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Practice Areas
- Antitrust/Competition
- Appellate Advocacy
- Banking & Financial Institutions
- Class Actions
- Complex Litigation
- Construction
- Director & Officer
- Dispute Resolution
- Environmental
- Insurance Coverage
- International Competition
- Reinsurance
- Securities
Education
- University of Minnesota Law School, J.D., cum laude, 1975
- Cambridge University, St. John’s College, (Rotary International Graduate Fellow), 1971-1972
- Macalester College, B.A., magna cum laude, 1971; Honors: Phi Beta Kappa
Bar and Court Admissions
- State Court: Minnesota
- U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals: Ninth Circuit and Second Circuit
- U.S. Supreme Court
- U.S. District Court: District of Minnesota, Northern District of California, Southern District of New York
Richard L. Voelbel
Rich Voelbel has over 30 years of complex commercial litigation experience in courts around the United States. In addition, over the past 20 years he has been involved in a wide variety of domestic and international alternative dispute resolution matters, both as arbitrator and counsel. Areas of particular experience and interest include complex business disputes, commercial property insurance and reinsurance, class actions, securities, professional liability and ethics. Rich serves as a claims officer for a Bermuda-based insurance company. Rich has also served as Regional Counsel for extra-contractual claims on behalf of a major property/casualty insurance company, as outside general counsel on insurance matters for a fortune 500 company, and as outside counsel for a major reinsurance intermediary. Rich has also served as a New York Stock Exchange arbitrator, an ARIAS arbitrator, an AAA arbitrator and as guest speaker to industry groups on the subject of commercial arbitration and other aspects of alternative dispute resolution.
Representative Matters
Port Authority 9/11 Claims (directed major insurer's response to multi-billion dollar insurance claims made by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey for property damage and business interruption caused by the September 11, 2001 terrorist attack)
Allianz Global Risk US Insurance Company - 9/11 Reinsurance (number of occurrences, treaty reinstatement, recoverability of loss adjustment expenses, applicability of aggregate limits, allocation of subrogation recovery and arbitration of scope of facultative reinsurer's liability)
Represented insurer in arbitration against its reinsurer concerning liability for underlying multi-billion dollar property damage and time element claims made following destruction of the World Trade Center complex on September 11
Air Cargo Antitrust Litigation (representation of Fortune 100 company seeking compensation from several of the world's biggest air cargo carriers for overcharges paid - anywhere in the world - as a result of the operation of a global conspiracy to fix the prices for international air cargo shipping services)
Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita insurance coverage litigation on behalf of a major insurance company
Allianz Insurance Company v. World Trade Center Properties LLC (insurance coverage action and related appraisal involving destruction of World Trade Center complex on 9/11 and claims in excess of $7 billion for property damage and time element losses)
General Mills (Dursban loss, insurance litigation and reinsurance arbitrations)
Bridgestone/Firestone Inc. (Liberian Civil War, property insurance litigation)
Industrial Risk Insurers v. Hartford Steam Boilder (reinsurance litigation and arbitration)
In re Hennepin County 1986 Recycling Bond Litigation (class action securities litigation)
In re BankAmerica Securities Litigation (D&O reinsurance litigation and arbitration)
MGM Grand Hotel, Las Vegas (insurance litigation and reinsurance arbitration)
Articles & Presentations
"Attorney Contact with Experts: Protection of Expert Credibility and Attorney Work Product," Spring 2005 ABA Tort, Trial & Insurance Practice Section Conference, San Antonio, Texas, April 14, 2005, presenter and co-author
Professional Affiliations
- Congress of Fellows of the Center for International Legal Studies
- Minnesota General Rule of Practice 114 qualified neutral for ADR processes in civil cases
- AIDA Reinsurance and Insurance Arbitration Society, ARIAS-U.S.
- Minnesota State Bar Association
- Hennepin County Bar Association
Noteworthy
Rich serves on the firm's Executive Committee. He is AV rated by Martindale-Hubbell.