), appeal after remand, 168 F.3d 206 (5th Cir. 1999)
• American Guarantee & Liability Insurance Co. vs. Shel-Ray Underwriters, Inc., 844 F.Supp. 325 (S.D. Tex. 1993)
• Young vs. Jones Lumber Co., 784 S.W.2d 949 (Tex. App. -- Houston [14th Dist.] 1990, writ denied)