Insurance Defense
Kaysville Insurance Defense Attorney
Liability, Casualty, and Coverage Defense for Insurers and Insureds Across Utah
When a liability claim lands, the exposure is rarely abstract. A lawsuit names an insured, a carrier weighs its duty to defend, and real dollars and business judgment collide at the same moment. You need defense counsel who can step in quickly, assess the risk honestly, and litigate the matter through dispositive motions and trial if that is where it goes.
I'm David R. Garner, an insurance defense attorney. Since 2016, I've litigated contested civil matters throughout Utah, defending insureds and representing carriers in liability, casualty, and coverage disputes. I spent the first decade of my career at respected regional and national firms, including one of the largest firms in the country, building and trying the kind of cases carriers put on their panels. That experience now goes directly to the client, without the layers of a large firm in between.
You'll hear back from me personally, usually within one business day of reaching out.
J.D. cum laude, Kentucky Law Journal
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Admitted to the Utah State Bar in 2016
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A decade of courtroom litigation
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Big-firm and national litigation experience
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Multiple jury trials and hundreds of hearings
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Serving Kaysville & Davis County
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A Trial Lawyer Carriers and Insureds Can Put in Front of a Jury
Insurance defense is not general-practice work, and it isn't a place for an attorney who mostly settles files and hopes they never reach a courtroom. Carriers assign defense counsel on the assumption that the lawyer can actually try the case if it comes to that, and insureds are entitled to the same thing. That is the practice I built.
Since 2016, my work has been contested civil litigation: motion practice, depositions, dispositive motions, and trial. I've stood in front of juries, argued the motions that end cases before trial, and handled the day-to-day defense of liability matters from the first notice of a claim through verdict. When the other side knows the file is being handled by someone prepared to try it, the whole matter changes shape, and settlement, when it's the right call, comes on better terms. When trial is the right call, I'm ready for it. That readiness is the product that an insured and a carrier are both paying for.
Insurance Defense Representation for Two Audiences
This page speaks to two readers, and the work looks a little different depending on which one you are.
If you're an insured
Facing a claim or lawsuit
An individual or business named in a liability suit, whether your carrier is appointing counsel or you're retaining your own, you need a defense attorney who moves fast, understands the coverage in play, and builds the case for a favorable resolution or trial from day one.
If you're a carrier
Evaluating defense counsel
You're assessing trial experience, judgment, and cost discipline before you assign a file or add someone to your panel. The credentials and case history below are written with your review in mind, and I welcome that conversation directly.
What Is Insurance Defense Litigation in Utah?
Insurance defense litigation is the representation of an insured party — and, by extension, the insurer's interest — against a liability claim, along with the coverage questions that surround it. In a typical liability matter, a plaintiff sues an insured, the insurer's duty to defend is triggered, and defense counsel is appointed or retained to litigate the underlying claim. Coverage disputes and bad-faith allegations can run alongside the underlying case, raising separate questions about what the policy actually promises.
These are civil matters governed by Utah contract and tort law and by the terms of the policy itself. Two duties sit at the center of most of them. The duty to defend obligates an insurer to provide a defense whenever a claim potentially falls within coverage. The duty to indemnify is the narrower obligation to pay a covered judgment or settlement. Under Utah law the duty to defend is broader than the duty to indemnify, and the gap between them is where a great many coverage disputes live. When coverage is uncertain, a carrier will often defend under a reservation of rights, funding the defense while preserving its ability to contest coverage later.
The Insurer, the Insured, and Defense Counsel
Insurance defense has a structure most other litigation doesn't: three parties, not two. The insurer has a financial stake and often selects and pays counsel. The insured is the named defendant whose exposure is on the line. And defense counsel sits between them, owing the insured an undivided duty of loyalty while working within the carrier's reasonable litigation guidelines. Most of the time, those interests point in the same direction — everyone wants the claim defeated or resolved efficiently. When they diverge, usually over coverage, the way that tension is handled matters a great deal.
Handling that relationship well is part of the job. It means keeping the insured genuinely informed, flagging coverage issues early rather than letting them surface at the worst moment, and defending the underlying claim on its merits regardless of the coverage questions running alongside it. For a carrier, it means predictable, disciplined defense work and clear communication about exposure. For an insured, it means an attorney whose loyalty is to you, not to the file.
How Coverage Is Decided: Duty to Defend vs. Duty to Indemnify
Most coverage fights come down to two separate questions that are easy to confuse. The first is whether the insurer has to defend the claim at all. The second is whether, in the end, it has to pay.
The duty to defend is triggered early and broadly. In general, if the allegations in the complaint could potentially fall within the policy's coverage, the insurer must provide a defense — even if the claim is weak, and even if it later turns out not to be covered. Courts look to the language of the policy and the allegations against the insured to decide it. Because the standard is about what's potentially covered, the duty to defend reaches many claims that the duty to indemnify never will. Utah courts decide the duty to defend by comparing the allegations against the insured with the language of the policy, and resolve doubt about whether a claim is potentially covered in favor of the insured.
The duty to indemnify is narrower and comes later. It's the obligation to actually pay a settlement or judgment on a covered claim, and it turns on what the facts ultimately establish rather than on what the complaint merely alleges. A carrier can owe a defense and still, correctly, decline to indemnify a loss that falls outside the policy. Where the two duties split apart, you get a coverage dispute, and often a reservation-of-rights defense, in which the insurer funds the defense while expressly preserving its coverage position. Understanding which of these questions you're actually fighting about is the first step in any coverage matter.
Common Liability Claims a Defense Attorney Handles
Liability defense spans a wide range of underlying claims, each with its own proof, exposure, and coverage profile. The matters that most often come through the door include:
General liability claim
Bodily-injury and property-damage suits brought against a business or individual, the core of most casualty defense work.
Premises liability
Claims that someone was injured because of a dangerous condition on property the insured owns or controls.
Professional liability
Claims against licensed professionals arising out of their work, including real estate agents and other professionals accused of negligence, misrepresentation, or breach of a professional standard.
Fraud and concealment claims
Allegations that a party misrepresented or hid material facts, which frequently arise in real estate and commercial transactions and often fall to defense counsel to litigate.
Coverage disputes
Disagreements over whether and how far a policy responds, including duty-to-defend, duty-to-indemnify, exclusion, and reservation-of-rights questions.
Bad-faith claims
Allegations that an insurer unreasonably denied, delayed, or mishandled a claim, which turn on the reasonableness of the carrier's conduct rather than on coverage alone.
A single matter often involves more than one of these at once - a premises claim with a coverage question layered on top, or a professional liability suit that also raises a fraud allegation. Sorting out which claims are in play, and which the policy actually responds to, is exactly what a first conversation is for.
Insurance & Liability Matters I Handle
Insurance and liability disputes can quickly become complicated when coverage questions, denied claims, or financial responsibility are involved. I help clients understand their rights, evaluate their options, and take practical steps toward resolving these issues.
Liability & casualty defense
Defending insureds against general liability, casualty, and premises claims, from the first demand through dispositive motions and trial.
Coverage disputes
Disagreements over whether and to what extent a policy covers a claim, including duty-to-defend and duty-to-indemnify questions and reservation-of-rights issues.
Duty to defend & duty to indemnify
The threshold questions in most coverage fights: whether the insurer must provide a defense, and whether it must ultimately pay a covered judgment or settlement.
Bad-faith defense
Defending carriers against allegations that a claim was mishandled, denied, or delayed in bad faith, a claim type that turns on the reasonableness of the insurer's conduct.
Professional liability defense
Defending professionals — including real estate agents and other licensed professionals — against claims arising out of their work.
Casualty defense
Defending bodily-injury and property-damage claims across the liability spectrum.
A Claim Doesn't Get Easier by Waiting
The early handling of a liability claim — the investigation, the coverage analysis, the first responses — often shapes everything that follows. If a claim or lawsuit has landed, or a carrier needs counsel on a file, an early conversation can tell you how the exposure really looks.
Trial & Litigation Credentials
Carriers evaluate defense counsel on trial experience, and this is where mine is most relevant. My practice has been built on contested civil litigation since 2016, in Utah state and federal courts.
Roughly a decade as a full-time litigator, since being admitted to the Utah State Bar in 2016.
Multiple jury trials, dozens of hearings, and hundreds of cases over that decade.
Admitted to the U.S. District Court for the District of Utah, in addition to Utah state courts.
Prior experience at respected regional and national firms, including Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani, one of the largest firms in the country.
J.D. cum laude and Production Editor of the Kentucky Law Journal.
That level of preparation and courtroom experience is what a claims manager is buying when they assign a file. Here, it comes without the overhead and staffing layers of a large firm, and with the attorney who tries the case handling it directly.
Representative Matters
A few examples of the kind of insurance and liability work I handle, described generally. I don't promise a particular result, because no attorney ethically can, and I keep every example anonymous.
I have defended a real estate professional against allegations of fraud and concealment in connection with a commercial property sale, resolving the matter favorably on a dispositive motion before trial. I have also served on a trial team that obtained a favorable jury verdict for an insurance carrier in a class action alleging the insurer failed to provide required notice. Beyond those, I have defended multiple real estate professionals in similar liability matters.
Each of these is the type of matter I handle, described factually and without any promise of a comparable result.
How I Approach Insurance Defense Cases
My approach is ethical, resourceful, and practical, aimed at the best available outcome on the specific facts of the matter. In defense work, that starts with an honest, early read on exposure. Some claims should be defended hard through trial. Others should be resolved efficiently before they consume more than they're worth. Telling the difference early, and saying so plainly, is most of the value a good defense attorney adds.
I build every case as if it may be tried, because that preparation is what makes a favorable resolution possible in the first place. A plaintiff settles on reasonable terms when they can see the defense is ready and able to take the matter to a jury. For carriers, that means disciplined work and no surprises on exposure. For insureds, it means a realistic strategy and a straight answer about where you actually stand, rather than false comfort. I won't tell you what you'd like to hear; I'll tell you what I think, and then defend the matter accordingly.
Who I Represent
I represent both sides of the defense relationship. If you're an insured, an individual or a business named in a liability lawsuit, I defend the claim against you, whether your carrier has appointed me or you've retained me directly. If you're a carrier or claims manager, I serve as defense counsel on assigned files and welcome panel-counsel relationships.
My defense experience runs strongest in liability and casualty matters and in professional liability, particularly defending real estate professionals against claims arising out of their work. Whatever the underlying claim, the constant is that a senior litigator handles your matter directly. The same attorney who evaluates the file is the one arguing the motions and, if it comes to it, trying the case.
Why Work With Garner Legal LLC
Big-firm-caliber trial experience
I spent the first decade of my career litigating at respected regional and national firms, including one of the largest in the country. You get that level of preparation and strategic thinking aimed squarely at your file.
Direct attorney handling
Your matter isn't staffed down to a junior associate you never met. I stay involved from the first assignment through resolution, and you always know who is responsible for the file.
Efficient and cost-conscious
I resolve matters efficiently where the facts allow and build every case as if it may be tried. For carriers, that means disciplined, predictable defense work; for insureds, it means a realistic path and no false promises.
For Carriers & Claims Managers
Insurance Carriers & Panel Counsel
If you're a carrier or claims manager evaluating defense counsel in Utah, I'm actively interested in panel-counsel relationships. My trial record, admissions in Utah state and federal court, and cost discipline are built to meet the standards carriers apply to their panels. If you'd like to discuss adding Garner Legal LLC as defense counsel, reach out directly and I'll respond personally.
What Working Together Looks Like
Reach out
Tell me what's happening — the claim, the lawsuit, or the file you're evaluating. I'll tell you honestly whether Garner Legal LLC is the right fit for the matter.
Case evaluation
I assess the exposure, the coverage questions in play, and the real risks and options, in plain language.
Direct representation
If we work together, I handle the matter personally, from strategy through motion practice, negotiation, and trial if that's where it leads.
Insurance Defense Counsel in Davis County and Northern Utah
Liability matters in this area are generally heard in the Second District Court, which serves Davis County, including Kaysville, Layton, Farmington, Bountiful, Clearfield, and the surrounding communities, as well as in the U.S. District Court for the District of Utah for matters in federal court. Knowing the court, the procedures, and how liability matters tend to move in Davis County lets me give a more realistic picture of timeline and cost from the first conversation.
I built Garner Legal LLC here in Kaysville. I'm not a statewide firm treating Davis County as one more pin on a map. I grew up here and practice here, representing insureds and carriers throughout Northern Utah who want experienced defense counsel handled close to home.
Other Practice Areas
Insurance defense is one of four areas I focus on. If your matter falls elsewhere, or overlaps more than one, these cover the rest of what I handle:
Common Questions
Frequently Asked Questions about Insurance Defense
Do you defend both insurers and insureds?
Yes. I represent insureds appointed or retained to defend a liability claim, and I represent carriers evaluating or assigning defense counsel. In a typical matter, an insurer's duty to defend is triggered when a claim potentially falls within coverage, and I step in to litigate the underlying case. Whether you're the insured named in a lawsuit or the carrier assigning the file, the core defense work is the same.
What is the difference between the duty to defend and the duty to indemnify?
The duty to defend is an insurer's obligation to provide a legal defense when a claim potentially falls within a policy's coverage. The duty to indemnify is the narrower obligation to actually pay a covered judgment or settlement. Under Utah law, the duty to defend is broader than the duty to indemnify, which is why an insurer may have to fund a defense even for claims it ultimately won't have to pay. The gap between the two is where many coverage disputes arise.
What is a reservation of rights?
A reservation of rights is a notice from an insurer that it will defend a claim while preserving its ability to later contest whether the policy actually covers the loss. It lets the carrier meet its duty to defend without waiving its coverage position. For an insured, a reservation-of-rights letter signals that a coverage dispute may follow, and it's worth understanding what it means for your defense before the underlying case moves forward.
What types of liability matters do you handle?
I handle general liability and casualty defense, premises liability, professional liability, coverage disputes, and bad-faith defense. That includes defending insureds against bodily-injury and property-damage claims, defending professionals such as real estate agents against claims arising out of their work, and litigating the coverage questions - duty to defend, duty to indemnify, and reservation of rights - that surround those claims, through dispositive motions and trial where necessary.
What is an insurance bad-faith claim?
A bad-faith claim alleges that an insurer handled a claim unreasonably - for example by denying, delaying, or mishandling it without a reasonable basis. These claims turn on the reasonableness of the insurer's conduct, not simply on whether coverage existed. I defend carriers against bad-faith allegations, which are fact-intensive and often run alongside a coverage dispute over the same claim.
Who selects and pays defense counsel when I'm sued, and I have insurance?
In most liability policies, the insurer has both the right and the duty to defend, which usually means it selects and pays defense counsel once the duty to defend is triggered. Even so, the attorney's duty of loyalty runs to you, the insured. If a coverage dispute creates a genuine conflict, you may in some circumstances be entitled to independent counsel. Understanding how your specific policy handles this is worth reviewing early.
Are you interested in insurance panel counsel relationships?
Yes. Getting on carrier panels as defense counsel is a goal for the practice, and I welcome that conversation directly. My trial experience, admissions in Utah state and federal court, and cost-conscious approach are built to meet the standards carriers apply to their panels. If you're a claims manager evaluating counsel in Utah, reach out, and I'll respond personally.
Do you handle coverage disputes as well as the underlying defense?
Yes. Coverage disputes - over the duty to defend, the duty to indemnify, policy exclusions, or a reservation of rights - frequently run alongside the underlying liability case. I litigate both the coverage questions and the underlying defense, which keeps the strategy on each coordinated rather than working at cross-purposes.
What should I do first if I've been served with a liability lawsuit?
Notify your insurer promptly — most policies require prompt notice, and late notice can jeopardize coverage. Preserve all documents and communications related to the claim, and avoid discussing the matter in ways that could complicate a defense. Then make sure experienced defense counsel is engaged. The early handling of a liability suit often shapes both the defense and any coverage questions that follow.
Where do you handle insurance defense matters?
I handle liability and insurance defense matters throughout Davis County and Northern Utah, primarily in the Second District Court serving Davis County and in the U.S. District Court for the District of Utah for federal matters. Based in Kaysville, I represent insureds and carriers across the region who want experienced defense counsel who knows these courts.
Talk to a Kaysville Insurance Defense Attorney
When a liability claim is on the table, the earliest decisions often shape the exposure that follows. Whether you're an insured named in a lawsuit or a carrier evaluating defense counsel, a direct conversation can tell you where things actually stand before the case gains momentum.
You'll get a straightforward read on the matter from a Kaysville insurance defense attorney who will tell you what he actually thinks, not what you want to hear.
Know your exposure and your options before you decide on counsel.
I personally review every inquiry and typically respond within one business day.
Tell Me What's Happening
Share a few details and I'll personally review your situation. There's no pressure and no obligation, just a conversation about where you stand and what your options are. Every message is kept confidential.
Office
330 Main Street, Suite
25 Kaysville, Utah 84037
dgarner@garnerlegalutah.com
Business Hours
Mon – Fri, 9 AM – 5 PM
I personally review every inquiry and typically respond within one business day.
Submitting this form does not create an attorney-client relationship. Please do not share confidential or time-sensitive details until we have formally agreed to work together.