Biography

Mark Spencer is an experienced litigation attorney whose trial and appellate practice encompasses the areas of employee benefits litigation, insurance defense, healthcare litigation, employment litigation and appellate law with a heavy emphasis on ERISA litigation. 

Much of Mark’s practice is devoted to regularly counseling and defending employers, insurers, administrators, fiduciaries, third-party administrators (TPAs), health maintenance organizations (HMOs) and benefits providers in a wide variety of disputes, including those involving administrative review proceedings, claims decisions, subrogation/reimbursement actions, alleged breaches of fiduciary responsibility, protected rights litigation, claims for prohibited transactions, alienation of benefits, plan service provider malpractice, reinsurance, and claims arising from reductions-in-force.  In an effort to help clients avoid future litigation, he works closely with the firm’s employee benefits attorneys, providing valuable advice regarding the design and implementation of employee benefits plans, and regularly counsels clients on ERISA compliance.  He also drafts and reviews service contracts as part of his benefits counseling practice.

In addition to litigating cases involving employer-provided benefits, Mark represents insurance companies in traditional life, health and disability insurance litigation.  For several years he has been the planner and moderator of the Oklahoma Insurance Law Update, an annual seminar sponsored by the Oklahoma Bar Association.

A portion of Mark’s practice is also devoted to appellate matters.  Throughout his career, he has successfully represented clients before the United States Supreme Court and various federal and state appellate courts.  In 2002, he represented the National Association of Subrogation Professionals, Inc. in filing amicus curiae briefs (in the Ninth Circuit in support of the petition and in the U.S. Supreme Court on the merits) in Great-West Life & Annuity Ins. Co. v. Knudson.

Upon graduation from law school and before entering private practice, Mark served as a law clerk for the Honorable William J. Holloway, Jr., Chief Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit.

Mark is a frequent speaker on the specialty topics of ERISA and insurance litigation at the state and national levels.  He has also been interviewed by the media for his analysis on U.S. Supreme Court decisions.

Representative Experience Great-West Life & Annuity Ins. Co. v. Knudson, 534 U.S. 204 (2002) (amicus curiae) Brown v. J.B. Hunt Transp. Servs, Inc., No. 08-3803, __ F.3d __  (8th Cir. Nov. 17, 2009 Gaither v. Aetna Life Ins. Co., 394 F.3d 792 (10th Cir. 2004) Conover v. Aetna US Healthcare, Inc., 320 F.3d 1076 (10th Cir. 2003), cert. denied, 542 U.S. 936 (2004) Beaird v. Seagate Tech.,  Inc., 145 F.3d 1159 (10th Cir.), cert. denied, 525 U.S. 1054 (1998) Gaylor v. John Hancock Mut. Life Ins. Co., 112 F.3d 460 (10th Cir. 1997) Shamrock Drilling Fluids, Inc. v. Miller, 32 F.3d 455 (10th Cir. 1994) Warner v. Aetna Health Inc., 333 F.Supp. 2d 1149 (W.D. Okla. 2004) Conover v. Aetna US Healthcare, Inc., 167 F. Supp. 2d 1317 (N.D. Okla. 2001) Great-West Life & Annuity Ins. Co. v. Clingenpeel, 996 F. Supp. 1348 & 1353 (W.D. Okla. 1998) Melton v. White, 848 F.Supp. 1511 & 1513 (W.D. Okla. 1994) Metro. Life Ins. Co. v. Browning, 839 F.Supp. 1508 (W.D. Okla.1993) Ferguson v. The Prudential Ins. Co. of Am., 777 F.Supp. 15 (W.D. Okla. 1991) Cranfill v. Aetna Life Ins. Co., 2002 OK 26, 49 P.3d 703 (Okla. 2002) Trice v. Burress, 2006 OK CIV APP 79, 137 P.3d 1253

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