Laura J. Ruettgers is a Partner in Freeman Mathis & Gary’s Walnut Creek office and Vice-Chair of the firm's Western Coverage practice team. Ms. Ruettgers has spent the better part of her career representing insurance carriers in coverage disputes and litigation, including bad faith litigation. Understanding the high costs and anxiety involved in both litigated and non-litigated matters, Ms. Ruettgers strives to determine the most effective strategy to put her clients on the path toward resolution, whether by settlement or other disposition.
In addition to broad experience addressing high exposure losses in both primary and excess general liability contexts, Ms. Ruettgers is also adept at navigating the nuances of specialty lines such as cybersecurity and pollution policies as well as newer products written to address risks arising out of emerging technology such as drones and autonomous vehicles. Combined with her background in Coverage B, Excess, Professional, and Directors & Officers lines, this breadth of experience is frequently invaluable in the context of so-called “Package Policies,” which blend traditional and non-traditional coverages into a single form.
Ms. Ruettgers is well-versed in handling coverage issues arising in the context of class actions, multi-party and multi-district litigations. In addition to a nationwide coverage practice, Ms. Ruettgers has litigated coverage and bad faith matters in California and (pro hac vice) in Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Oregon, Nevada, and Washington.
Ms. Ruettgers is a member of CLM (Claims and Litigation Management Alliance), where she serves on the Environmental and Toxic Tort Committee, DRI (Defense Research Institute), where she is a on the Insurance Law, Toxic Torts, and Environmental Law Committees, and the ABA (American Bar Association), where is she involved in the Science and Technology Section, Artificial Intelligence & Robotics and Information Security Committees.
In her free time, Laura enjoys spending time outdoors with her two kids and three golden retrievers, near or in water when possible.