Nicole E. Wilinski
Associate
- Licensed Since: 2000
- Joined Firm: 2009
38505 Woodward Ave.
Suite 2000
Bloomfield Hills, MI 48304
TEL: (248) 594-6229Suite 2000
Bloomfield Hills, MI 48304
FAX: (248) 901-4040
Areas of Practice
Honors & Awards
- Michigan Rising Star in Insurance Law, Michigan Super Lawyers, a Thompson Reuters publication, 2010
- Up & Coming Lawyer, Michigan Lawyers Weekly, 2010
Clerkship(s)
- U.S. Attorney’s office, Detroit, 1999
Education
- Wayne State University Law School, cum laude, J.D., 2000
- University of Michigan, B.A., 1997
Bar & Court Admissions
- Michigan, 2000
- U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Michigan, 2001
- U.S. District Court, Western District of Michigan, 2001
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit, 2004
- U.S. District Court, Northern District of Ohio, 2005
- Admitted Pro Hac Vice in North Dakota
A member of the firm’s Bloomfield Hills office, Nicole E. Wilinski focuses her practice in the area of insurance coverage litigation.
Ms. Wilinski, who is a member of Plunkett Cooney’s Insurance Law Practice Group, represents insurance providers in coverage cases throughout Michigan and the Midwest. Her experience includes the representation of insurance companies in complex insurance coverage disputes, including litigation in the areas of environmental and construction law.
Ms. Wilinski also regularly prepares coverage opinions and proposed coverage position letters on behalf of insurers arising out of claims for property damage, fraud and/or misrepresentations, personal and advertising injury and bodily injury claims.
Representative Client Work
- Obtained dismissal for insurer in Michigan in auto-policy fraud case
- Drafted coverage opinions and recommendations for insurers on issues relating to personal and advertising injury, property damage, bodily injury and professional services exclusions
- Defended carrier in environmental coverage litigation involving multi-million dollar claims at five sites in three states; obtained favorable decision from the Michigan Court of Appeals holding carrier entitled to summary disposition on the basis of late notice, voluntary payment/no action provisions, laches and statute of limitations
- Defended carrier in coverage litigation and settlement negotiations involving indemnity claims from alleged additional insureds arising out of a severe construction workplace accident
- Provided coverage analysis and drafted declination letter on behalf of carrier in response to environmental claims relating to three Michigan sites
Notable Cases
- Tenneco, Inc. v Amerisure Mut Ins Co, 281 Mich App 429 (2008) [Holding carrier entitled to summary disposition on the basis of late notice, voluntary payment/no action provisions, laches and statute of limitations]
Professional Affiliations
- State Bar of Michigan (Litigation and Insurance and Indemnity Law Sections)
- American Bar Association (Vice Chair, TIPS-ICLC, 2008 – 2009; TIPS-ICLC, 2009 – Present)
- Oakland County Bar Association
- Oakland County Bar Foundation (Fellow)
- DRI - The Voice of the Defense Bar (Construction Law; Construction Insurance Coverage, Insurance Law; Toxic Torts and Enviornmental Law)
- Women Lawyers Association of Michigan (Director at Large, 2011-2013)
- Women's Bar Association-Oakland Region of WLAM (Immediate Past President, 2010-2011; President, 2009-2010; President-Elect/Treasurer, 2008-2009; law student mentor, 2007 - Present)
Community Involvement
- Baldwin Elementary PTA
Publications and Lectures
- ALFA Michigan Property/Casuality Insurance Update, February 2011
- CLEO Sophomore Summer Institute Luncheon on Practice Area Diversity, Women’s Bar Association, Panel Member, June 15, 2010
- CLEO Sophomore Summer Institute Luncheon on Bar Association Leadership, Oakland County Bar Association, Panel Co-Moderator, June 9, 2010
- "Corporate Designee Despositions of the Insurer/Insured: Avoiding Pitfalls in the Selection and Preparation of Designee Witnesses," ABA-TIPS-Insurance Coverage Litigation Committee, Tucson, 2007