Joel handles the full spectrum of insurance coverage issues, including all first-party property losses such as fire and water intrusion claims. He is also frequently hired as coverage counsel in complex, third-party liability matters involving the duty to defend, such as construction defect cases or environmental actions. He further represents insureds on title insurance claims, such as easement disputes.

Because everyone needs insurance, one of the things Joel enjoys most about insurance law is the sheer variety of his daily practice. On any given day, he’s helping individual homeowners recover from wildfire or landslide losses, working with businesses that need a defense from their insurers in complex, multiparty litigation, or assisting a range of other entities – for example, churches or homeowners associations -- with their property and liability claims. In addition to his wide experience representing policyholders in state and federal court, Joel also represents insureds in appraisals and other alternate dispute resolution processes.

Joel’s insurance practice, however, is not limited to litigation. Policyholders also hire him to help facilitate their claims, especially when the insurer is reluctant to pay all that is fairly owed or is resisting its defense obligation. The depth of his experience as an insurance attorney frequently gives him the ability to maximize the value of his clients’ claims and/or secure their defense without ever having to file a lawsuit, a skill that often has him brought in as co-counsel by other attorneys who need to untangle insurance issues for their clients.

In addition, Joel has an active real estate practice that encompasses residential nondisclosure, partition, construction defect, landslides, mechanic’s liens, commercial and residential lease disputes, encroachments, prescriptive easements, and adverse possession, and he has successfully litigated these cases both in court and in private arbitration. He also handles a broad array of other property-related matters, ranging from solar panel fraud to HOA fights to timeshare contract releases and view & boundary disputes. As with his insurance practice, Joel’s real estate work is not limited to litigation, and he frequently assists his clients with transactional issues as well, such as drafting or reviewing purchase agreements for personal or commercial property.

Joel relishes his line of work because he enjoys helping both people and businesses succeed. He has an open-door policy for both individuals and businesses in the community who may need legal services and offers a free initial consultation to anyone who could use his expertise.

office. 925-938-4500 x1
cell. 925-487-1803

joel@mileswestbrook.com