We understand that one benefit of forming a corporation is to protect individuals from liability risks. Directors and Officers of a corporation are typically immune from liability, but some courts allow creditors to seize personal assets. Board members can be sued by an employee or third party who asserts a claim for non-bodily injury.
Employment practices like termination and discrimination are the largest exposure in these types of claims. If you have a small, friendly staff, and feel unlikely to have employment claims resulting in a lawsuit, you might not think it necessary to carry D&O insurance. However, when employees feel they have been wronged and are angry, they may file a claim even if it is baseless. At that point, you will have to hire a lawyer. Instead of you paying the legal fees the D&O coverage becomes a legal defense policy. This coverage protects property, cash, securities and other assets if an incident, claim or lawsuit occurs. In today’s litigious society it’s important to educate insureds that a liability exposure is time consuming and costly to defend. What if there is no corporate veil? What if judgment exceeds limits of standard coverage? We will customize a plan to cover these risks and exposures.