Ms. Barrie Beer

A well respected insurance claims, coverage, and litigation strategist, with 30 years of practice, Barrie Beer is known for her strong analysis, creative solutions, and innovative means of realizing our clients’ goals. Through tenacious but collaborative settlement negotiation, expert coverage and risk assessment, or focused trial preparation, her client’s interests remain paramount.

Ms. Beer’s legal expertise spans the spectrum of first- and third-party insurance coverage, duties of insurance carriers, policyholders, and agents, and compliance with good faith claim handling standards. Barrie maintains a trial and consulting practice specializing in defense of contractual, extra-contractual and bad faith allegations, complex damage and coverage matters, and serves as coverage and monitoring counsel for several excess carrier clients. She has specialized in first-party contractual and extra-contractual litigation, and coverage for auto, property, CGL, marine/inland marine and many other lines of business for most of her legal career. In this time Barrie has extensive experience assisting expert and company representative/personnel witnesses to prepare for their testimony with a methodology individualized to each witness.

She also has extensive experience in the evaluation and consultation of good faith claim investigation and defense of insurance fraud, arson, foundation, mold, windstorm, and residential and commercial property damage claims as well as managing complex and document intensive institutional litigation.

Claims Training and Management Courses

Barrie is a frequent speaker on topics related to her areas of practice including:

•Appraisal
•Ethical Claims Handling & Catastrophic Events; Litigation and a Post Cat Environment
•Claim File Documentation
•Consumer Protection
•Good Faith Compliance with the Prompt Payment of Claims Act
•Survival, Wrongful Death, & Bystander Claims
•Extra-Contractual Litigation Management
•Investigating Arson Claims and ALE Fraud
•Investigating Arson Claims
•Extra-Contractual Liability and Duties to Insureds/Claimants
•Analysis of Attorney Fee Bills

Employment

Martin, Disiere, Jefferson & Wisdom L.L.P., May 2009 - present

Irelan Hargis PLLC 2007 - 2009

Nistico & Crouch P.C. 2002 - 2007

State Farm Insurance Companies 1993 - 2002:

Claim Attorney I, II, and III serving as: Division Claim Attorney; Texas Special Litigation Teams’ Claim Attorney; Managing Attorney South Texas Claim Attorney Team; Texas First Party Claims Teams Claim Attorney

Brock & Mathis P.C. San Antonio 1989-1992

Publications

•The Lawyer's Role in Appraisal: The Control Conundrum
January 19, 2012
South Texas College of Law 16th Annual Texas Insurance Law Symposium

Publications / Presentations

The Investigating Adjuster as Causation Expert: Lessons in Damage Investigation and Trial Testimony ;Property Loss Research Bureau Claims Conference; March 19 - 20, 2013

“Top Five Current Appraisal Questions”;
MDJW University; May 11, 2012

“Gulf Coast Law Update”;
Windstorm Insurance Conference; February 2, 2012

The Lawyer's Role in Appraisal: The Control Conundrum ;South Texas College of Law Texas Insurance Law Symposium; January 19,2012

“Creating The Perfect Bad Faith Storm: Coming Bad Faith Trends”;
MDJW University; November 15, 2011

Seminars & Speaking Engagements

•MDJW First Friday Webinar - Rule 167: Offers in Compromise or Building a Defendable Claim
February 6, 2015
Barrie Beer - presenter
•2014 MDJW North Texas Insurance Seminar
September 25, 2014

•2013 MDJW North Texas Insurance Seminar
October 18, 2013

•PLRB/LIRB Claims Conference & Insurance Services Expo
March 17-20, 2013

•2012 MDJW Central Texas Insurance Seminar
November 9, 2012

•2012 MDJW South Texas Insurance Seminar
May 11, 2012

•2011 MDJW North Texas Insurance Seminar
November 15, 2011