A candid assessment of your business operations may reduce your risk of a lawsuit and can lower insurance costs.

by Joseph Reichert

I have been licensed to practice law for almost four decades and have spent more than 27 years engaged in defending clients against claims for negligence, products liability, and worker’s compensation. These cases were entrusted to me by the insurance companies which provide coverage to my clients. Most of these insureds operate small businesses, though I occasionally provided representation to national manufacturing concerns.

Unlike most of my fellow practitioners, I have represented gunsmiths in litigation arising out of their business operations. My work on behalf of gunsmiths has been infrequent, probably due to the fact that the number of gunsmiths is relatively small compared to the other types of potential defendants, such as transportation companies, construction contractors, and appliance manufacturers. In my particular case, my gunsmith clients were not sued by their customers for faulty work on firearms, but were the target of claims arising out of general activities one would find in any business enterprise. Later in this article, I will explain how the circumstances of the gunsmithing trade can converge to enhance the risk attached to those activities.

Bear in mind that this article contains general observations and advice, and is not intended to serve as a substitute for consultation with your own attorney. With that said, I believe that you will probably find it useful to discuss some of the ideas presented in this article with your own lawyer and with your insurance agent and insurance carrier. I have written this in the hope that it will provide you with some useful practical ideas, help you avoid suits, and perhaps assist you in securing a meaningful reduction of the premiums you pay for business related insurance.

Read more in the November 2017 issue.

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