Recent Results:
- Ms. Malish defended a fidelity insurer involving claims of coverage for a multi-million dollar loss arising out of employee dishonesty and allegations of bad faith, obtaining a voluntary dismissal of all claims against the carrier.
- Ms. Malish successfully defended Louisiana companies before administrative agencies, including the EEOC and OSHA, obtaining dismissal of all claims asserted.
- Ms. Malish represented a commercial general liability carrier on appeal in environmental class action, obtaining a favorable ruling by the Louisiana Supreme Court that reversed the lower courts’ finding of unlimited coverage and recognized the policy’s aggregate limit.
- Ms. Malish has also successfully defended life insurance companies in disputes over death benefits and agents in misrepresentation claims.
Honors:
- A.V. Preeminent Peer Rating by Martindale-Hubbell
- Distinguished Service Award for The Pro Bono Project (2004)
- William Crowe Scholar (2003)
Publications and Speaking Engagements:
- Author, Insurance Policy Rescission Compendium: Louisiana, DRI (2018)
- Panelist, The Future Ain’t What It Used to Be: Challenges Facing Fidelity and Commercial Crime Insurers in the 2020s, 2017 Fidelity Law Association Conference
- Co-Author, Loss, Valuation, & Limits of Liability Under the Financial Institution Bond, in FINANCIAL INSTITUTION BONDS (Michael Keeley ed., 2017)
- Contributor, A Primer on Securities Law for the Fidelity Lawyer, ABA Fidelity and Surety Mid-Winter Meeting (January 2016)
- Contributor – General Agreements, New Appelman on Insurance Law Library Edition, Ch. 131 (Lexis Nexis)
- Co-author, General Agreements, Annotated Financial Institutional Bond, §§1-3 and 5-6 of Ch. 2 (Michael Keely ed. 2013)
- Speaker—“Life as a Young Lawyer: What You Didn’t Learn in Law School,” Malcolm Monroe Federal Practice Seminar (12/5/13)
- Co-author and Speaker, Breaking Through the Blockade? Obtaining and Employing Bank Examination Records and Suspicious Activity Reports in Fidelity Claims, ABA Fidelity and Surety Committee Fall Meeting (2012)
- Author and Speaker, When the Witness Clams Up: Practical Tips for Dealing with the Invocation of the Fifth Amendment Rights Against Self-Incrimination, 22nd Annual Surety Conference (2011)
- Co-author, Severing Ties: Application of the Termination Clause in Fidelity Bonds, 21st Annual Southern Surety Conference (2010)
- Author, Over Twenty Years of Getting it Right: Limiting the Underwriter’s Exposure for Losses by False Pretenses, IADC Newsletter: Fidelity and Surety Section (2004)
- Co-author, A Primer on Surety’s Role in Construction Projects in Louisiana, LSBA Construction Law Seminar, LSU (2004)
Practice Areas:
- Fidelity Law
- Life, Health & Disability Insurance and ERISA Litigation
- Securities Litigation
- Labor and Employment Litigation
- E&O and D&O Litigation
- Complex Commercial Litigation
- Class and Mass Action Litigation
- Family Law
Education:
- J.D., magna cum laude, Loyola University College of Law, 2003
- B.A., high honors, University of Texas (History and English), 1999
- Phi Betta Kappa
Admissions:
- United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
- United States District Courts for the Eastern, Middle and Western Districts of Louisiana
- Supreme Court of Louisiana and all Louisiana state courts
Professional Associations and Memberships:
- Member of the Fidelity Law Division for the ABA Tort Trial & Insurance Practice Section and Fidelity and Surety Law Committee
- Louisiana State Bar Association
- Louisiana Association of Defense Counsel
- Federal Bar Association, New Orleans Chapter
- Board of Directors – August 2015 to the present
- Young Lawyers Division, Chairman, 2012 – 2013, Vice-Chair, 2011 – 2012, Treasurer, 2010-2011, Secretary, 2009-2010
- New Orleans Bar Association
- Defense Research Institute