After several months of litigation and failure to agree on the selection of an appraisal umpire, Argonaut Great Central Insurance Company (AGCIC) and the Greenville Public School District have now been appointed one by U.S. Magistrate Judge David A. Sanders.
AGCIC serves as GPSD’s insurance carrier under its property casualty policy and asserted in its complaint that certain claims of hail damage to GPSD facilities in November 2017 and March 2018 were not “ripe for appraisal.”
Sanders, who is presiding over the current legal proceedings taking place in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi, Greenville Division, issued the order Aug. 30 appointing Samuel C. Kelly — an attorney with the law firm of Brunini in Jackson — as the appraisal umpire.
Kelly is an active member of and serves as general counsel to the Mississippi Associated Builders and Contractors — the largest construction trade association in Mississippi — and the Mississippi Road Builders Association.
His practice focuses on the construction industry and includes contract preparation and negotiations, bid protests, claim preparation and evaluation and dispute resolution.
The order issued by Sanders states in part, “Both parties have nominated more than one potential umpire and both parties have objected to every candidate offered by the other party.”
The order also states that the appraisal process “shall be completed within 120 of the order and as provided by the contract, each party shall pay one half of the fees and expenses of the umpire.”
