Attorneys

Michael D. Prough, partner.

Michael D. Prough Partner Boalt Hall School of Law, University of California, Berkeley, J.D., 1993; Harvard University, A.B., 1990, with honors. Resident Office: California Download vCard

While at Boalt Hall, Mr. Prough was a member of the California Law Review and was elected to the Order of the Coif legal honor society. After graduation, Mr. Prough served as a law clerk in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, in San Francisco, for the Honorable Eugene F. Lynch.

Mr. Prough has successfully litigated many complex, novel, seven- and eight-figure commercial insurance coverage disputes in state and federal courts all over the country. He has substantial experience advising clients as to insurance and risk-management issues in California and nationally, and has handled and overseen litigation related to all major commercial lines, including commercial general liability (CGL), umbrella and excess liability, professional liability, directors and officers (D&O), errors and omissions (E&O), employers liability, environmental, commercial property, surety bonds, and reinsurance. He has

litigated several significant cases addressing coverage for underlying intellectual property and business litigation disputes, product liability claims, construction defect lawsuits, environmental and toxic tort litigation, real property disputes, clergy abuse litigation, alleged securities law violations and financial institution losses. Mr. Prough also has extensive experience in both federal multi-district litigation (“MDL”) and bankruptcy court proceedings as those have affected client interests. In addition, Mr. Prough has represented clients in business litigation and intellectual property disputes and has argued First Amendment cases in both trial courts and Courts of Appeal.

Mr. Prough is admitted and has appeared in all four of the federal district courts in California, the United States Courts of Appeal for the Ninth Circuit (in Pasadena, San Francisco, Honolulu, and Anchorage), Fifth Circuit (Houston), Sixth Circuit (Cincinnati) and Seventh Circuit (Chicago); United States District Courts in Hawaii, Indiana, Ohio and Michigan, and California state trial and appellate courts. In addition to his trial court experience, Mr. Prough has an active appellate practice, having briefed and argued more than forty appeals in cases addressing novel and complex issues, frequently including issues of first impression in the affected jurisdiction.

Published Cases Include:

Advance Watch Co. v. Kemper National Insurance Co., 99 F.3d 795 (6th Cir. 1996) (addressing insurance coverage for trademark infringement)

California Amplifier Inc. v. RLI Insurance Co., 94 Cal.App.4th 102 (Cal. Ct. App. 2001) (addressing insurance coverage for securities law claims)

Travelers Casualty & Surety Co. v. Employers Insurance of Wausau, 130 Cal.App.4th 99 (Cal. Ct. App. 2005) (contribution issues regarding multiple product liability claims)

Lincoln Property Co. v. Travelers Indemnity Co., 137 Cal.App.4th 905 (Cal. Ct. App. 2006) (defeating bad faith claim)

Frontier Oil Corp. v. RLI Insurance Co., 153 Cal.App.4th 1436 (Cal. Ct. App. 2007) (choice of law for toxic tort coverage dispute)

Burlington Insurance Co. v. United Coatings Mfg. Co., 518 F.Supp.2d 1241 (U.S. Dist. Ct., Hawaii 2007) (addressing insurance coverage for product claims)

Valley Imaging Partners v. RLI Insurance Co., 2008 U.S. App. LEXIS 5433 (9th Cir. 2008) (addressing employment practices liability coverage)

Burlington Insurance Co. v. Steve's AG Servs, 2007 U.S. App. LEXIS 29038 (9th Cir. 2007) (addressing coverage for Hawaii state enforcement proceeding re claim of illegal koa harvesting)

Pace Integrated Systems Inc. v. RLI Insurance Co., 196 Fed.Appx. 914, 2006 U.S. App. LEXIS 19937 (9th Cir. 2006) (addressing coverage for employment termination claims under general liability policies)

Petrochem Marketing Co. v. Mt. Hawley Insurance Co., 131 Fed.Appx. 100, 2005 U.S. App. LEXIS 8574 (9th Cir. 2005) (addressing coverage for patent infringement action, commercial counterclaims)

Vons Companies v. Aetna Casualty & Surety Co., 58 Fed.Appx. 689, 2003 U.S. App. LEXIS 1575 (9th Cir. 2002) (addressing coverage for business disputes, $17 million claim, arising out of national e coli food poisoning outbreak)

Travelers Indemnity Co. v. Insurance Company of North America, 2000 U.S. App. LEXIS 4114 (9th Cir. 2000) (contribution re underlying construction defect suits against developer re residential developments)

Transamerica Leasing v. Burlington Northern & Santa Fe Ry. Co., 2006 Cal.App. Unpub. LEXIS 8194 (Cal. Ct. App. 2006) (addressing defense, coverage and indemnification issues re trucking accident)

RLI Insurance Co. v. Conseco, Inc., 2007 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 49384 (U.S. District Court, S.D. Indiana 2007) (addressing coverage for underlying $11 million ERISA fiduciary liability claims, client's recovery of fees and costs)

Oakland-Alameda Coliseum Comm. v. National Union Fire Ins. Co., et al., 2006 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 41417 (U.S. District Court, N.D. Calif. 2006) (jurisdiction over D&O coverage dispute re underlying business disputes, excess carriers dismissed)