Scott Katz
Partner and General Counsel | Tampa
Scott S. Katz is a Partner and presently serves as the Firm’s General Counsel. Joining the Firm in 1987, Scott previously served as the Firm’s Managing Partner and as the Practice Group Leader for the Firm’s Subrogation Department.
Scott’s practice focuses primarily on large, complex subrogation claims, where he represents both plaintiffs and defendants. Scott also works on insurance coverage disputes and casualty defense cases. He handles a wide range of matters including complex business disputes, general tort claims, mass-tort litigation, professional malpractice, construction litigation, environmental damage, and product liability losses. Much of Scott’s work involves multi-party litigation relating to significant property losses, contract disputes, construction mishaps, chemical contamination, and product failures. Scott has experience as lead counsel in over thirty jury trials and numerous non-jury trials involving such matters.
Scott is admitted to practice in all Florida courts, as well as in the Federal Courts for the Southern, Middle and Northern Districts of Florida. In addition to practicing throughout Florida, Scott has litigated large subrogation matters throughout the United States, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. He has also coordinated litigation in the Bahamas, Canada, Mexico, Australia, Ecuador, Nicaragua, and St. Lucia.
Scott is frequently invited to speak to insurance industry organizations on a variety of topics. He also regularly teaches law students as a guest lecturer. Throughout the years, he has led seminars concerning large loss subrogation, spoliation of evidence, the economic loss rule, legal ethics, NFPA 921, adjuster ethics, trial techniques and practice, AIA subrogation waivers, the Sutton Rule, the Made Whole Rule, expert testimony and other similar topics.
Scott received his Bachelor of Arts with high honors from the University of Florida in 1984 and Doctor of Jurisprudence with honors from the University of Tennessee in 1987. He was a member of the University of Tennessee Law Review, and he was selected to Phi Beta Kappa at the University of Florida. While in law school, Scott served as a Judicial Clerk for the Honorable David J. Torbett, ALJ, for the United States Department of the Interior.
Admissions
- Florida
Education
- University of Florida
Bachelor of Arts, With High Honors - University of Tennessee
Doctor of Jurisprudence, With Honors
Memberships
- Claims and Litigation Management Alliance (CLM)
- Hillsborough County Bar Association (HCBA)
- Loss Executives Association (LEA)
- National Association of Subrogation Professionals (NASP)
- Southern Loss Association (SLA)
- The George Edgecomb Bar Assocation (GEBA)
Courts
- United States District Court – Northern District of Florida
- United States District Court – Middle District of Florida
- United States District Court – Southern District of Florida
Experiences
REPRESENTATIVE CASES
Electroecuador, Inc. vs. General Electric Co. (subrogation arbitration proceeding concerning a warranty claim arising from a defective gas powered turbine. Damages exceeded $3.55 million.)
ERT 163rd Street Mall, LLC, et. al. v. Florida Power & Light Co. (subrogation lawsuit arising from an explosion and fire involving power system transformers and high voltage cabling. Damages exceeded $4.0 million.)
In re September 11 Property Damage Litigation, 650 F. 3d 145 (2nd Cir. 2011) (subrogation claim arising from the 9/11 terrorist attack on the World Trade Center, which resulted in the landmark $1.2 billion settlement.)
Jabil Circuit, Inc. et al., v. Speedline Technologies, Inc. (subrogation, product liability lawsuit arising from a fire caused by the defective design of an industrial washer machine. Damages exceeded $6.1 million.)
Leggett & Platt, Inc. v. LeMaster Steel Erectors, Inc., et al. (subrogation lawsuit arising from fire loss due to negligent welding operations during construction of a building-structure. Damages exceeded $10.5 million.)
Lockheed Martin Corp., et. al. v. Weeks Realty Ltd. Partnership (subrogation lawsuit arising from a roof collapse due to various construction defects. Damages exceeded $7.0 million.)
Owners Ins. Co. v. Hartford Fire Ins. Co., 884 So. 2d 382 (Fla. 2d DCA 2004) (equitable subrogation claim by a primary insurer against an excess insurer. The court determined the primary insurer’s right to reimbursement and also prejudgment interest.)
Plantation Key Office Park, LLLP, et. al. v. Pass International, Inc., et. al., 110 So. 3d 505 (Fla. 4th DCA 2013) (subrogation lawsuit arising from a fire at an office complex under construction. Contractor’s defense via an AIA 201 subrogation waiver was subject to invalidation due to reformation of contract. Damages exceeded $5.0 million.)
Santa Rosa County, et. al. v. Centex-Rooney Construction Co., Inc., et.al. (subrogation lawsuit arising from roof damage due to construction defects revealed during Hurricane Ivan. Damages exceeded $5.3 million.)
World Trade Properties LLC, et. al. v. QBE Int’l Ins. Ltd., et. al., 627 Fed. Appx. 10 (2nd Cir. 2015) (declaratory judgment action concerning the interpretation of insurance policy provisions and the application of the “made whole rule.”)
World Trade Center Props., LLC v. Certain Underwriters at Lloyd’s, London, Syndicates Numbered 1212, 79, 2791,et. al., 328 F. Supp. 3d 178 (S.D.N.Y. 2018) (final summary judgment granted concerning the application of the “made whole rule” and the applicable insurance policy language).
Media
Butler Presents the Stetson Insurance Law Book Award for 2024
Butler Weihmuller Katz Craig LLP proudly sponsored the Insurance Law Book Award for 2023-24 at Stetson University College of Law in St. Petersburg, Florida. This prestigious award recognizes the student who achieved the highest grade in the class, distinguishing them as the course's most outstanding scholar. Stetson University College of Law student Richard Shockley received the Insurance Law Boo...
Partner Scott Katz at Keynote Presentation: The Subrogation Industry and You!
Managing Partner Scott Katz would like to extend his thanks to NASP and his fellow panelists - Jeff Baill, Elena Gervino, Ryan McIntosh, and Katherine Sandoval – for the opportunity to celebrate NASP’s 25th Anniversary with the subrogation community represented at the NASP Annual Conference in Colorado Springs, Colorado. It was very rewarding to collaborate with four very professional and tal...
Managing Partner Scott Katz Presented at Stetson University College of Law
Managing Partner Scott Katz thanks Professor Peter Lake and all the Insurance Law students at Stetson University College of Law for the opportunity to speak to them about the Florida Legislature’s recent statutory reforms and the impact on insurance litigation in Florida. [modula id="11369"]...
The Subrogation Industry and You!
Join Managing Partner Scott Katz and co-panelists Ryan McIntosh (W.R. Berkley Corporation) and Katherine Sandoval (Matthiesen, Wickert & Lehrer) for the Keynote presentation at the 2023 NASP Annual Conference on November 5-8, 2023 in Colorado Springs, CO. In this session, panelists will discuss how the subrogation field has affected their lives and careers and added bottom-line value to their...
Butler presents the STEP award to Juanita Melendez
Butler is pleased to announce that Juanita Melendez is the latest recipient of the firm’s STEP Award. The STEP Award recognizes outstanding service, teamwork, excellence, and adherence to the firm’s principles. Juanita is a legal assistant in the Subrogation Group in Dallas. While Juanita is exceptional at her job, it is everything else she does that truly embodies the principals that Butler ...
