Amanda Paar Conroy
Selection for U.S. News and World Report's "Rising Star"
When is a condition a "pre-existing condition?" Let's ask the Sixth Circuit.
A highlight of my legal career is my successful brief-writing and oral argument beofre the Northern District of Ohio and later the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals in Mitzel v. Anthem Life Ins. Co., 351 Fed.Appx. 74 (6th Dist. 2009). In Mitzel, the issue was whether an employer's plan administrator acted arbitrarily and capriciously when it denied long-term disability benefits to an employee who was treating or a medical condition during the pre-existing exclusion period, but had not yet received a diagnosis until after the pre-existing exclusion period. The Sixth Circuit upheld my client's victory at the district court. To date, the Mitzel decision has been cited by over ten courts, incluidng the Sixth Circuit and district courts, and various treatises and secondary sources including Law and Practice of Insurance Coverage Litigation (see, § 57:69, Litigation under ERISA), Andrews Insurance Coverage Litigation Reporter (see, § 1.1, Undiagnosed Disease Isn't Pre-Existing Illness), and Couch on Insurance (see, § 147:30).
Read the full opinion here.
In 2010, 2011, and 2012, I was selected by U.S. News and World Reports as a "Rising Star" attorney. Approximately 5% of attorneys who are either 40 years old or younger or in practice for ten years or less are nominated for this designation, and no more than 2.5% are named to Rising Stars.
I created this video presentation on the history of eLearning in higher education as part of my Ph.D. work at Kent State University. The knowledge I obtained during this process crystalized the fact that eLearning has been in the making for decades and undoubtedly needs to be embraced as a key component of the future of higher education.
This Prezi presentation addresses componsents of distance learning courses and the necessity to engage students, promote interaction among students, and motivate learners. The overarching principle of backwards design gives every student the opportunity to successfully reach the final destination. Backwards design is a natural fit for me as a litigator. I am used to preparing cases backwards, asking myself "what do I want to tell the jury in my closing argument?" As an online instructor, I prepare my courses by stating clear course-objectives and creating a roadmap of how each stuent can achieve those objectives.
Video presentation on the history of eLearning in Higher Education
Presentation on Instructional Design and Development in eLearning
Notable Work
This is a collection of highlights of my professional career. Some are more formal than others, but each of them was a defining moment that helped shape my future as a professional in the law and education fields.
This infographic that I created explains the current main players in learning managment systems and student information systems, shows how the two are integrated, and descirbes how "big data" impacts eLearning in higher education.
Infographic of eLearning infrastructure and architecture
In the summer of 2010, I was one of two lead attorneys in a wrongful death trial regarding a pedestrian who was killed in a crosswalk. The intersection was undergoing a long-term construction project and the construction companies deactivated the pedestrian traffic signal at a five-way intersection and posted no notice to pedestrians, in violation of Ohio law. The jury awarded $250,000 to the family of the pedestrian. During post-trial proceedings, the judge fined the constructions companies an addtional $44,101 in attorney fees due to their misconduct during the discovery phase of the litigation. Please read more about the facts of this case, and read the judgment entry awarding attorney fees.
