Brandon Leskanic is an Orlando property damage attorney focusing on helping property owners receive full value after a covered loss. Brandon has honed his legal skills working across a variety of practice areas, firms, and business industries. He has a massive depth of experience to see a case through to victory through his experience in negotiation tactics and advocacy.
My Road From Business and Negotiating to Property Damage Attorney
My career path has taken many interesting turns, but I’m grateful to have had so many different experiences from which I can draw. I graduated from Florida State University with a finance degree and subsequently worked for a nationwide medical corporation with success in negotiating the corporation’s mergers, acquisitions, and corporate business dealings.
One of my first legal jobs was at Morgan & Morgan as an intern directly to John Morgan. That’s where I got my first taste of plaintiffs law and advocating for people in need. Being an entrepreneur at heart with a business and finance background, I started successful automotive and tech companies all because I love to learn, grow, and negotiate. Too many times to count, I’ve been able to lean on my variety of past experiences to better serve a client’s unique situation and wanted to help clients directly through legal representation.
Property damage can be very personal to our clients; it involves their home or place of business, somewhere that plays a major role in their lives. After many years of practice, I’ve learned a unique way of connecting with people, explaining complex insurance policies in simpler terms, and helping property owners understand homeowners insurance coverage and maximizing results for my clients.
Maximizing Results for Our Clients
What sets Farah & Farah apart from other firms is how we work as a team to combine the firm’s vast resources and experts. With my years of experience in the insurance industry and as a first-party property damage attorney, I draw on those resources and expertise to support our clients and maximize their recovery.
With experience in insurance law and, specifically property insurance policies, we have an unmatched ability to substantiate our client’s property damage claims. Since I’ve been admitted to the Florida Bar, my sole practice has been representing homeowners and business owners when insurance companies underpay or deny their insurance claims. Especially here in Florida, where insurance companies tend to deny or underpay the majority of claims even when it is undisputed that our clients’ properties were clearly damaged and were losses covered under their policies of insurance.
We’re fortunate to have such an innovative, creative, and dedicated team to represent our clients in their property damage insurance claims. I get to work alongside top-notch first-party property damage attorneys like Andreas Study and under one of the best managing attorneys I’ve ever worked with, Ricky Favors, to help resolve situations for our clients who couldn’t otherwise do for themselves.
How I Help Establish Your Case After a Covered Loss
Many insurance policies contain clauses that allow the carrier to take certain actions after a loss. One of these is mediation, in which both parties come together in front of a neutral third party and essentially present their cases. I love mediation because I like speaking with everyone.
As an advocate, you have to be tough but you also have to be reasonable and professional to get the best results. I’ve learned to walk a fine line between getting the point across on behalf of the property owners and staying respectful while negotiating. With my financial and accounting background, I have honed my negotiation skills to seek the best results possible.
In mediation, you have to be able to think on your feet and provide backup for how you arrived at the figure you’re requesting. I actually prefer mediation because it can help avoid a lengthy court battle. We get to sit with these giant insurance carriers’ counsel and hash things out.
To my clients, this loss was their whole world. To the insurance company, it’s just another claim. My drive is to establish a great case and help a fellow Floridian in need after a covered loss.
I’ve Seen Insurance Think of Any Way They Can To Deny Liability
In my time as a property damage attorney, I have seen quite a few wild cases. I’ve had many cases where homeowners were offered nothing and walked away with a substantial settlement. However, there is one case I’ll never forget in which my client’s rental house was vandalized.
In investigating the loss, it was discovered that his tenants had turned the house into a drug operation. The insurance company tried to deny coverage because they said my client didn’t include in his rental agreement a specific statement that said tenants couldn’t use the house for illegal drug operations.
It was a difficult case requiring lots of legwork but in the end, we were able to secure a fantastic outcome by holding the insurance company to the policy terms. It is fascinating to see how insurance companies can think of seemingly endless ways to deny liability.
My Family and Passion for Community Service
I’m grateful to work in a firm that places so much emphasis on service. My family and I have always been intentional with serving in our community, especially around the holidays. Each year, we choose a different way to help spread a little good to folks who have been dealt a rough hand. One way we’ve done this is by volunteering at senior living centers. We went one Thanksgiving to talk and spend time with the residents. They were so appreciative. It was a fantastic experience and I’m grateful I got to do it with my family.
On the weekends, my black lab and I often visit places like Park Avenue in Winter Park because of its family-oriented atmosphere. Family is incredibly important to me and having that family atmosphere at work makes Farah & Farah a truly special place to practice law.
My Sports Background and Competitiveness
In my downtime, you’ll likely find me out and about enjoying a round of golf, hanging with friends, and just being outside. Most days, I like to wake up early and hit the gym. It wakes me up and gets me excited about the day. I played baseball all the way through college and still love to catch just about any game that’s on. My dad played in the major leagues for over a decade, so that’s a special bond we have. I’m also a pretty rabid FSU Seminoles football fan, so it’s a sure bet I’ll be watching them during the season.
Growing up playing sports, I developed a pretty competitive nature that serves me well as a property damage attorney. My job is to help handle a situation with people that’s often one of the worst things that’s ever happened to them. In every case, I try to convey peace of mind by being friendly and understanding–something that’s so important in this line of work.
So much work goes on behind the scenes but outwardly, I want to help my clients have that peace. They may be in an unfair situation but I get to fight and be competitive for them. If I can make them laugh and bring them joy through the process, it shines through and it’s cool to see how the entire team here at Farah & Farah gets amped up along with them. I love seeing our whole team come in early and stay late to help as many people as we possibly can.
