J.P. Harrington Bisceglia

J.P. Harrington Bisceglia is a civil defense litigator with nearly twenty years of experience defending insureds, businesses, and business owners. She also defends insurance carriers, including in bad-faith litigation, and writes coverage opinions for carriers on personal and commercial lines policies. Businesses turn to J.P. for a clear-eyed read on their litigation exposure before small problems become expensive ones. She practices in Arizona and New Mexico state and federal courts, from early case assessment through trial and appeal. Her admission to Texas is pending and she is preparing to provide all of her services in that jurisidiction. J.P. pairs her trial experience with a focus on alternative dispute resolution, resolving matters efficiently when that serves the client.

J.P. earned her undergraduate degree in Marine Science, which trained her to draw conclusions only from data that holds up under testing. She brings that discipline to every defense. J.P. holds the other side to its burden by examining each element of proof and challenging whether the evidence supports it. She applies the same scrutiny to her own case from the start, identifying weaknesses in the defense while there is still time to address them. Clients get a strategy built on what can be proven rather than on assumptions.

Capabilities

Insurance litigation and coverage

• Bad-faith defense: defends carriers and insureds against bad-faith claims, through trial and appeal
• Coverage opinions: advises carriers on personal and commercial lines policies
• Insurance defense: defends insureds and carriers in litigation

Business and injury defense

• Business defense: defends businesses and business owners in civil litigation
• Premises liability: defends businesses and property owners in claims including slip and falls
• Personal injury: defends claims ranging from motor vehicle accidents to other injury matters

Dispute resolution and advisory

• Alternative dispute resolution: resolves disputes through arbitration and negotiated settlement, with a focus on controlling cost and exposure
• Litigation risk assessment: gives businesses a candid evaluation of their exposure so decisions about settlement, motion practice, or trial rest on the evidence and the law

Distinctive Strengths

J.P. is a trial lawyer who has been involved in 12 trials, several tried to verdict. She was second chair in a bad-faith trial that ended in a unanimous defense verdict, defeating a multimillion-dollar damages claim against the carrier.

• Alternative dispute resolution: J.P. gives clients frank assessments of the evidence and the law, including when the news isn’t what they hoped to hear. That candor helps clients understand their verdict exposure early. When settlement is the right call, it makes more modest resolutions possible and avoids the high cost of prolonged litigation.
• A bad-faith case taken to the end: In a more recent bad-faith trial, the verdict came in well below what the claimants sought. J.P. then prevailed on appeal, including on issues that never went to trial, and the case resolved for a small fraction of the original demand.
• Arbitration: Her most recent arbitration produced a result below the amount contemplated in settlement discussions and hundreds of thousands of dollars below the amount demanded.
• Early assessment: She evaluates cases quickly to find the most efficient path and to pinpoint weaknesses in the defense before the other side does.
• Full toolkit: She uses discovery, pre-trial motion practice, and alternative dispute resolution to protect clients and resolve matters on the best possible terms.

Recognition

• Eleven-time Super Lawyers selectee
• Martindale-Hubbell AV Preeminent Rating
• Best Lawyers recognition in Insurance Law and Litigation – Insurance
• Fellow, Litigation Counsel of America