NEW YORK, NY--(Marketwire - Jun 29, 2011) - Donald M. May, Ph.D, a Director in the Litigation and Corporate Financial Advisory Services Group at Marks Paneth & Shron LLP, has published an article in the Claims Journal about why the early retention of experts is critical to helping insurers decide if a claims case is worth pursuing, disputing or settling.

Insurers gain efficiency and increase their win rate by utilizing expert knowledge at the early stages of a case. According to Dr. May, "Expert knowledge of forensics and economics can guide the case 'narrative,' generate more effective depositions, inform the discovery process, and improve the development of expert and rebuttal reports."

In the Claims Journal article, Dr. May highlights:

• The specific benefits to insurers of having an expert review a case.
• Factors insurers should weigh when going through the process of hiring an expert.
• Important questions to ask expert candidates -- and answers to look for.
• Generic experience vs. industry-specific experience: the scenarios that determine the best type of expert for a given insurer's case.

The full text of Dr. May's article can be found in the Marks Paneth & Shron Library.

To speak with Dr. May about expert testimonials and valuation methodologies, please contact Itay Engelman of Sommerfield Communications at 212.255.8386 or via email at itay@sommerfield.com.

About Marks Paneth & Shron

Marks Paneth & Shron LLP is an accounting firm with nearly 475 people, of whom approximately 60 are partners and principals. The firm provides businesses with a full range of auditing, accounting, tax, bankruptcy and restructuring services as well as litigation and corporate financial advisory services to domestic and international clients. The firm also specializes in providing tax advisory and consulting for high-net-worth individuals and their families, as well as a wide range of services for international, real estate, media, entertainment, nonprofit, professional and financial services and energy clients. The firm has a strong track record supporting emerging growth companies, entrepreneurs, business owners and investors as they navigate the business life cycle.

The firm's subsidiary, Tailored Technologies, LLC, provides information technology consulting services. In addition, its membership in JHI, the leading international association for independent business advisers, financial consulting and accounting firms, facilitates service delivery to clients throughout the United States and around the world. Marks Paneth & Shron LLP, whose origins date back to 1907, is the 30th largest firm in the nation and the 13th largest in the New York area. In addition, readers of the New York Law Journal rank MP&S as one of the area's top forensic accounting firms.

Its headquarters are in Manhattan. Additional offices are in Westchester, Long Island and the Cayman Islands. For more information, please visit www.markspaneth.com.

About Dr. Donald M. May

Donald M. May, Ph.D., is a valuation specialist with nearly twenty years of experience in industry, academia and public accounting and deep expertise in litigation and strategic consulting. Earlier in his career, Dr. May was an Assistant Professor in the Sloan School of Management at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology where he published research and taught MBA and Ph.D. level classes in economics, accounting, financial statement analysis and statistics.