John H. Fontham (Jack)

• Represented the owner of a several billion dollar LNG construction project in connection with claims under a construction all risk/delay in start up policy for property damage and delay-related losses arising out of catastrophic flood events.
• Represented the owner of a world-scale methanol production facility in connection with claims under a all-risk insurance policy for property damage and business interruption losses arising out of the failure of a waste heat boiler system.
• Represented the owners of an 898-megawatt coal-fired power plant in connection with claims under a construction all-risk/delay-in-start-up policy for losses resulting from severe damage to a boiler during construction of the plant.
• Represented Toyo Engineering in connection with claims under a construction all-risk insurance policy for property damage losses arising out damage to a piping system during construction of an ethane cracker plant.
• Represented Haven Midstream in connection with claims under an all-risk insurance policy for property damage and business interruption losses arising out of an explosion and fire at a gas plant.
• Represented a professional sports stadium owner on insurance coverage matters arising from engineering and design errors in the construction of a new stadium.
• Served as trial and appellate counsel for The Coca-Cola Company in Cleaver-Brooks, Inc., et al. v. AIU Ins. Co., et al., 351 Wis.2d 643, 839 N.W.2d 882 (Wis. App. 2013), rev. denied, 846 N.W.2d 15 (Wis. 2014), successfully securing a judgment that jointly and severally liable insurers who sold their policies as part of a single block of coverage cannot insist upon prorating their liability for asbestos-related bodily injury claims and cannot force the policyholder to choose only one policy to pay at a time.
• Represented Pneumo Abex LLC in insurance coverage litigation against numerous primary and excess general liability insurers in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia and related arbitration and mediation proceedings seeking coverage for underlying asbestos-related bodily injury claims.
• Representing Chevron Corporation in connection with insurance coverage matters arising from claims alleging injuries attributable to paraquat and methyl tert-butyl ether.
• Advised a Fortune Global 500 public company in its sale of all its asbestos liabilities and related insurance assets in the United States.
• Advised a New York-based hedge fund in its acquisition of asbestos liabilities and related insurance assets from a portfolio company of a prominent private equity firm.
• Advised Fortress Investment Group in its acquisition of asbestos liabilities and related insurance assets from Crane Holdings.
• Advised an affiliate of Third Point LLC in its acquisition of legacy asbestos liabilities and the related insurance assets held by certain affiliates of Ingersoll Rand Inc.
• Represented a Fortune 50 company in connection with various insurance coverage, indemnity and subrogation disputes relating to its use of captive insurance for certain layers of automobile and truckers' liability coverage.
• Advised a Fortune 10 multinational conglomerate on the restructuring of its domestic and international property insurance programs and, in particular, the drafting of reinsurance and retrocession agreements for the client’s captive insurance company.

Jack Fontham focuses on litigation and arbitration of insurance coverage disputes and related contractual indemnity claims. Jack exclusively represents insurance policyholders. Jack advises clients on the form and structure of their insurance programs and the insurance and indemnity provisions in their contracts, and litigates disputes arising in those areas. Jack has helped recover nearly $4 billion for policyholder clients through prelitigation settlements, trials and arbitrations.

Jack regularly handles first- and third-party insurance coverage claims for leading companies in the construction, energy, life sciences and consumer products sectors. Jack has a proven track record of securing insurance recoveries for asbestos-related bodily injury claims and other mass tort liabilities, as well as for large business interruption and property damage losses incurred in connection with construction projects and in a variety of other venues. Jack was inducted as a Charter Fellow in the Construction Lawyers Society of America.

Jack advises public and private companies in connection with analyzing and structuring transactions to isolate legacy liabilities and the subsequent sale of those liabilities and associated insurance portfolios to third parties. Jack also advises clients on their fronting, captive and self-insurance programs, and on the allocation of insurance assets in corporate mergers and acquisitions.