Shaunda Patterson-Strachan

Insurance Litigation

Life insurance companies seek Shaunda’s experienced guidance to resolve issues related to the development, marketing, sale and administration of their life insurance, annuity and other financial products. Shaunda is a proficient defender of her clients’ business practices in putative class action lawsuits, seeking to ensure that their interests are advanced in all aspects of the litigation at the trial level, from jurisdictional, discovery and merits-focused issues, to efforts to defeat class certification. At the appellate level, Shaunda has experience both preserving favorable results and obtaining reversals of adverse trial court dispositions. She also represents clients in individual actions predicated on a wide variety of state and federal common law and statutory-based theories of liability, as well as regulatory proceedings and arbitrations.

In addition to formal litigation efforts, Shaunda works with clients to identify, assess and mitigate potential litigation risks associated with business activities related to their insurance and financial products.

Consistent with this experience, for years she has been a regular speaker at national bar and industry conferences and has authored pieces on topics relevant to litigation and emerging issues impacting the life insurance industry.

Representative Matters

• Park v. AXA Equitable Life Ins. Co., slip op., No. 8:22-cv-00761-SPG-DFM (C.D. Cal. Jan. 11, 2023)
• Barnes v. Security Life of Denver Ins. Co. (representing Jackson Nat’l Life Ins. Co. — Intervenor Defendant), No. 18-1487, 945 F.3d 1112 (10th Cir. Dec. 23, 2019)
• Maxon v. Sentry Life Ins. Co., No. 18-cv-254-jdp, 2018 WL 4540057 (W.D. Wis. Sept. 19, 2019)
• U.S. Bank Nat’l Ass’n v. PHL Variable Ins. Co., Nos. 12-cv-06811; 13-cv-1580 (CM) (JCF), 2014 WL 2199428 (S.D.N.Y. May 23, 2014)
• Nichols v. John Hancock Life Ins. Co., No. 09-cv-840, 2009 WL 3019785 (N.D. Ala. Sep. 22, 2009)
• Davis v. John Hancock Variable Life Ins. Co., No. 03-cv-17274, 295 F. App’x 245 (9th Cir. Oct. 3, 2008)
• Smith v. John Hancock Ins. Co., slip op., No. 06-cv-3876 (E.D. Pa. Sept. 3, 2008)
• Hurlocker v. MetLife Investors USA Ins. Co., Case No: D-0101-CV-2002-2723 (N.M. 1st Dist. 2004)
• Berardinelli v. General Am. Life Ins. Co. (In re General Am. Life Ins. Co. Sales Practices Litig.), 357 F.3d 800 (8th Cir. 2004)
• Tropp v. Western-Southern Life Ins. Co., 381 F.3d 591 (7th Cir. 2004)
• Bradberry v. John Hancock Mut. Life Ins. Co., 222 F.R.D. 568 (W.D. Tenn. 2004)
• Humphrey v. Allstate Life Ins. Co., Civil Action No. 99 CH 8383 (Ill. Cir. Ct., Cook County, May 13, 2002)
• Great-West Life & Annuity Ins. Co. v. Knudson, 534 U.S. 204 (2002)
• Parkhill v. Minnesota Mut. Life Ins. Co., 286 F.3d 1051 (8th Cir. 2002)
• Benevento, et al. v. LifeUSA Holding, Inc., 242 F.3d 136 (3rd Cir. 2001)