Stephanie Burnstein is an experienced trial attorney who specializes in insurance defense, employment litigation and trucking/transportation matters, as well as general negligence claims. She represents a variety of insurance carriers and businesses handling all aspects of their pre-litigation and litigation demands.

Stephanie’s clients trust her extensive experience in handling all stages of their claims, including pre-litigation disputes and negotiations, discovery, motion practice, mediation, arbitration, trial and appeals. Her prior experience as a plaintiff’s litigator gives her the ability to see cases from both sides and anticipate the opposing counsel’s next moves.

She regularly presents to insurance carriers and businesses on best practices in accident investigation, claims handling and fraudulent claims, as well how to provide cost-effective strategies for dispute resolution.

Stephanie attended Michigan State University as an undergraduate and earned her J. D. from Wayne State University Law School in Detroit.

Stephanie resides in the Detroit area with her husband, children and dog Daisy.

Honors

  • Listed in Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch in America™ for Personal Injury Litigation – Defendants, 2024
  • Selected to Michigan Super Lawyers Rising Stars, 2022 – present
  • Kienbaum, Opperwall, Hardy and Pelton PLC Endowed Scholarship, 2014

Professional & Civic Involvement

  • State Bar of Michigan, Negligence Law Section Young Lawyers Committee
  • Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Committee
  • Pro Bono & Public Service Committee
  • Detroit legal aid clinic assisting homeless individuals
  • Women of Tomorrow Metro Detroit

Practice Highlights

Representative Matters

  • Obtained appellate court success in an insurance contractual language dispute.
  • Secured a favorable verdict at trial for a client in which the plaintiff claimed various injuries and subsequent surgeries.
  • Obtained summary disposition in a premises liability matter in which a minor claimed amputation due to a door hinge.
  • Obtained summary disposition for a trucking client based on a lack of liability where the plaintiff entered an intersection on a green light but failed to ensure that the intersection was clear of vehicles.
  • Secured summary disposition on behalf of an insurance company due to a failure to identify the company as an insurer within the statutory period.
  • Obtained summary disposition on behalf of a small-business owner in which the plaintiff claimed to have fallen on a staircase that was not up to code.
  • Obtained summary disposition on behalf of an insured driver in which the plaintiff failed to disclose her pre-existing conditions to her post-accident-treating providers.
  • Obtained summary disposition on behalf of an auto auction by arguing that the plaintiff was more than 50 percent at fault for the accident when he stepped in front of a moving vehicle in an auction lane.
  • Obtained summary disposition on behalf of a subcontractor relating to a slip and fall that occurred at a construction site by successfully arguing that the subcontractor owed no duty to the plaintiff.
  • Obtained summary judgment and dismissal on a claim with a demand in excess of $100,000 after uncovering the plaintiff’s fraudulent misrepresentations.
  • Obtained summary disposition and subsequent grant of attorney’s fees on behalf of an insurer for a transportation company based on the plaintiff’s fraud.
  • Granted partial summary disposition of a plaintiff’s wage loss claims as the claims were speculative in nature and did not constitute temporary unemployment. 

News & Events

Publications

Speaking Engagements:

  •  “Keeping the Claimants at Bay: Immediate Response and Allocation of Resources Required,” CLM Workers’ Compensation and Retail, Restaurant & Hospitality Conference, 2022
  • “Physical Security in a COVID Age,” CLM Workers Compensation and Retail, Restaurant & Hospitality Conference, 2021
  • “Collateral Consequences of Weed – the Challenges of Cannabis in Claims,” CLM Workers Compensation and Retail, Restaurant & Hospitality Conference, 2020
  • “Marijuana Legalization in the Workplace,” CLM webinar, 2020
  • When you Lose, We Lose: Preserving Evidence in Trucking,” Segal McCambridge in-house CLE,” 2019