
This past Thursday, January 30, 2025, a Tyler-area jury rendered a verdict of nearly $40 million in favor of our client, Green Acres Baptist Church. Our firm is deeply grateful for the trust placed in us by our client and equally honored to participate in a legal system that is based on evidence and the rule of law. After an efficient four-day trial, the jury determined that Brotherhood Mutual Insurance Company had not complied with the terms of its insurance policy and had breached its duty of good faith and fair dealing. The case centered on damage caused by a severe wind and hailstorm in April 2020 and the insurer’s duty to handle claims in accordance with the governing legal standards.
A trial team of Andrew Slania, Todd Wells and our local counsel and church deacon Jamy Skaggs tried the case to verdict. The jury determined that the insurer breached its contract by failing to pay over $4.8 million in unpaid policy benefits for nearly four years. And because of the insurer’s actions during the adjustment of the claim, the jury also assessed $35 million in punitive damages, underscoring the principle that insurers owe a duty of good faith to their customers