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Self-Insured Retention
> Subrogation & Recovery > People > Berens, Philip
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Philip J. Berens

Member

Office Los Angeles

Phone (213) 892-7930  Fax (213) 892-7999

Email pberens@cozen.com

 
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Phil Berens is responsible for managing a subrogation litigation caseload in various legal areas, including product liability, negligence, construction defect, municipal liability, and breach of warranties.  

Phil has successfully litigated a wide range of cases on behalf of insurance companies and corporations in both state and federal courts, including intensive product defect lawsuits against many of the largest consumer and commercial product manufacturers, as well as lawsuits against construction entities of all sizes for catastrophic construction losses. His experience also includes the pursuit and recovery from international entities responsible for fires, floods, cargo, and other losses in the United States.   

Phil’s extensive litigation experience includes trying several cases to verdict and recovering millions of dollars for his clients through Alternative Dispute Resolution. Phil has authored many articles and presented on various subrogation-related topics. Phil is a NITA certified trial advocate that earned his J.D. from Michigan State University College of Law. While at Michigan State, he was a member of the Moot Court and the Trial Advocacy Board and earned a certificate in trial practice from the Geoffrey Fieger Trial Practice Institute.


Cozen O’Connor Continues Growth of International Subrogation and Recovery Department

November 25, 2013

Cozen O’Connor is pleased to announce the continued expansion of its internationally recognized Subrogation & Recovery Department with the recent addition of four attorneys. Lawyers who have joined the firm’s Subrogation & Recovery Department in 2013 include Virginia Markovich, member in the New York office; Philip J. Berens, an associate in Los Angeles; Richard J. Maleski, an associate in the Miami office; and Marie-Pier Nadeau, an associate in the Toronto office.

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Update on California Fires [Alert]

November 12, 2018

Howard Maycon, Kevin Bush, David Brisco, Phil Berens, Tom Regan and Peter Lynch provide an update on the Woolsey, Hill, and Camp fires in California.

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Subrogation Against Parents for Actions of Their Children [Subrogation Alert]

May 18, 2017

Can parents be held responsible for property damage caused by their children? Almost every state in the country has adopted some form of a parental liability statute, which forms the legal basis for holding parents vicariously liable for the acts of their children.

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Inverse Condemnation: Benefits and Drawbacks [Subrogation & Recovery Alert]

March 12, 2015

Inverse Condemnation law is a doctrine that arises out of the “takings clauses” set forth in state and federal constitutions. Specifically, Article I, Section 19 of the California Constitution prohibits private property from being taken or damaged for public use without just compensation to the owner. The “taking” or “damage” can occur when the public entity causes physical damage to the property with, or without, an actual invasion by the public entity. San Diego Gas & Electric Co. v. Superior Court (1996) 13 Cal.4th 893. Fortunately, the protections afforded by the constitutional provisions are also available to the subrogees of property owners in California.

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Right to Repair Act Issues [Subrogation & Recovery Alert]

July 28, 2014

Burch v. Superior Court followed a similar opinion by the court in Liberty Mutual Insurance Company v. Brookfield Crystal Cove LLC (2013) 219 C.A.4th 98, and reiterated that (1) California’s Right to Repair Act (California Civil Code § 895 et. seq.) is not the exclusive remedy for a homeowner seeking damages for construction defects that have caused property damage, (2) the Act does not limit or preclude common law claims for such damages, and (3) a home builder can owe a duty of care to prospective purchasers of a home.

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  • Michigan State University College of Law, J.D., 2011
  • Michigan State University, B.A., 2008
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Subrogation & Recovery 24/7 Contact: 1.800.523.2900