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James E. Owers

James (Jim) E. Owers is a member of Sulloway & Hollis, who concentrates his practice in workers' compensation, surety defense including construction, probate and fidelity bonds, and insurance defense including coverage and first-party claims.

Mr. Owers regularly represents employers, carriers, and self-insured groups in hearings before the New Hampshire Department of Labor, the Compensation Appeals Board, and in appeals to the New Hampshire Supreme Court. He defends surety claims in federal, superior, and probate court. He also represents carriers in the defense of first-party claims involving property loss, bad faith, and coverage issues.

Before joining the firm in 1982, Mr. Owers clerked for the Alaska Supreme Court and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. He also served as an officer in the U.S. Navy, worked for the National Marine Fisheries Service, and the State of Alaska.

Practice Interests:
  • Workers' Compensation Law
  • Surety Law
  • Insurance Law, including first-party claims and coverage claims
Education:
  • B.A., Beloit College
  • J.D., Cornell Law School
Admissions:
  • New Hampshire, including U.S. District Court
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit
  • Alaska (inactive)
Career Highlights:
  • Successfully represented an employer before the New Hampshire Supreme Court in a case involving the constitutionality of the death-benefit provision of the workers' compensation statute
  • Successfully represented an employer before the New Hampshire Supreme Court in a case involving whether workers' compensation coverage could extend to volunteers
  • Successfully defended an employer and carrier against allegations that a fatal lung cancer had been caused by workplace exposure to fumes and dust
  • Successfully defended an employer in a fatal accident case involving claimed work-related intoxication
  • Successfully defended a large carrier in the Supreme Court against a claim of bad faith in the settlement of a case
  • Successfully defended a surety in superior court against claims against a payment bond on the basis that the claims were untimely
  • Testified on numerous bills related to workers' compensation in the New Hampshire legislature
Honors:
  • Listed in Best Lawyers in America for last 10 years

Community Involvement:

  • Vice-chair, Concord Conservation Commission.
  • Treasurer, New Hampshire Cycling Club
Publications:
  • Contributor to the New Hampshire Employment Law Letter
  • 2009, Advanced Workers' Compensation, Medical Issues and their Role in the Complex Workers' Compensation Claim, National Business Institute.
  • 2008, Advanced Workers' Compensation, Medical Issues and their Role in the Complex Workers' Compensation Claim, National Business Institute.
  • 2006, Practical Ways to Determine How an Injured Employee Should Be Compensated (Defense Perspective), and Legislative and Court Developments since September 2005.
  • 2004, Workers' Compensation Liens. Multiline Insurance Seminar, New Hampshire Adjusters Association.
  • 2003, Workers' Compensation Issues in the Construction Industry. Legal Issues Facing the Construction Industry in New Hampshire, National Business Institute: 89-166.
  • 1998, Use of Experts in Administrative Proceedings. New Hampshire Bar Journal, Vol. 39, No. 2:22-26.
  • 1994, 1993 and 1994, Legislative Amendments to the Workers' Compensation Law. New Hampshire Bar Journal, Vol. 35, No. 4:53-58.
  • 1992, Going Self-Insured in New Hampshire. National Business Institute: 37-84; 101-104; 125-126; 167-168; 175.
  • 1992, Damages in a Fraud Case. Fraud Litigation in New Hampshire, National Business Institute: 70-99.
  • 1991, Legal Analysis of Stress Claims from the Defense Perspective, Occupational Stress Under the New Hampshire Worker's Compensation Act, National Business Institute: 46-77.
  • 1990, Review of Worker's Compensation Law, Developments in the Law 1990, New Hampshire Bar Association Continuing Legal Education: 202-264.
  • 1981, Court Tests of Alaska's Limited Entry Law.  UCLA Alaska Law Review, Vol. 11, No. 1: 87-102.
  • 1977, Income Estimates and Reasonable Returns in Alaska's Salmon Fisheries. Fisheries Bulletin, Vol. 75, No. 3: 483-492.
  • 1975, An Empirical Study of Limited Entry in Alaska's Salmon Fisheries. Marine Fisheries Review, Vol. 38, No. 7: 22-25.
  • 1975, Limitation of Entry in the United States Fishing Industry: A Comment. Land Economics, Vol. LI., No. 2: 177-178.
 

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