Alexis Joachim Spotlighted by the American College of Coverage Counsel As a New Fellow

Partner Alexis Joachim was recently named a Fellow of the American College of Coverage Counsel (ACCC). The ACCC is the premier association of lawyers representing the interests of insurers and policyholders in the Americas. Fellows have at least 15 years of experience representing insurers or policyholders. They are distinguished for their skill, experience, and high standards of professional and ethical conduct in the practice of insurance coverage and extracontractual law.

New fellows were introduced in the ACCC’s Quarterly Newsletter. Continue reading below to learn more about Alexis Joachim and her legal career so far.

Alexis Joachim is a New Orleans native who has skillfully represented insurance companies for more than 15 years in complex coverage disputes. Her interest in the law began when she was working in the Louisiana state capitol during her undergraduate studies at Louisiana State University. After being exposed to lobbyists and legislators, her original focus on a career in public relations quickly shifted to a career in law.

Alexis graduated from Loyola University New Orleans College of Law in 2007. Following law school, she went to work at Phelps Dunbar LLP. Immersed in insurance coverage issues from day one, she proved she was a natural. During her first five years of practicing law, she developed a national practice representing insurance companies in a variety of coverage disputes.

After marrying her husband, she moved to Washington DC because he was in the Marine Corps. There, she joined the law firm Jackson and Campbell, where she counseled insurers on healthcare, toxic tort, and environmental coverage and litigation disputes. Ironically, she handled more Louisiana coverage cases while working in DC than she handled during the first five years of her career in Louisiana. After five years in DC, however, she was ready to return home to Louisiana.

She moved back to New Orleans and rejoined Phelps Dunbar, where she worked for three years before joining Pipes Miles Beckman, where she still practices to this day. Alexis has continued to excel and is a key member of the firm’s insurance coverage and bad faith practice. There, she has earned recognition as a top lawyer, most recently by Best Lawyers, New Orleans Magazine, and Benchmark Litigation.

One of her most memorable cases was a London arbitration. As monitoring counsel, she had the opportunity to watch the whole process with its unique set of rules and peculiarities. That experience has allowed her to impart wisdom on even more seasoned lawyers in her firm.

One of her greatest accomplishments, aside from raising four girls (two of whom Alexis P. Joachim Pipes Miles Beckman New Orleans, LA she is still raising), was advocating for military spouses who are practicing lawyers who reside in Louisiana due to their spouse’s military orders to be permitted to practice law in Louisiana without taking the Louisiana bar exam. As an active member of the Military Spouse J.D. Network, Alexis was instrumental in lobbying the Louisiana Supreme Court to create a special rule allowing for limited admission.

As far as changes in the law, Alexis notes that Louisiana has amended its direct action statute with a new set of rules. She has helped insurers navigate those rules. She also counsels clients in niche practice areas. In the context of oil and gas coverage work, for instance, she counsels insurers on tenders, indemnity statutes, and priority of coverage issues.

When asked about challenges in the law, Alexis acknowledged that one of the most significant challenges she faces is engaging young, smart lawyers and inspiring them to get excited about coverage law and analyze and dig into coverage issues. She notes that when she was a baby lawyer, “clients would pay for a coverage opinion and research on every case; now clients expect you to know it.” Fortunately, she does.