Carlton Fields Expands Property and Casualty Insurance Practice; Adds Two Attorneys in Orlando

Orlando, Fla. – Carlton Fields is pleased to announce that two insurance defense litigators, Novera H. Ahmad and Vanessa N. Pugh, have joined the firm’s Orlando office. They are members of the firm’s nationally recognized Property and Casualty Insurance Practice.

Ms. Ahmad and Ms. Pugh bolster Carlton Fields’ national insurance industry team, which includes more than 110 attorneys and government consultants throughout the firm’s 11 offices across the U.S. Carlton Fields’ insurance clients are active in every sector of the insurance industry, including property and casualty, life and financial lines, reinsurance, and title insurance. On their behalf, Carlton Fields attorneys handle complex litigation and class action defense and offer corporate and regulatory guidance.

Carlton Fields earned national rankings in Insurance Law in the 2020 U.S. News and World Report and Best Lawyers® “Best Law Firms” guide. The firm also ranks among the top insurance law firms in Florida, according to Chambers USA.

“Novera and Vanessa are strong additions to our team of insurance litigators in the Orlando office, and we are thrilled to have them on board,” said Johanna W. Clark, Carlton Fields’ Orlando office co-managing shareholder.

Added Steven J. Brodie, who leads the firm’s Property and Casualty Insurance Practice, “Their arrival underscores our continued commitment to expand our already nationally recognized property and casualty insurance practice and to serve the diverse needs of our clients.”

Ms. Ahmad handles all aspects of litigation, including motion practice, discovery, depositions, court appearances, mediation, and trial preparation. Prior to joining the firm, she practiced in a variety of areas of civil litigation defense, including transportation and automobile litigation, premises liability, and medical malpractice cases.

Earlier in her career, Ms. Ahmad was a senior attorney at a health care company, where she represented hospitals in pursuing maximum recovery for complex health insurance claims. She also interned at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of the General Counsel, where her work primarily focused on Medicare and Medicaid issues. Ms. Ahmad speaks Urdu and Hindi. She earned her J.D., cum laude, from Nova Southeastern University and her B.A. from the University of Florida.

Ms. Pugh also handles cases from inception to resolution, including developing and implementing legal strategies and argument for discovery, investigation, and trial preparation; taking and defending depositions; drafting pleadings and pre-trial motions; arguing motions before the court; and negotiating settlements.

Prior to joining Carlton Fields, Ms. Pugh was field legal counsel for a Fortune 100 property and casualty insurance company. Before that, she was a prosecutor in Orange County, Florida, where she served as first chair at numerous trials. During law school, Ms. Pugh served as a judicial intern to the Honorable Kim Shepard of the Ninth Judicial Circuit Court in Orlando. She previously worked as an insurance claims adjuster, an experience that informs her client representation as an attorney. Ms. Pugh earned her J.D. from Barry University School of Law and her B.A. from Rollins College.

©2026 Carlton Fields, P.A. Carlton Fields practices law in California through Carlton Fields, LLP. Carlton Fields publications should not be construed as legal advice on any specific facts or circumstances. The contents are intended for general information and educational purposes only, and should not be relied on as if it were advice about a particular fact situation. The distribution of this publication is not intended to create, and receipt of it does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship with Carlton Fields. This publication may not be quoted or referred to in any other publication or proceeding without the prior written consent of the firm, to be given or withheld at our discretion. To request reprint permission for any of our publications, please use our Contact Us form via the link below. The views set forth herein are the personal views of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the firm. This site may contain hypertext links to information created and maintained by other entities. Carlton Fields does not control or guarantee the accuracy or completeness of this outside information, nor is the inclusion of a link to be intended as an endorsement of those outside sites.