Jonathan E. Small represents insurance companies nationwide in high-stakes business litigation, including complex coverage disputes involving property, general liability, directors and officers liability, professional liability, representations and warranties, and excess liability policies.
Insurance Coverage and Bad Faith Litigation
Jonathan leverages his lengthy experience in high-exposure coverage and bad faith litigation to pursue the best outcomes for his clients. He has secured pre-trial dismissals through dispositive motions and strives to position clients for advantageous settlements. When resolution by motion or settlement is not possible, Jonathan vigorously defends insurers’ interests at trial or at arbitration.
Commercial Property
Jonathan has had more than a decade of experience in commercial property coverage litigation. As national counsel to multiple insurers in COVID-19 business interruption matters, he led efforts that resulted in dismissals across the country—including precedent-setting decisions in Delaware, Massachusetts, and the First Circuit. As lead trial counsel, he has secured favorable outcomes in multi-week arbitrations involving eight-figure disputes, multiple parties, extensive documentation, and highly technical expert testimony.
Commercial General Liability
Jonathan advises insurers on a wide range of complex disputes under commercial general liability (CGL) policies. His work spans construction defect, environmental exposure, and intellectual property infringement, among other types of claims. He has vindicated insurers’ coverage positions in declaratory judgment actions and has won pre-trial dismissals in cases addressing coverage trigger, notice, and extra-contractual exposure.
Financial and Professional Lines
Jonathan represents insurers in coverage disputes involving financial and professional lines policies. His experience includes directors and officers liability claims arising from shareholder litigation and regulatory investigations, as well as professional liability matters. In the M&A space, Jonathan litigates representations and warranties policy disputes. His ability to manage complex, multi-party litigation across jurisdictions makes him a trusted advisor in high-stakes financial lines matters.
Appeals
Jonathan’s appellate work focuses on insurance coverage and unfair business practices cases. He has successfully represented insurers in multiple precedent-setting cases in federal and state appellate courts—including a landmark decision by the Delaware Supreme Court addressing jurisdictional issues in a COVID-19 business interruption case.
Pro Bono
Jonathan is a member of Robinson+Cole’s Pro Bono Committee and maintains an active pro bono practice. He serves on the Board of Directors for Lawyers for Children America, a nonprofit that provides pro bono legal representation for children in custody proceedings and advocates for systemic reform to improve the lives of children.
