Insulated from liability

The threat of major litigation can slow any company's growth. When Kingspan plc found itself amid a $23 million lawsuit, our creative thinking allowed the company to continue its expansion as one of Europe's fastest-growing building product groups.

Cool product in hot water

Kingspan Insulation (Kingspan) is a division of the Kingspan Group plc, a public company headquartered in Ireland. The company is known for innovative phenolic foam insulation that helps air-conditioning work cheaper and better. When Portugal's Espirito Santo Bank built its new 36-story glass office tower in steamy downtown Miami, Kingspan's Koolphen insulation was a natural choice. After installation of the insulation, the HVAC system was switched on, revealing significant problems with the chilled water piping insulation system. The insulation was soaked, and the owner spent some $23 million to fix the system. The building's owners sued everyone involved with the project in Miami/Dade County Circuit Court's Complex Business Litigation Court, including architects, builders, contractors, installers, construction managers and Kingspan. Kingplan also faced cross-claims by the general contractor and air-conditioning subcontractor.

Turning adversaries into allies

Preti litigators quickly found a way to turn a potentially disastrous situation to Kingspan's advantage. We convinced the plaintiff that the damage was not due to Kingspan's product, but to the fault of others. In exchange for dropping the claims against our client, we offered Kingspan's help and expertise on technical issues with the plaintiff's claims against other defendants. In addition, we persuaded the plaintiff to sign a Pierringer Release, which not only released us from liability but also effectively nullified the cross-claims against Kingspan.

With the Florida litigation behind it, Kingspan continues to post favorable share prices and continues business acquisitions and product development.