Claims Attorney Profiles

Eric J. Steiner, General Counsel and Director of Claims
Prior to joining Progressive’s Professional Liability Group in 2008, Eric was a member of Progressive’s Corporate Law Department since 2004, where he spent time practicing in both the Litigation and SEC/Corporate Transactions practice groups. Before joining Progressive, he was an associate at Baker & Hostetler LLP, where his practice focused on complex commercial and intellectual property litigation. Eric earned his Juris Doctor from the University of Notre Dame Law School and received his bachelor's degree from John Carroll University.

Laura M. Simmons, Assistant Claims Manager
Laura joined Progressive in 1992 after receiving her law degree cum laude from Case Western Reserve University School of Law. She received her bachelor's degree in English and political science from Wittenberg University. Laura deals primarily with employment-related claims and was involved in the development of Progressive's Employment Practices Liability Insurance Policy. She is a frequent speaker on employment-related topics.

Ann M. Gardiner, Assistant Claims Manager and Lead Bond Attorney
Before she joined Progressive, Ann practiced law as a bankruptcy and commercial law associate with the Cleveland law firm of Calfee, Halter & Griswold LLP. She represented a wide variety of corporate clients in creditors' rights matters as well as commercial loan transactions. In addition, she negotiated and prepared distribution and sales agreements and represented a debtor in a large Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceeding. Ann graduated from Indiana University of Pennsylvania in 1987 earning a bachelor's degree in accounting. In 1990, she graduated from Case Western Reserve University School of Law. Ann is Vice Chair and member of the American Bar Association TIPS Fidelity and Surety Law Committee and a member of the Fidelity Claims Advisory Committee of the Surety Association of America.

Terence Cawley, Attorney
Prior to joining Progressive in 2006, Terry practiced law with Duvin, Cahn & Hutton. He handled complex commercial litigation cases involving securities fraud, shareholders’ rights and class action litigation. Terry previously practiced law with Gallagher, Sharp, Fulton & Norman, where he represented clients on litigation matters involving professional liability, insurance coverage, commercial litigation, and business torts. He also served as Vice President and General Counsel for an animation and website design company. Terry has a Bachelor of Arts in English literature from Kenyon College and earned his Juris Doctor from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

John L. Cullen, Attorney
Prior to joining Progressive, John had a long and diverse career as a trial attorney representing defendants in professional liability cases at Jacobson, Maynard & Tuschman Co., L.P.A., Mazanec, Raskin & Ryder, Co., L.P.A. and then at an AV rated firm that he founded. He tried many jury cases to verdict and argued cases on appeal. He has extensive experience representing parties in employment litigation. These included cases alleging wrongful termination, discrimination, and class action litigation regarding wage and hour disputes. John also has extensive experience with consumer class action litigation. John graduated from Bradford College in 1988 and received his J.D. from Cleveland-Marshall College of Law in 1993.

Deborah C. Duvin, Attorney
Prior to joining Progressive in 1998, Debbie practiced law as a member of the litigation department for the Cleveland law firm of Kohrman, Jackson & Krantz, P.L.L. Debbie represented a variety of corporate clients in business litigation matters including insurance defense. Debbie received her bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Denison University in 1987 and her law degree from the George Washington National Law Center in Washington, D.C. in 1990. Debbie is the past President of the Fidelity Law Association and is active in the Professional Officers and Directors Liability Committee of the American Bar Association.

Otto E. Elkins, Jr., Attorney
Otto graduated summa cum laude from the Cleveland-Marshall College of Law. Before joining Progressive in 2004, Otto was an attorney in the Cleveland office of Ulmer & Berne, LLP. While at Ulmer & Berne, Otto was a member of the Health Care, Business, and Litigation practice groups. He advised physicians and health care institutions regarding regulatory matters; represented and advised corporate entities regarding formation and dissolution; designed strategies to minimize tax realization; and represented clients in all aspects of litigation. Otto’s current duties involve handling bond, employment liability, and D&O claims.

Mark A. Gamin, Attorney
Mark received his law degree from Case Western Reserve University School of Law, where he was editor-in-chief of the Case Western Reserve Law Review, and thereafter clerked for Chief Judge Pierce Lively of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. Before he joined Progressive, Mark represented clients in a wide variety of legal matters including real estate, banking, insurance, bankruptcy and other areas of the law. He has practiced in trial and appellate courts around the country, and has published numerous articles on various aspects of legal practice. He is the immediate past editor-in-chief of the American Bar Association's Tort & Insurance Law Journal and is active in the Fidelity Law Association.

Jennifer H. Gorman, Attorney
Jennifer joined ABA Insurance Services in July 2010 after serving as in-house counsel for a privately held Cleveland-based manufacturing company for 12 years. She was also a founding principal of Warren & Hays LLC, a consulting firm devoted to helping employers with HR and employment law issues. Prior to serving as in-house counsel, Jennifer was a business and employment litigator for the Cleveland firm of Ulmer & Berne LLP. Jennifer has experience advising companies in a wide range of employment and business related disputes. She graduated from Miami University with a degree in political science and received her JD with honors from Cleveland-Marshall College of Law.

Jason S. Hollander, Attorney
Prior to joining Progressive in 2008, Jason spent his career as a business litigation attorney in the Cleveland office of the law firm Ulmer & Berne LLP. While at Ulmer & Berne, Jason represented companies in a wide range of complex commercial lawsuits, including class actions. He also defended financial institutions in privacy, breach of fiduciary duty, consumer finance, regulatory and retail banking litigation matters. Jason received his undergraduate degree from Washington University in St. Louis in 1996 and graduated from Case Western Reserve University School of Law in 1999.

Katharine K. Russum, Attorney
Kate came to Progressive in 1997 from the Rhode Island law firm of Vetter & White. With a background in complex commercial litigation and insurance coverage, Kate's first job at Progressive was as Litigation Manager for the commercial auto assigned risk and financial services programs. She has a BS from Johns Hopkins University, an M. A. T from Brown University and her JD from Boston University. Kate is a corporate member of the Federation of Defense and Corporate Counsel, serving on the insurance coverage committee.