Derek Goff

Derek J. Goff is an associate attorney in Swift Currie’s Atlanta office with over nine years of litigation experience. He focuses his practice on first and third party coverage opinions and litigation and bad faith insurance litigation. He also defends premises liability, construction defects, automobile accidents and other tort claims cases. Both prior to and after joining Swift Currie, Derek represented numerous clients in multiple practice areas against multi-million-dollar lawsuits. He has previously done work for plaintiffs’ personal injury firms and represented insureds in their claims against insurers. With extensive experience on both sides of coverage and injury cases, he understands what is necessary to effectively defend his clients.

Derek often works on the edge of developing coverage law, analyzing multiple jurisdictions to determine how states are likely to analyze various coverage provisions. He also previously completed an internship for the United States Attorney’s Office (USAO) for the Northern District of Mississippi. This experience gave Derek valuable insight on how the USAO and other related agencies function.

In his work, Derek prioritizes answering the difficult legal questions regarding coverage, and when necessary, brings those questions before the court for resolution. Derek works to ensure that the insurers’ determinations are well-informed, and when jurisprudence does not permit certainty on a specific question, he indicates the likelihood of the potential outcomes.

Derek earned his J.D., summa cum laude, from the University of Mississippi School of Law. He received his B.A. from the University of Southern Mississippi, where he graduated with highest honors.

Awards/Recognitions

• Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch©, 2026
• Daniel-Coker Moot Court Competition Best Brief Award - University of Mississippi, August 2014
• Best Brief Award and Semifinalist in Gabrielli Moot Court Competition - Albany Law School, March 2015
• Selected as designated brief writer in National Moot Court Competition - University of Mississippi, September 2016
• Outstanding Student Award: Conflict of Laws - University of Mississippi, December 2014
• Outstanding Student Award - University of Mississippi Criminal Appeals Clinic, December 2015

Memberships

• State Bar of Georgia
• The Mississippi Bar
• Alabama State Bar

• U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi

• U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi

• U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit

Interests

In his free time, Derek enjoys reading about and discussing theology, law, history and philosophy. He enjoys playing guitar and spending time with his wife and teenage daughter. He attends and sometimes teaches at a local Church of Christ. He also supports various Christian and animal rights causes.

Speaking Engagements

Publications

Thought Leadership

• New Life in the First Amendment: Funeral Protest Statutes after McCullen v. Coakley, 13 Dartmouth L.J. 4 (May 2016)
• Mechanics’ Liens and Right to Payment: Getting What is Owed, Sterling Educational Services Continuing Legal Education (Spring 2018)
• Insurance Law Review (April 2020, February 2020, etc.)
• Florida District Court Finds Virus Exclusion Arguably Ambiguous as Applied to COVID-19 Business Losses (November 2020)
• Florida’s New “Combatting Public Disorder Act” and Its Impact on Insurers of Florida Local Governments (May 2021)
• Mississippi Property Owners Not Required to Exhaust Administrative Remedies Before the Mississippi State Oil and Gas Board Prior to Bringing Suit (September 2021)
• Eleventh Circuit Resolves Forty-Year-Old Battle to Restore the Ocklawaha River by Concluding It Lacks Subject-Matter Jurisdiction to Review Agency Enforcement Decisions (November 2021)
• Renewal of Policies Following the Death of the Insured, First Party Report Newsletter (Summer 2022)
• A New Wave of Insurer-Friendly Bills Seek to Curtail Nuclear Automobile Verdicts in Georgia, First Party Report Newsletter (Spring 2023)
• Another One Caught in the Holt Trap, First Party Report Newsletter (Spring 2024)
• Negligence Per Se in the Ocean of Ever-Changing Regulations, First Party Report Newsletter (Fall 2024)
• The End of Chevron Deference and the Resultant Weakening of Negligence Per Se Claims, First Party Report Newsletter (Spring 2025)
• Watch Your Step: Creative Pleadings to Avoid the Static Condition Hazard in Premises Liability Cases, The Tort Report Newsletter (Summer 2025)
• Post-Amendment Dram Shop Cases and the New “Knowingly” Element, First Party Report Newsletter (Fall 2025)