Brenton Ver Ploeg, born in Cody, Wyoming, received his B.S. from Northwestern University in 1969 and his J.D. from the University of California Hastings College of the Law in 1973, where he was a Note and Comment editor of Hastings Law Journal. He is admitted to the Bars of Florida, California and the District of Columbia and to practice in Florida's Middle and Southern Districts of the U.S. District Courts, the 5th and 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, and the U.S. Supreme Court. He was with Shutts & Bowen for over twenty years and is a seasoned trial attorney with extensive commercial and insurance litigation experience, including the representation of over twenty disability insurers in both individual and group cases.  A well-known lecturer and author on insurance bad faith claims handling, unfair insurance practices, and extracontractual damages, he concentrates on complex civil matters, emphasizing representation of policy holders in all varieties of insurance coverage and bad faith disputes including ERISA and appellate practice. He also serves as corporate counsel to two not-for-profit organizations dedicated to educating the public about science and the scientific method.