Triple-I: Link between attorney advertising, rising insurance costs
Attorney John Morgan of Morgan & Morgan
There’s further – some might say ultimate – proof that the Florida Legislature’s property insurance consumer reforms of 2022-2023 are having their desired effect in reducing costly, often frivolous lawsuits against insurance companies. The daddy of the “billboard lawyers” as Governor DeSantis calls them, is reducing his insurance practice. The Tampa Bay Business Journal reports that John Morgan, founder of Morgan & Morgan has all but disbanded the once booming first-party insurance litigation practice. The reforms ended one-way plaintiff attorney fees, prompting Morgan to reduce the practice that had upwards of 30 lawyers to just five – two for homeowners insurance claims and three for hurricane insurance.
Now that homeowners who win their lawsuit must pay attorneys out of their awarded amount, he says that will leave less money to go to home repairs. “I don’t want to be that lawyer that has to tell a client, ‘We won, but you lost,’” he told the newspaper.
Morgan seems adamant that the reforms have not worked as intended and that third-party adjusters and unscrupulous contractors “need to be cut out. It’s filled with fraud and abuse, and sometimes criminal activity. The real problem is still there.” The newspaper reports Morgan as saying he has little interest in getting back into homeowners insurance, even if the legislature were to pass what trial lawyers describe as “loser pays” legislation, which failed this session under HB 1551.
A new issues brief from the Insurance Information Institute (Triple-I) suggests a strong correlation between the rate of attorney advertising and rising insurance costs. TV and radio ads have both surged in frequency, far beyond natural rates of growth, with TV adverts seeing a 44% increase from 2017 to 16.4 million placements, and radio up a whopping 261% from 2017 levels to 6.8 million ads in 2024. According to Triple-I, there is a plethora of hazards associated with attorney advertising, including a false sense of urgency for litigation, pressuring target audiences into legal action without weighing other courses of action, and overpromising results, all of which can extend time to settle and influence jurors. Triple-I reports that third-party litigation funding (TPLF) may be to blame for the legal system abuse and extensive advertising, allowing law firms to scale up their legal efforts, with the TPLF reaching $16 billion in assets by 2024 according to Westfleet Insider.
Insurance litigation has gotten the attention of the Florida Bar in a different way. Last month, the Bar’s Program Evaluation Committee voted unanimously to approve an “Insurance Coverage Law” board certification, adding to its extensive 27 practice areas. The measure has backing from both plaintiff and defense lawyer associations, and the consumer advocacy group, United Policy Holders – demonstrating widespread appeal. Sponsors of the designation say it is tailor made for the Sunshine State and would “help consumers navigate the insurance claims process after Florida’s frequent storms.” The Bar’s Board of Governors will consider the measure as early as September.
LMA Newsletter of 6-2-25
