HKR_61821_110_RobRunyon

  484-243-6865

  rrunyon@hkr.law

Rob Runyon

Rob Runyon serves as an umpire, mediator and arbitrator in complex insurance coverage and commercial disputes nationwide. He brings a rare, balanced perspective to the mediation process, informed by decades of experience evaluating claims and litigation risk from both the insurer and policyholder viewpoints. Rob is known for his practical, detail-oriented approach and his ability to help parties move efficiently toward resolution in high-stakes matters.

Rob’s ADR work is grounded in extensive executive-level claims experience. Prior to co-founding HKR, he served as the Senior Claims Officer / Senior Vice President for Property and Marine Claims at ACE North America and later as Senior Vice President in Property and Marine Claims, Chubb North America, where he oversaw commercial property and marine claims across a broad range of lines, including retail and excess property, builder’s risk, surplus lines, multinational programs, inland marine, entertainment, energy, boiler and machinery, and specialty risks, in addition to managing subrogation across a variety of business lines.  In those roles, Rob regularly evaluated complex coverage and liability disputes often involving multiple parties, litigation strategies, and resolution pathways—experience that translates directly to understanding complex issues and fostering optimal mediation and arbitration outcomes.

Earlier in his career, Rob was a partner in a national insurance law firm, where he led a Catastrophic Property Loss Team handling multi-million-dollar property and extracontractual disputes. Prior to that, he gained trial experience representing plaintiffs in personal injury and commercial disputes, and currently serves as a Judge Pro Tempore in the Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas Dispute Resolution Center.  This combination of claims leadership and litigation experience allows Rob to assist parties in candidly assessing exposure, coverage positions, and settlement value.

As a neutral, Rob is respected for his preparation, credibility with decision-makers, and ability to communicate effectively with carriers, insureds, brokers, and counsel. He mediates and arbitrates matters involving first-party property losses, commercial coverage disputes, construction defect litigation, and related extracontractual claims, and is available for in-person and remote proceedings nationwide.

Bar Admissions

  • Pennsylvania
  • New Jersey
  • 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals
  • Eastern District of Pennsylvania
  • Middle District of Pennsylvania
  • District of New Jersey

Education

  • Villanova University School of Law
  • Messiah College, BA, Political Science

Published Works

  • “The Ongoing Split Within The Third Circuit Over The Existence Of A Federal Mediation Privilege,” Co-Authors, Andrew Hudson, Esquire and Alexandra Doran, Esquire, The Pennsylvania Bar Association, Quarterly, January 2024.
  • "Immunity Statutes: Protecting Open Communication Between Insurers and Law Enforcement", SIU Today (Co-Author, Dan Grossman), Summer 2022
  • “The Approaching Storm: Business Income Losses, Catastrophe Claims, and the Post-COVID Economy”, Co-Authors, Aubrey Shea of J.S. Held, and Matthew B. Malamud, Esquire and Daniel J. Grossman, Esquire, July, 2020
  • "Greener Pastures: Environmentally Friendly Building Codes Present Thorny Insurance Issues", Best's Review, Vol. 110, #8, December, 2009
  • "Extra-Contractual Litigation Against Insurers", Law Journal Press/ALM, September 2009
  • "PA's Bad Faith Law Still in Flux - Recent Decisions Bring Both Confusion and Clarity", Pennsylvania Law Weekly, Sept. 24, 2007
  • "Proving Fraud with a Paperless File: New Document Retention Affects the SIU", SIU Today, Summer 2006
  • "Using Fire 'Cause and Origin' Experts at Trial", For the Defense, Vol. 43, #3, 2001
  • "How to Diagnose and Avoid the Bad Faith "Setup", Mealey's Litigation Report: Insurance Fraud, Vol. 7, #5, 2000

Classes/Seminars

  • Panelist and Course Planner, "Code Coverage Revisited", Loss Executives Association Spring Meeting & Educational Conference, June 6-7, 2024
  • Panelist, “How to Handle a COVID-19 Property Claim,” Timoney Knox Webinar (March 2020)
  • Panelist, "Identifying and Combating Fraud in First Party Property Claims", Loss Executives Association 82nd Annual Meeting, January 2013
  • "Really Dealing with Adjusters", 2011 Pennsylvania Insurance Fraud Conference, Co-Presenter, April 25, 2011
  • "Misrepresentation & Policy Rescission-Void on Arrival", PLRB/LIRB 2011 Claims Conference, Co-Presenter, April 4 & 5, 2011
  • "Top 10 Ways to Win a Circumstantial Arson Case" and "'ESI' for the CSI: Utilizing Electronic Forensics", The Circumstantial Arson Case: Investigative Techniques and Strategies, Co-Presenter, February 9, 2011
  • "Appraising the Appraisal Process", Loss Executives Association's 80th Annual Meeting and Educational Conference, Co-Presenter, February 3, 2011
  • "The Recession, Misrepresentations and Rescission", DRI Insurance Coverage and Claims Institute, Co-Presenter, April 15, 2010
  • "Bad Faith Update", DRI Insurance Coverage and Claims Institute, April 16, 2010
  • "Insurance Crimes 2009", Nelson Levine de Luca & Horst, April 9, 2009
  • "Compliance and Claims Management", PLRB/LIRB Claims Conference, March 22, 2009 - March 25, 2009
  • "Current Issues in E-Discovery", Association of Insurance Compliance Professionals (AICP) 21st Annual Conference, October 6, 2008
  • "Compliance and Claims Management" , PLRB/LIRB Claims Conference, Co-Presenter, April 13, 2008 - April 17, 2008
  • "The How-To of Electronic Discovery and Preservation of Evidence", NJSIA's 17th Annual Anti-Insurance Fraud Training Seminar, Co-Presenter, October 14, 2007 - October 16, 2007
  • "Issues in Electronic Discovery and Preservation of Evidence", Insurance Fraud Management Conference, March 19, 2006 - March 22, 2006
  • "Bad Faith, Good Faith", DelChester Claims Association and Southeastern Pennsylvania Claims Association Combined Chapter Meetings, October 12, 2005
  • "Fire Investigations", IASIU 20th Annual Seminar & Expo on Insurance Fraud, September 6, 2005
  • "Defending Your Deposition", Delaware Valley IASIU Seminar, May 19, 2005
  • "Bad Faith Damages", Pennsylvania Bar Institute Annual Auto Law Update, 2003
  • "Avoiding the Bad Faith Setup", American Conference Institute's Bad Faith and Punitive Damages Conference, April 27, 2003 - April 28, 2003

Representative Matters

  • Coordinating counsel for multiple carriers, overseeing defense of COVID-19 business income litigation on a national basis.
  • Represented an insurer in multi-jurisdictional coverage litigation arising out of commercial general liability policies and alleged violations of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, involving concurrent class action and declaratory judgment suits.
  • Represented a regional insurance carrier in connection with the largest commercial lines exposure in the company's history, with losses in excess of $75 million.
  • Represented a specialty insurer in the aftermath of a catastrophic hailstorm in Central Ohio, with alleged damages in excess of $4 million.
  • Represented four insurance carriers in a Philadelphia class action litigation involving attack on payment of "actual cash value" under property insurance claims.
  • Retained as lead coverage counsel in national food spoilage claim with exposure of $40 million.
  • Acted as legal secondee for a London market syndicate, providing advice and guidance in respect of global/international and domestic U.S. business, including facultative and treaty reinsurance programs.
  • Drafted manuscript policy forms utilized by surplus lines insurer following Hurricane Katrina.
  • Spearheaded TPA compliance program for London syndicate.