William G. Passannante is co-chair of the firm's Insurance Recovery Group and a member of the executive committee. Mr. Passannante has appeared in cases throughout the country and has been recognized by Chambers USA 2006: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business as “a tremendous tactician and an incredible trial lawyer.” In 2007 and 2008, Chambers USA once again ranked Mr. Passannante a leading lawyer in Insurance: Dispute Resolution. Chambers USA 2008 ranked Anderson Kill’s Insurance Recovery Group No. 1 in New York for Insurance: Dispute Resolution.  In 2009, Mr. Passannante was selected by his peers to Best Lawyers for insurance law.*  He has also been rated "AV" by Martindale Hubbell. Mr. Passannante is a leading lawyer for policyholders in the area of insurance coverage. He has represented policyholders in litigation and trial in major precedent-setting cases. He has represented The Glidden Company, The Trustees of Princeton University, HLTH Corporation/WebMD, Picker International, Weyerhaeuser Company, Occidental Chemical Company, Imperial Chemical Industries, The Lefrak Organization, Quest Diagnostics, Automatic Data Processing, Fleming Companies, Inc., and others. Prior to joining Anderson Kill, Mr. Passannante was a Financial, Industrial, and Econometric Consultant with Standard and Poor's/Data Resources, Inc.

Mr. Passannante was a drafter of the precedent-setting Weyerhaeuser case in the Supreme Court of the State of Washington which held that no overt threat against a policyholder is required to trigger insurance policies. Mr. Passannante co-chaired the program "Current Issues in D&O and Professional Liability Insurance" sponsored by the ABCNY and the ABA. He testified before the New York State Legislature regarding the insurance industry response to the victims of the terrorist attack on September 11, 2001. Mr. Passannante is an editor of the recent book, "The Policyholder Advisor,” and has published widely including in "Risk Management," "The (ABA) Brief," "Corporate Counsel Magazine," "Policyholder Advisor," "Copyright World," "Healthcare Financial Management," "Insurance Litigation Reporter," and "Mealey's Insurance." Mr. Passannante is a member of the Regis High School Alumni Board (2006-2009) and served on the Executive Council (1998-2006). Representative Engagements Princeton University — summary judgment as to liability in D&O case. Trustees of Princeton University v. National Union Fire Ins. Co. of Pittsburgh, PA., 83 N.Y.S.2d 437, appeal dismissed, 11 N.Y.3d 847 (Nov. 24, 2008). WebMd Health — summary judgment to advance defense costs in D&O case.  HLTH Corp. v. Agricultural Exc. & Sur. Ins. Co., 2008 WL 3413327 (2008).  Appeal as to certain insurance companies pending (2010). Quest Diagnostics — won summary judgment for policyholder in health care industry regarding merger-related liability insurance coverage. St. Paul Fire Ins. Co. v. MetPath, Inc., 38 F. Supp.2d 1087 (1998). Also pursuing directors and officers liability insurance for governmental claim. Weyerhaeuser — won ruling that no overt legal threat is required to activate environmental liability insurance. Weyerhaeuser v. Aetna, 123 Wash.2d 891 (1994). Lefrak— won summary judgment that insurance company duty to defend was triggered by lead paint claim. Lefrak Organization, Inc. v. Chubb Custom Ins. Co., 942 F. Supp. 949 (1996). Federal v. Kozlowski — represented policyholder to recover D&O liability insurance and prevent rescission action.  Federal Ins. Co. v. Kozlowski, 18 A.D.3d 33, 792 N.Y.S.2d 397 (1st Dep't 2005).  Picker International — represented policyholder that sought coverage for alleged liability on account of exposure to radiation. Picker International, Inc. v. Travelers Indemnity Co., 35 F. Supp.2d 70 (1998). Automatic Data Processing ("ADP") — represented policyholder to recover proceeds of insurance coverage for alleged advertising injury for copyright infringement. CMI Corporation — represented policyholder to recover insurance coverage for advertising injury on account of patent infringement liabilities. Fleming Companies, Inc. — represented policyholder to recover insurance coverage for alleged commercial crime claims. Also represented policyholder pursuing directors and officers liability insurance coverage. The Glidden Company — represented policyholder to recover insurance coverage for alleged environmental liabilities in multi-site, multi-insurance company action. ICI Americas — represented policyholder to recover D&O liability Insurance. Occidental Chemical Company — represented policyholder to recover insurance coverage on account of construction accident. Pueblo Xtra, International, Inc. — represented policyholder to recover proceeds of commercial crime policy.

Memberships

New York State Bar Association, Vice-Chair of the Professionals, Officers and Directors Liability Committee of the Tort and Insurance Practice Section of the American Bar Association, and a member of the Directors and Officers Liability Committee of the Insurance Committee of the Association of the Bar of the City of New York, National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD), and Public Risk Management Association (PRIMA)

Bar Admissions

New York, New Jersey, District of Columbia, Supreme Court of the United States, and a number of United States District and Circuit Courts.

Education

Fordham University, J.D.
Oberlin College, B.A., with Honors in Economics
Editor, Fordham Urban Law Journal

^{*No aspect of this advertisement has been approved by the Supreme Court of New Jersey.}