Melissa Sims

Practice Areas

Melissa Sim's is the managing member of Berk, Merchant & Sims. Ms. Sims advises insurance companies on First and Third-Party Insurance Coverage matters, Builders Risk Insurance Coverage Disputes, Commercial Insurance Coverage, Complex Commercial Insurance Claims, Extra Contractual Insurance Claims and Litigation, Insurance Fraud, General Liability, Insurance Pre-Suit Investigations, Jewlers Block, Inland Marine, and Reinsurance issues. Ms. Sims has tried multiple insurance cases involving losses resulting from hurricanes, arson, water, vandalism, and a variety of casualty coverage cases

Career

Melissa began practicing law in 1992 at the law firm of Phelps Dunbar in 1992 focusing on insurance coverage disputes including coverage litigation as a result of the Exxon Valdez oil spill. In 1996 Melissa relocated to Florida and worked as an associate for a large regional law firm Adorno & Yoss where she became partner in 2001 also practicing insurance coverage litigation. In 2005 Melissa along with two partners William Berk and Evelyn Merchant left Adorno to form Berk, Merchant & Sims. In 2021 Melissa became managing partner of Berk, Merchant & Sims and continues to hold this position.

Professional Memberships

Florida Bar Association; Louisiana Bar Association; Past-President, Windstorm Insurance Network 2021-2022; American Bar Association Torts & Insurance Practice Section (TIPS); Property Insurance Law Committee; Insurance Coverage Litigation Committee: Litigation Section, Products Liability Committee; Member, American College of Coverage and Extracontractual Counsel; Member, Claims & Litigation Management Alliance (CLM); Member, Dade County Defense Bar Association; Member, Dade County Bar Association; Member, Federal Bar Association; Member, American Bar Associations; and, Member. Florida Advisory Committee on Arson Prevention.

Publications

2021 Windstorm Insurance Network - Claims Handling Across State Lines; 2019 Windstorm Insurance Network - Business as Unusual; 2018 Windstorm Insurance Network - Game of Drones; 2017 Windstorm Insurance Network - , American Bar Association - Tips for Trial Lawyers: Communicating with Judges; 2016 American Bar Association - Trying a Case to a Jury: Dos & Don’ts; 2016 Windstorm Insurance Network - Are you Prepared? The things you don’t know but need to know to be ready for

Deposition and Trial; 2015 Windstorm Insurance Network - Evolution of a Hurricane Claim; 2014 American Bar Association - The Perfect Storm: Delay, Defenses & Damages in Catastrophe Property Claims; 2014 Windstorm Insurance Network - Mock Evidentiary Hearing; 2013 Windstorm Insurance Network - Bad Faith Law from Texas to Florida; 2011 Windstorm Insurance Network - How to Present a First Party Trial; 2008 Windstorm Insurance Network - After the Storm: Compliance and Non-Compliance with Post-Loss Conditions; 2007 Windstorm Insurance Network - Appraisal from A to Z: All You Need To Know, But Were Afraid To Ask

Personal

Melissa is married with two children.

Clients

AIG Domestic Claims; Allianz; American Coastal Ins. Co.; American Strategic Insurance; AmRisc; AmTrust at Lloyd’s, Ltd.; ANV Syndicates; Argenta Syndicates; ARK Syndicate; Ariel Specialty; Ascot Underwriting; Aspen Specialty Insurance Co. ; ARI Insurance Company; Atrium Underwriters Ltd.; AXIS Insurance; Beazley Syndicates; ; Beazley USA; Brit Insurance; Chaucer Syndicates; Chubb Insurance; Clarendon Insurance Co.; Crum & Forster; FIGA; Frontline Insurance Company; General Security Indemnity Co. of Arizona; General Star Management; Hillcrest Insurance Company; Hiscox Syndicate; Houston Casualty Ins. Co.; Indian Harbor Insurance Company; Infinity Ins. Co.; International Insurance Company of Hannover, PLC.; Lexington Insurance Company; Liberty Syndicates; S.A. Meacock & Co., Ltd.; MAP Syndicate; Markel International Insurance Company; MetLife Auto & Home; MS Amlin Syndicates; Nationwide Insurance Company; Program Underwriters; Princeton Excess & Surplus Lines Ins. Co.; PURE; QBE Insurance Corporation; QBE Europe; RenaissanceRe Syndicate Management; SCOR; Scottsdale Ins. Co.; Sirius Int’l Managing Agency Ltd.; Sompo Syndicate; Canopius Syndicate; Steadfast Ins. Co.; Talbot Underwriting Ltd.; Tokio Marine Kiln; Travelers Property & Casualty; Travelers Syndicate Management; Underwriters at Lloyds, London; United Specialty Insurance Company; Universal Property & Casualty Insurance Company; WR BerkleyXL Catlin.

Experience

Ms. Sim's representative opinions: Certain Underwriters at Lloyd's v. Pierson, 322 So. 3d DCA 2021; Am.Coastal Ins. Co. v. Quadomain Condo. II Ass'n No. 4D19-1316, 294 So. 3d 921 (Fla. 4th DCA 2020) Treasure Cay v. Frontline, 2021 USDC LEXIS 29518, Certain Underwriters v. Pierson, 2021 Fla. App. LEXIS 7940, Saenz v. State Farm, 861 So. 2d 64, Fla. App. 3 Dist. 2003; Solar Time Ltd. v. XL Specialty Ins. Co., 142 Fed. Appx. 430 (11th Cir. 2005); Underwriters at Lloyd’s, London v. Osting-Schwinn, 2006 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 21844 (M.D. FL. 2006); Royal Marco Point 1 Condo Ass’n. v. QBE Ins. Corp., 2007 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 60940 (M.D. Fl. 2007); 14 Karat Ent., Inc. v. Underwriters at Lloyd’s, London, 2008, Underwriters at Lloyd’s London v. Osting-Schwinn, 545 F. Supp. 2d 1261 (M.D. Fl. 2008); Nirvana Condo. Ass’n. v. QBE Ins. Corp., 2008 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 100771 (S.D. Fla. Oct. 10, 2008); Underwriters at Lloyd’s London v. Osting-Schwinn, 2008 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 86786 (M.D. Fla. Sept. 30, 2008); • Isola Condo. Ass’n. v. QBE Ins. Corp., 2008 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 101165 (S.D. Fla. Sept. 24, 2008);

Coconut Key Homeowners Ass’n v. Lexington Ins., 649 F. Supp. 2d 1363, 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 83652, 22 FLW Fed. D 57 (S.D. Fla. 2009);

• Buckley Towers Condo. Ass’n. v. QBE Ins. Corp., 2010 U.S. App. LEXIS 19144 (11th Cir. 2010); Firstnotebook, Inc. v. Dino Capone, 2009 Fla. App. LEXIS ______ (4 DCA 2009); King Cole Condo. v. QBE Ins. Corp., 2010 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 108970 (S.D. Fl. 2010); Royal Bahamian Ass’n v. QBE Ins. Corp., 2010 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 115304 (S.D. Fl. 2010); Monaco Beach Club v. QBE Ins. Corp., 30 So. 3d 144; 2010 Fla. App. LEXIS 8899;Summit Towers Condo. Ass’n. v. QBE Ins. Corp., 2010 US Dist. LEXIS 80881, 23 FLW Fed. D 265;General Star Indem. Co. v. Atl. Hospitality of Fla., LLC, 57 So. 3d 238, 2011 Fla. App. LEXIS 3201, 36 Fla. L. Weekly D 515 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 3d Dist. 2011);Ocean View Towers Ass’n. v. QBE Ins. Corp., 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 34758, (S.D. Fl. 2012); Oriole Gardens Condo. Ass’n. v. Aspen Specialty Ins. Co., 875 F. Supp. 2d 1379, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 96432, 23 FLW Fed. D 299, 2012 WL 2854331 (S.D. Fla. 2012); Ensenada Condo. Assoc., Inc. v. QBE Ins. Corp., SC09-441, May 31, 2012• Yacht Club on the Intracoastal Condo. Ass'n v. Lexington Ins. Co., 2013 U.S. App. LEXIS 3254, 2013 WL 598389 (11th Cir. Fla. Feb. 15, 2013)

Expert in these Jurisdictions

Florida State Court; Louisiana State Court; U.S. District Courts, Eastern, Western and Middle Districts of Louisiana; U.S. District Courts, Southern, Northern and Middle Districts of Florida; and, U.S. Court of Appeals, 11th Circuit.

Education