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1/29/2015
26th Annual ICAC Fire & Arson Investigation Seminar
Orlando, FL
Sunday, February 22, 2015
2:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.
ICAC Registration Desk Open
Monday, February 23, 2015
8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Registration Desk & Exhibit Show Open
8:00 – 9:00 a.m.
Continental Breakfast in Exhibit Show Area
9:00 – 9:10 a.m.
Welcome and Introductions
9:10 – 10:40 a.m.
Protect Your Case by Protecting Your Evidence!
What is an Insurers responsibility regarding the collection, storage and
management of evidence collected on their behalf during a fire
investigation?
This presentation will discuss and illustrate many of the common, yet
improper evidence collection and storage practices utilized by
professionals who in the normal course of conducting their business
collect, document and store evidence, on behalf of insurance clients.
We will discuss an insurance carrier’s fiduciary responsibility to insure
that evidence collected on their behalf is documented, collected and
stored properly in order to prevent a spoliation claim that can
compromise the evidence and the case.
Guy E. “Sandy” Burnette, Attorney
Burnette, Miller, Wollermann, PLLC
Tallahassee, Florida
Joseph Toscano, IAAI CFI & CI
Senior Fire Consultant &
Director of Business Development
Jack Ward Fire Consultants, LLC.
North Haven, CT
1/29/2015
10:40 – 11:00 a.m. Break in Exhibit Show Area
11:00 – Noon
O&C Expert Selection and O&C Issues
What are the qualifications we all should look for in choosing an O&C
expert? What are our expectations? How do we manage and
communicate with them? What is the difference between a good O&C
report vs. one that is lacking? Why are some reports better than
others? These questions and more will be covered in this session that
you won’t want to miss.
Guy E. “Sandy” Burnette, Attorney
Burnette, Miller, Wollermann, PLLC
Tallahassee, Florida
Joseph Toscano, IAAI CFI & CI
Senior Fire Consultant &
Director of Business Development
Jack Ward Fire Consultants, LLC.
North Haven, CT
Noon – 1:00 p.m.
Lunch in Exhibit Show Area
1:30 – 3:00 p.m.
Improving Fire Investigations and Empowering Insurers: A Fresh
Look at the 2014 Editions of NFPA 1033 and NFPA 921
In 2014, and for the first time in sixteen years, the NFPA published in
the same year new editions of both NFPA 1033 Standard for
Professional Qualifications for Fire Investigator and NFPA 921 Guide
for Fire and Explosion Investigations. While the changes in the new
editions of these industry standards have tremendous potential to
improve the quality of fire investigations, they also provide additional
ammunition to insurers and/or attorneys wanting to support or
challenge investigators in court. In this seminar, two fire litigation
attorneys and an insurance company SIU management
representative, who also served as President of the International
Association of Arson Investigators, will share their insights into the
most significant of these changes from an insurance company and
litigation perspective.
In this seession, you will learn:
o How NFPA 1033 and NFPA 921 are directly relevant in
challenging the qualifications and reliability of expert
evidence under Daubert and state equivalents;
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o Revisions in the 2014 editions that effectively merge
NFPA 1033 and NFPA 921, together making them more
powerful than ever in the hands of skilled trial attorneys;
o Implications of the expansion of NFPA 1033’s infamous
“list of 13” minimum knowledge requirements to a “list of
16;” and the correlation between this “list of 16” and
NFPA 921, which together raise the bar for fire
investigators;
o The heightened standing that both NFPA 1033 and
NFPA 921 give to ASTM standards, making these
standards mandatory for a reliable investigation.
Don’t get blind-sided. Join Rick Hammond, Terry-Dawn Hewitt and
Roger Krupp for this important session!
Rick Hammond
Johnson & Bell, Ltd.
Chicago, IL
Terry-Dawn Hewitt, Esq.
McKenna Hewitt
Denver, CO
Roger Krupp
Past President of IAAI
IL
3:00 – 3:30 p.m.
Break in Exhibit Show Area
3:30– 4:45 p.m.
Reliability of Computer Fire Modeling in Fire
Investigations – Pros and Cons
A panel of two experienced forensic Fire Protection Engineers discuss
the pros and cons of the use of computer fire modeling in fire
investigations. Explored are case examples of the reliability and
limitations of modeling as discussed in NFPA 921 and other expert
treatises.
Gerald A. Haynes, P.E.
Forensic Fire Analysis, LLC
Fredericksburg, VA
David J. Icove, PhD, P.E.
UL Professor of Practice
The University of Tennessee
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Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
Min H.
Knoxville, TN
5:00 - 6:00 p.m.
Networking Reception - Exhibit Show
Tuesday, February 24, 2015
7:00 – 8:00 a.m.
Continental Breakfast in Exhibit Show Area
8:00 – 9:15 a.m.
A Confluence of Uncertainties – NFPA 921’s Missteps on
“Process of Elimination” and Negative Corpus
A historical overview of the concept of “process of elimination” aspect
of fire causation through various editions of NFPA 921, with a focus on
the last three editions and the inconsistent positions taken by the
Technical Committee on the concept of “process of elimination,”
coupled with an analysis of how the concept can be confused with
negative corpus and used by attorneys to demonstrate unreliability of
fire causation expert opinions.
Brian P. Henry, Esq.
Smith, Rolfes & Skavdahl Co., LPA
Sarasota, FL
9:15 – 9:45 a.m.
Break in Exhibit Show Area
9:45 – 10:45 a.m.
Ethics in Claims Investigations
This session will discuss the standards for appropriate investigation of
First Party Property Claims. The interplay between legal requirements
and ethical considerations in these claims investigations will also be
highlighted. In addition, there will be discussion of the real world
issues that arise in First Party Property Claims regarding ethics during
the course of the investigation before a claims decision is made.
R. Scott Brown, Attorney at Law
Brown, Crump, Vanore & Tierney
Raleigh, NC
10:45 – 11:45 a.m. Discovery Issues in Todays Investigations
1/29/2015
How to deal and prepare for expanded discovery, what is
discoverable? A discussion on these and other related issues.
Phillip K. Yeager
Yeager, Davison & Day, P.C.
Ada, MI
Noon – 1:00 p.m.
Lunch in Exhibit Show Area
1:00 – 2:30 p.m.
Concurrent Sessions
1. Vehicle Fires ….. Past, Present and Future
With the advent of vehicle manufacturers trying to increase fuel
economy, reduce weight, increase aerodynamics…where are we
headed when something goes wrong? Will we be able to use ‘fire
patterns’ in vehicles that melt (aluminum) or simply ‘vanish’ (fiberglass
and/or carbon fiber)? What will the ‘hybrids’ of the world do to ‘ArcMapping’? How about them totally Electric vehicles?
We are going to, if we haven’t already seen, all of the above. Though
hybrids and all-electric vehicle only make up a very small percentage
of the market share, they are typically more expensive than their
‘normal’ gasoline equivalents.
Jeff Morrill
MorrFire Investigations LLC
Cartersville, GA
2. Classifying Electrical Fires (Accidental vs. Intentional) –
misguided approach many investigators are using to arrive at
classification.
Join us for this afternoon session regarding identifying and classifying
electrical fires. This will include a discussion of pertinent sections of
NFPA 921 and 1033; reviewing basic electrical theory; arc mapping;
appliance modes of failure; and looking at how to identify the 1st
material ignited, along with potential electrical ignition sources.
David Cusatis, Fire Investigator
Fire Investigation Unit
Liberty Mutual Insurance
1/29/2015
(This 3 hour session continues after break)
2:30 – 3:00 p.m.
Break in Exhibit Show Area
3:00 – 4:30 p.m.
Concurrent Sessions
1. Vehicle Fires ….. Past, Present and Future
With the advent of vehicle manufacturers trying to increase fuel
economy, reduce weight, increase aerodynamics…where are we
headed when something goes wrong? Will we be able to use ‘fire
patterns’ in vehicles that melt (aluminum) or simply ‘vanish’ (fiberglass
and/or carbon fiber)? What will the ‘hybrids’ of the world do to ‘ArcMapping’? How about them totally Electric vehicles?
We are going to, if we haven’t already seen, all of the above. Though
hybrids and all-electric vehicle only make up a very small percentage
of the market share, they are typically more expensive than their
‘normal’ gasoline equivalents.
Jeff Morrill
MorrFire Investigations LLC
Cartersville, GA
2. Classifying Electrical Fires (Accidental vs. Intentional) misguided approach many investigators are using to arrive at
classification.
Join us for this afternoon session regarding identifying and classifying
electrical fires. This will include a discussion of pertinent sections of NFPA
921 and 1033; reviewing basic electrical theory; arc mapping; appliance
modes of failure; and looking at how to identify the 1st material ignited, along
with potential electrical ignition sources.
David Cusatis, Fire Investigator
Fire Investigation Unit
Liberty Mutual Insurance
1/29/2015
Wednesday, February 25, 2015
7:00 – 8:00 a.m.
Continental Breakfast in Exhibit Show Area
8:00 – 9:00 a.m.
Arsons and Frauds and Schemes……Oh My!
A case law update and recap of 2014, including the most recent cases
involving arsons, devious public adjusters, and an assortment of
fraudsters. We will focus on cases regarding the intentional burning
defense, including the evidence needed to prove that the fire was
intentionally set. We will also discuss recent cases on the Fraud and
Concealment defense and Arson Ring Activity.
Jerry Albrecht, Partner
Butler Pappas Weihmuller Katz Craig LLP Tampa, FL
9:00 – 10:00 a.m.
Disclosure Limitations (Immunity Statutes)
Learn more about exchanging information with law enforcement.
What are the practical applications, risks, implications, and
challenges?
Michael Snyder
McGovern, Snyder & Ganem
Boston, MA
10:00 – 10:15 a.m. Break in Exhibit Show Area (Exhibit show ends)
10:30 – 11:45 a.m. Using Social Media Effectively in the Investigation of Fire Losses
The class traces the impact of social media in our society, and then
unlike other social media classes, provides direct and practical ways
to use social media to investigate fire losses from the start of the
investigation, through targeted litigation and discovery plans and how
to effectively present social media evidence in a jury trial. The
program concludes with an electronic “glimpse” into the future of
social media
Matthew Smith, President
Smith, Rolfes & SkavdahlL Co., LPA
Cincinnati, OH
11:45 - 11:55 p.m. Wrap-up - ICAC Arson Investigation Seminar adjourns