If you’re reading this blog, chances are you (or someone you represent) has been requested to submit to an examination under oath by your insurance company’s attorney.  This process can be intimidating and confusing.  I field a lot of questions from insureds, public insurance adjusters, and attorneys about examinations under oath (“EUOs”).  As a general rule, you need to understand that, although an EUO is not part of a court proceeding, it is taken under oath, so anything you say can (and likely will) become a part of the court’s record if your claim is taken to litigation.  Therefore, it is crucial for you to understand the importance of the EUO in relation to your claims process as well as how the insurance company may utilize it to deny your claim.  Here are some of the most common questions I get asked about EUOs:

  1.  What is an Examination Under Oath? – In the past, insurance companies utilized their own adjusters to conduct EUOs, but due to the legal nature of the questioning and the consequences, EUOs are now almost exclusively conducted attorneys for the insurance company.  You will be asked to bring several documents in support of your claim and you will be asked questions about those documents and specific questions about the loss by the attorney. EUOs are often demanded when there are red flags for fraud, strange circumstances, large claims, potential problems with the application for insurance, etc.  There will be a court reporter present, you will swear to tell the truth, and the lawyer will ask you questions, often for hours.
  1.  Do I have to attend or cooperate with the Examination Under Oath process? Yes.  Your insurance policy has a section that provides you, as the insured, have a duty to cooperate with your insurance company’s investigation, including submitting to an examination under oath.  However, you may not have to answer every question or provide every document – I plan to address the cooperation clause of the insurance policy in more detail in a later blog.  For now, it is important to know that you need to cooperate with your insurance company as your failure to do so may result in the denial of your claim.
  1.  Do I need an attorney on my side?  The short answer is yes. I would advise anyone who has been requested to submit to an EUO to be represented by an attorney experienced with the examination under oath process within the context of first party insurance claims.  An attorney experienced with EUOs can prepare you for the types of questions you will face, assist in the gathering (and presenting) of documentation, streamline and coordinate communication with the insurance company, and assist you in making strategic decisions, all of which can impact whether your claim is paid or denied. If you handle it on your own, you may do irreparable harm to your claim.
  1.  But I’ve already answered an adjuster’s question that he recorded; do I still have to submit to an EUO?  Yes.  This is quite common.  If your claim is being investigated to the degree that you have been requested to submit to an examination under oath, you have likely already been questioned extensively by the special investigator for your insurance company, maybe even more than once.  Often, these questions can give valuable insight to your attorney as to the nature of the red flags that triggered the request for an EUO.
  1.  I didn’t do anything wrong, why am I being investigated?  Insurance companies get thousands of claims a year.  Consequently, they send insurance claims into the examination under oath process for a variety of reasons.  Some reasons are more serious than others and some reasons are legitimate while other reasons seem to be trivial. That is why it is so important to consult with an experienced attorney to be sure you are receiving the best advice possible.  Your claim’s outcome may very well depend on it.

 

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Photo of Brandon McWherter Brandon McWherter

J. Brandon McWherter is a Nashville-based lawyer and member of McWherter Scott & Bobbitt PLC, which has offices across the State of Tennessee and elsewhere across the Southeast.  Licensed in Tennessee, Arkansas, and Mississippi, he has dedicated his practice to assisting insurance…

J. Brandon McWherter is a Nashville-based lawyer and member of McWherter Scott & Bobbitt PLC, which has offices across the State of Tennessee and elsewhere across the Southeast.  Licensed in Tennessee, Arkansas, and Mississippi, he has dedicated his practice to assisting insurance policyholders with their claims against insurance companies, including claims for bad faith.

For well over a decade, McWherter’s practice has been focused almost exclusively on the prosecution of first party property insurance claims for policyholders.  His interest in this area of the law first started around 2003 when a tornado struck Jackson, Tennessee, where he lived and worked at the time.  Since then, McWherter has represented hundreds or thousands of policyholders whose claims have been underpaid or denied.  He advises and advocates for owners of commercial properties, industrial facilities, residential properties, churches, business owners, and other insurance policyholders.

Since he started counting in 2013, McWherter has assisted his clients in obtaining well in excess of One Hundred Million Dollars ($100,000,000) in settlements, awards, and jury verdicts against insurance companies.

In 2018, McWherter was inducted as a fellow in the American College of Coverage Counsel, which is an invitation-only organization designed to facilitate and encourage the association of lawyers who are distinguished for their skill, experience, and high standards of professional and ethical conduct in the practice or teaching of insurance coverage and extra-contractual law and who are dedicated to excellence in this area of practice.

McWherter has been featured as a “Super Lawyer” or “Rising Star” by SuperLawyers every year since 2010.  Since 2013, he has been selected each year  for inclusion in U.S News and World Reports’ The Best Lawyers in America in the field of Insurance Law.  He also enjoys an AV Preeminent ranking by Martindale-Hubbell for legal ability and ethical standards.

Mr. McWherter is a lifelong Tennesseean and received his law degree from the University of Memphis. While in law school, he was a member of the University of Memphis Law Review, and served on the Editorial Board as Notes Editor.

In advocating for clients, McWherter has trudged through fire scenes and crawled storm-damaged roofs, quizzed consulting construction experts and experts for hours on end, and deposed and cross-examined hundreds of adjusters, experts, consultants, and other professionals within the insurance industry.  He reads insurance policies nearly every day and has a working knowledge of the customs and practices of insurance companies in investigation, estimating, and payment of claims.  McWherter counsels clients on presentation of claims, assists in compiling the evidence necessary to validate the amounts owed, and then enforces his clients’ rights, if necessary, via the judicial system and other alternative dispute resolution options, such as appraisal.

Several of McWherter’s cases have developed the law governing insurance disputes in the State of Tennessee, most recently including the Tennessee Supreme Court’s 2019 decision in Lammert et al. v. Auto-Owners Ins. Co., which held that insurers may not depreciate the costs of labor in determining their actual cash value payment obligations when the policy does not clearly allow it.

When not working, you will usually find Mr. McWherter with his wife, Angela, and his two daughters. He is an avid golfer and a lifelong bass fisherman, neither of which he does as often as he would like.

Practice Areas

  • Representation of policyholders in claims and litigation against insurance companies
  • Bad faith insurance litigation
  • Insurance-based consumer class actions

Professional Associations

  • Tennessee Bar Association
  • Arkansas Bar Association
  • Mississippi Bar Association
  • Tennessee Trial Lawyers Association
  • American Trial Lawyers Association (past member)
  • American Bar Association (past member)

Education

  • B.S.B.A. – Union University (1998)
  • J.D. – University of Memphis (2001)

Bar Admissions

  • Tennessee
  • Mississippi
  • Arkansas
  • Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals
  • Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals
  • United States District Court for the Western District of Tennessee
  • United States District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee
  • United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee
  • United States District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi
  • United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi
  • United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas