Brigid Alford is a member of the Professional Liability Department. She concentrates her practice in various areas of insurance defense and civil litigation, with a focus in insurance coverage matters and litigation of coverage and bad faith claims involving issues arising from motor vehicle, homeowner, professional liability, commercial general liability and other policies. She has more than 25 years of experience litigating cases in 50 of Pennsylvania's 67 county courts, in all three of Pennsylvania's federal district courts and before the Pennsylvania Department of Insurance. Brigid's trial resume includes both jury and bench trials in over 10 counties throughout the state, from Pittsburgh to Philadelphia. She has also argued before Pennsylvania's Superior and Commonwealth Courts, as well as the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals. Brigid also serves as the Managing attorney of our Camp Hill, PA office.
In 1983, Brigid earned her juris doctor from The Dickinson School of Law. She continues to serve as an adjunct assistant professor with the school's award winning Trial Advocacy Program. She is a 1980 cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Allegheny College.
Brigid is a member of the Pennsylvania Bar Association, where she participates annually in this organization's Young Lawyers Division statewide High School Mock Trial Competition. She is a member of the Dauphin County and Cumberland County Bar Associations and has been elected a Master of the William J. Lipsitt American Inns of Court. Other professional associations include membership in CLM.
She is a frequent lecturer throughout the state for the Pennsylvania Bar Institute and other groups, speaking on a variety of subjects including insurance coverage, bad faith, civil trial practice and UM/UIM issues.
Honors & awards
2015 Woman of Influence, Central Penn Business Journal
AV Preeminent by Martindale-Hubbell
Year joined
2008
Results
Defense prevails in UIM/bad faith/UTPCPL case.
Insurance Services
March 1, 2020
A Philadelphia County jury returned a defense verdict on the UIM claim, causing the plaintiff to withdraw her bad faith and UTPCPL claims, in a case where she had alleged permanent injury and facial scarring as a result of a pedestrian/motor vehicle accident. The jury found the plaintiff 20% comparatively negligent, awarded her ‘0’ damages for emotional distress and scarring/disfigurement, $10,000 for pain and suffering, and $5,000 for loss of life’s pleasures.
Coverage Not Triggered in CGL Policy
Insurance Services
December 6, 2016
We obtained summary judgment in a declaratory judgment action filed on behalf of an insurer in the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania. At issue was whether coverage (and an ensuing duty to defend) had been triggered under a CGL policy in connection with an underlying breach of contract action. The insured was a subcontractor who had performed work on a boiler, which had been installed as part of a larger construction project at a municipal authority’s wastewater treatment facility.
Defense Prevails in Insurance Coverage Case
Insurance Services
April 21, 2016
The defense prevailed in their representation of a major insurance carrier in an insurance coverage case involving claims by an insured business owner for coverage under a commercial general liability policy. The insured was transporting chairs and tables for his business on his truck; as he rounded a curve, some chairs fell onto the path of an oncoming motorcyclist, who reportedly sustained serious injury.
Judge Denies Class Certification in Junk Fax Case Under TCPA
Insurance Services
September 21, 2015
Marshall Dennehey attorneys prevailed in the Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas on a Motion for Class Action Certification in a junk fax case under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). Following a class certification hearing in March, the judge issued an order and opinion denying the plaintiff's motion. The proposed nationwide class would have been comprised of over 15,000 claimants in a case where, had the class been certified and a decision on the merits been entered for the claimants, the statutory damages alone would have been a minimum of $500
Thought Leadership
Brigid Alford Recognized as a Woman of Influence by the Central Penn Business Journal
Professional Liability
Insurance Services
April 10, 2015
Brigid Q.
Marshall Dennehey to Present Insurance Fraud Seminar
Fraud/Special Investigation
May 16, 2014
The Casualty Department of Marshall Dennehey Warner Coleman & Goggin will hold a complimentary seminar, Insurance Fraud 360, on Thursday, June 5, 2014, from 11:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Brigid Alford and Ed Schwartz (Harrisburg, PA) were featured speakers at the 2011 Annual Meeting of the Professional Liability Defense Federation
October 1, 2011
Brigid Alford and Ed Schwartz (Harrisburg, PA) were featured speakers at the 2011 Annual Meeting of the Professional Liability Defense Federation in Chicago recently. The meeting was attended by both claims professionals and d
Less Is More: Pennsylvania Supreme Court Confirms Less Strigent Rules Apply To Lower UM/UIM Limits Than To Waive UM/UIM Coverage
Harrisburg
Automobile Liability
June 1, 2011
Pennsylvania - UM/UIM KEY POINTS: Defense Digest, Vol. 17, No. 2, June 2011
Oh Tannenbaum, Oh Tannenbaum! Early Christmas Gift to UM/UIM Carriers From Pennsylvania Supreme Court
Harrisburg
Automobile Liability
September 1, 2010
Pennsylvania -- Automobile Liability Key Points: Defense Digest, Vol. 16, No. 3, September 2010
UM/UIM Coverage in Pennsylvania: Establishing Occupancy of Vehicle as Basis for Qualifying as an Insured
Harrisburg
Automobile Liability
June 1, 2009
Pennsylvania -- UM/UIM UM/UIM endorsements subject to Pennsylvania's Motor Vehicle Financial Responsibility Law often define the insured to include not only the named insured, but also any other person occupying the covered motor vehicle. Defense Digest, Vol. 15, No. 2, June 2009
Classes/Seminars Taught
Rancosky/ Bad Faith Update , Marshall Dennehey Insurance Fraud 360 Seminar, Lafayette Hill, PA, June 2018
Keep the Faith: Understanding Insurance Bad Faith in Pennsylvania After 2017, Philadelphia Association of Defense Counsel, February 20, 2018
Key Developments in Pennsylvania UM/UIM Law, Pennsylvania Bar Institute Auto Law Update, Philadelphia and Mechanicsburg, PA, October 2017
Distracted Driving: Texting, Talking & More, Marshall Dennehey Client Seminar, May 2017
How to Get Your Social Media Evidence Admitted - and How to Keep Theirs Out, NBI Seminar, December 2016
SLEO Claims & Coverage 2016, Marshall Dennehey Client Seminar, November, 2016
Pennsylvania UM/UIM Update 2016, PBI 22nd Annual Auto Law Seminar Webinar, October 28, 2016
First Party Issues - Multi-State Bad Faith Perspective, Marshall Dennehey Insurance Fraud 360 Seminar, Lafayette Hill, PA, June, 2016
Pennsylvania Bad Faith Issues, Marshall Dennehey Client Seminar, June 2015
Regular Use Exclusions in Pennsylvania -- Coverage Issues and Practical Applications, Marshall Dennehey Client Seminar, June 2015
Insurance Bad Faith: Pennsylvania Update, Marshall Dennehey Client Seminar, June 2015
UM/UIM & Limited Tort: How to Handle or Defend a Limited Tort Case, Pennsylvania Bar Institute
Pennsylvania UM/UIM Law: 2014 Updates, Marshall Dennehey Client Seminar, December 2014
Annual Auto Law Update, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, November 2014
PIP, UIM & Other First Party Coverage Issues, Marshall Dennehey Insurance Fraud 360, June 2014
When Is a Bad Faith Claim Worth $18 Million?, Dispute Resolution Institute's Personal Injury Potpourri, April 2014
UM/UIM Law in Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, 2013
Annual Auto Law Update, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, 2013
Insurance Coverage Issues Related to Sexual Molestation Claims, PBI, 2012
Innocent Third party and Contemporary SIU Coverage Issues, Marshall Dennehey Insurance Fraud Perspectives Seminar, Lafayette Hill, PA, June 2012
PL Coverage, Professional Liability Defense Federation, 2011
UM/UIM, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, 2010
Annual Auto Law Update, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, 2010
Trial Tactics, Tips & Techniques, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, 1999; 2009
Annual Auto Law Update, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, 2007
Trial Preparation: The 100-Day Countdown, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, 2003
Adjunct Assistant Professor, Trial Advocacy Program, The Dickinson School of Law
Presentations to clients on developments in Pennsylvania UM/UIM law, bad faith and various coverage issues