Alex Brown
With more than two decades of experience in public service and private practice, Maryland attorney Alex Brown is among the Mid-Atlantic region’s top legal authorities on complex insurance matters.
Brown is a partner in Shapiro, Sher, Guinot & Sandler, P.A., and head of the firm’s Insurance Law practice. Since 2000, he has secured multiple multimillion-dollar jury verdicts and judgments for clients including insurance brokers, insured corporations, and insurance companies.
Outside the courtroom, he represents Shapiro Sher clients in regulatory proceedings, criminal investigations, commercial transactions, and other complex matters related to insurance contracts. He provides guidance on risk management policies and procedures, commercial insurance portfolios, and other insurance-related matters for corporations and property owners. He also advises insurance firms on matters such as the development and maintenance of risk retention groups, captives, and other insurance entities.
Alex Brown: Legal Career
Alex Brown began his legal career in public service as an Assistant Attorney General with the Maryland Insurance Administration. He then moved to private practice, taking a senior associate role at Venable LLP, before returning to the Maryland Insurance Administration as Senior Counsel.
Following his second and thus far final stint in public service, Brown made partner at Silverman|Thompson|Slutkin|White, rising to serve as the chairman of the firm’s Litigation practice. He moved to his present role with Shapiro Sher in 2014.
Alex Brown has had an eventful career in insurance law. Notable achievements include:
- Successfully defending a client against a $40M civil suit brought against a large national security company. The suit leveled serious allegations including false imprisonment and assault; Mr. Brown’s team obtained a favorable settlement to the matter within one year of filing.
- Securing a $7M jury verdict as first chair in a complicated insurance subrogation matter arising out of a multi-alarm apartment building fire that caused considerable damage to the property.
- Obtaining a $1.4M jury verdict, plus $300K punitive damages, from a large financial services provider accused of breach of contract and related torts. Mr. Brown served as lead counsel in this case.
- Successfully defending the owners of an apartment complex against property damage and liability coverage claims related to a Legionnaires disease outbreak. In response, the insurer withdrew its initial claim denial.
- Successfully arguing on behalf of the Maryland Insurance Commissioner that the commissioner’s finding that a large national insurer acted in an “arbitrary and capricious manner” to deny a property damage claim was warranted. This is an extremely high standard to meet under applicable Maryland law.
- Obtaining a six-figure judgment against a government defense contractor and full dismissal of the contractor’s counterclaims.
- Successfully securing expungement of a complaint against a financial advisor client in FINRA arbitration.
- Successfully representing a number of Maryland insurance producers in matters involving insurance license revocations. Due in part to Mr. Brown’s advocacy, some producers paid modest fines well under the statutory maximum with no license revocation or suspension.
- Successfully defending a large national insurer in a complex property damage matter. Mr. Brown helped resolve the claim for a small fraction of the original amount of the claim.
Alex Brown: Positions and Awards
Alex Brown has earned several accolades since returning to private practice. He was cited in Maryland Super Lawyers in 2014 and 2015 and is presently an A.M. Best Client Recommended Attorney.
He sits on two Defense Research Institute committees: the Insurance Committee and the CGL Subcommittee. He is a member in good standing of Chambers USA (since 2019) and the International Association of Defense Counsel, serving as Vice Chair of the Casualty and Liability subcommittee of the Insurance and Reinsurance Committee. He regularly offers expert commentary in media interviews and opinion articles and has appeared in the Baltimore Sun, the Baltimore Business Journal, and the Maryland Daily Record.
Brown has a J.D. (magna cum laude) from the University of Baltimore, where he was a member of the Heuisler Honor Society. He earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of the South.
Alex Brown lives in the Baltimore area with his family. He is a proud supporter of Baltimore-based community organizations such as Young Life Baltimore City, Grace Fellowship Church, Helping Up Mission, and Maryland Food Bank.
Stay in touch with Alex Brown on LinkedIn and Twitter and read his latest posts on Medium.