Jill Cranston Rice (formerly Bentz)

Biography

Jill is the chair of the Government Relations and Health Law practice group and a member of the firm's Board of Directors. She focuses her practice on government relations, insurance and health care law but litigates on behalf of many sectors. She has extensive legislative and administrative government relations and commercial litigation experience. She has been a registered lobbyist in West Virginia for more than 25 years and has lobbied on behalf of various businesses and industry sectors. 

Jill currently serves as president of the West Virginia Insurance Federation and is the lead lobbyist for the property and casualty insurance industry in West Virginia. She played a key role in the passage of West Virginia's comprehensive insurance and civil justice reform legislation in 2005 and she regularly defends insurers in civil and administrative proceedings involving coverage disputes and claims for common law and statutory bad faith.

She maintains an active commercial litigation practice, representing West Virginia businesses ranging from financial institutions to national drug companies to health care providers. She has extensive health care experience, having represented hospitals and healthcare providers in certificate of need, antitrust, on-call pay, uninsured billing, and medical staff privilege cases, and routinely deals with clients on day-to-day regulatory matters.

Jill is a driven leader. She is committed to her community and the profession. She currently serves as the Second Vice President of DRI - Lawyers Representing Business, the largest association of civil defense attorneys and in-house counsel. In addition to serving on the firm's Board of Directors, Jill chairs the firm's Business Professionals Evaluation, Engagement and Retention Committee and is also a member of the firm's Professional Development and Diversity Committees.

Education

  • West Virginia University College of Law  (J.D., 1997)
  • University of Kentucky  (B.A., 1994)
    • Political Science
    • Otis A. Singletary Outstanding Freshman
    • University commencement speaker, May 1994

Bar Admissions

  • West Virginia

Court Admissions

  • U.S. Supreme Court
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
  • U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia
  • U.S. District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia

Affiliations/Memberships

  • DRI - Lawyers Representing Business
    • Second Vice President
    • Annual Meeting Steering Committee, member
    • Insurance Roundtable, member
    • State representative for West Virginia
    • Issues and Advocacy Committee, Center for Law and Public Policy, chair
    • Center for Law and Public Policy, Management Council
    • Board of Directors
  • Defense Trial Counsel of West Virginia
    • Past president 
    • Co-Founder and co-chair, Women in the Law Committee
    • President (2016 - 2017)
    • Vice president (2015 - 2016)
    • Treasurer (2014 - 2015)
    • Secretary (2013 - 2014)
    • Diplomat (2021)
  • Federation of Defense and Corporate Counsel
  • Association of Defense Trial Attorneys, prime member
  • International Association of Defense Counsel
  • West Virginia Insurance Federation, president
  • Highland - Clarksburg Hospital, Inc., chair, board member
  • WVU College of Law Visiting Committee 
  • Leadership West Virginia, board member
  • West Virginia Chamber of Commerce, Government Relations Committee, Civil Justice Committee
  • Junior League of Charleston, Inc., past president
  • National MS Society, West Virginia Chapter
  • Bridgeport Varsity Soccer Association
    • Past president
  • Read-A-Loud West Virginia, volunteer
  • Junior Achievement of the Kanawha Valley, volunteer

Distinctions

  • Best Lawyers®   
    • "Lawyer of the Year" in Morgantown for Appellate Practice (2021)
    • Government Relations Practice (2021-2024)
    • Appellate Practice (2022-2024)
    • Health Care Law (2024)
  • Chambers USA®: Guide to America's Leading Business Lawyers
  • Young Gun by the West Virginia Executive (2010)
  • Generation Next: 40 Under 40 award by The State Journal (2005)
  • Leading WV Business Lawyer by WV Inc. (2007)
  • West Virginia Super Lawyers® 
  • Kevin Driskill Outstanding State Representative Award (2020)
  • Peer Review Rated AV Preeminent in Martindale-Hubbell
  • Trailblazer, Insurance Law, The National Law Journal (2021)
  • Diplomat, Defense Trial Counsel of West Virginia (2021)