Lance E. Harwell

PARTNER

Practice Areas

General Casualty
Commercial Automobile and Trucking
Insurance Coverage
UM/UIM
Louisiana Workers' Compensation
Longshore & Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act
Bad Faith Claims Handling

Education

Loyola University New Orleans School of Law, New Orleans, Louisiana
- Juris Doctor - 1992
University of Louisiana at Lafayette, Lafayette, Louisiana, B.S.
- Bachelor of Science (Business Management) - 1984

Bar Associations

Louisiana
U.S. Court of Appeals 5th Circuit
U.S. District Court Eastern District of Louisiana
U.S. District Court Middle District of Louisiana
U.S. District Court Western District of Louisiana

Professional Associations

American Bar Association
American Bar Association Advisory Panel
Louisiana State Bar Association
Louisiana Association of Business & Industry
Louisiana Association of Defense Counsel
U.S. Department of Labor Joint Bar Association
Louisiana Association of Defense Counsel

Honors and Awards

Martindale Hubbell AV Rated.
Awarded a Bests’ Client Recommended Insurance Attorneys listing.
Melvin Jones Fellow (UPLC).
Frank Hara Memorial Award for Community Service (Asian/Pacific American Society).

Community Involvement

Lance serves on the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry’s Legal Advisory Council, where he works on an ongoing project to review and evaluate civil court actions. He was a member of the Filipino-American Lions Club and now is an active member of the Kenner University Park Lions Club, where he has served as President and in various district roles. He has performed community service work with his Lions Club, including eye screenings, domestic and international eyeglasses distribution, diabetes screening, and international disaster relief. Additionally, through the Asian/Pacific American Society, Lance worked on Tsunami disaster relief in Thailand, where he worked to fund one orphanage and to start another.

Hobbies and Interests

Lance is a U.S. Supreme Court junkie, a Ragin’ Cajuns fan, and his attentions have recently turned to the New Orleans Gold Rugby Club. He believes that community service to address a real need is one of life’s great feelings. He also likes reading and writing about history. You can find his daily history posts on LinkedIn.

Lance E. Harwell is a native New Orleanean. He earned a Bachelor of Science from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette and thereafter earned his Juris Doctorate from Loyola University School of Law in 1992. He is an experienced and creative attorney with a proven history of success in defending personal injury litigation, general liability claims, UM/UIM, DWI defense in civil claims, Louisiana worker's compensation and LHWCA claims, bad faith claims, and coverage issues. He finds satisfaction in finding litigation solutions early in the case and with an eye toward expenses. He enjoys working with his clients as a team and finding collaborative solutions.

Lance defines a win as more than working toward a defense verdict. Part of winning is reaching his claims partner’s metrics. He enjoys working as a team with Claims Professionals to meet the specific team goals established for the claim.

Lance’s practice takes him to all corners of Louisiana, from the top to the bottom of the state. He is admitted to practice before the United States Court of Appeal, Fifth Circuit, United States District Courts for the Eastern, Middle, and Western Districts of Louisiana, and all Louisiana state courts.

Publications and Speeches

Lance is the author of THE LOUISIANA CLAIMS PROFESSIONAL’S HANDBOOK and several articles about the claims handling process and insurance coverage. The Handbook is a popular volume on claims handling in Louisiana in plain English. In addition to commentary on Louisiana law, it includes negotiating tips, mediation strategies, a civil law/common law translation guide, jurisdictional data, and a pronunciation field guide.
He offered seminars on Louisiana Workers’ Compensation law, Insurance Coverage Options, Flood Insurance and Homeowner’s Insurance, Employment Issues, and Louisiana business enterprises.
He provided practitioner’s presentations for business groups in New Orleans to assist in local disaster relief.
Lance prepared and presented seminars on leadership and conflict resolution for Lions Clubs International.
For several years he developed and produced the Louisiana Lions Club Leadership Development Seminar. He is an advocate of servant leadership.