Residential Real Estate, Civil Procedure, Insurance

When Does an "Occurrence" Occur?

by Jerome Sturhahn | Sherman & Howard L.L.C. on 5/1/2013

Two federal courts in Denver recently addressed a fundamental question that exists in almost every construction defect case - when did the property damage that gives rise to liability, and the insurer's obligation, occur? ...more

Landmark Florida Supreme Court Decision: Florida’s Economic Loss Rule

by Neha Dagley | Schecter Law on 4/29/2013

In Tiara Condominium Association, Inc. v. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc., the Florida Supreme Court held, in a five-to-two decision, that the economic loss rule is limited to products liability cases. Tiara Condominium...more

Calif. Plumbs The Depths Of Water Damage Exclusions

by Jose Umbert | Zelle Hofmann Voelbel & Mason LLP on 4/12/2013

A recent decision by the California Court of Appeal confirms the willingness of courts in California to enforce exclusions for water damage in property policies, thus precluding coverage for the policyholders’ alleged...more

New York Appellate Division Holds Bond Insurer Can Pursue Repurchase Obligations On Performing Loans

by BuckleySandler LLP on 4/11/2013

On April 2, the Supreme Court of New York, Appellate Division, held that loans underlying mortgage-backed securities need not be in default to trigger the lender’s repurchase obligations. MBIA Ins. Corp. v. Countrywide Home...more

Drowning in a Sea of Tort: The Florida Supreme Court Reels in the Economic Loss Rule

by April Boyer, Stephanie Moot | K&L Gates LLP on 4/10/2013

On March 7, 2013, the Florida Supreme Court in Tiara Condominium Assoc., Inc. v. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. expressly limited the application of the economic loss rule to products liability cases. 2013 WL 828003 (Fla....more

Judge Invalidates California Regulation on Estimating Replacement Costs for Homeowners Insurance

by Larry Golub, Samuel Sorich | Barger & Wolen on 4/4/2013

On March 25, 2013, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Gregory Alarcon issued a decision which found the California Department of Insurance’s regulation on estimating replacement costs for homeowners insurance to be invalid. The...more

The Washington Supreme Court Holds That in First-Party Bad Faith Litigation There Is a Presumption of No Attorney-Client Privilege

by Craig Bennion, Meredith Dishaw | Cozen O'Connor on 3/15/2013

When an insured sues an insurer for bad faith, how much of the claims file maintained by the insurer is discoverable? In a 5-4 decision, the Washington Supreme Court recently weakened insurers’ ability to protect confidential...more

Sudden and Accidental Pollution in Massachusetts — Not Always Fatal To Coverage

by Robert S. Sanoff | Foley Hoag LLP - Environmental Law on 2/22/2013

In some jurisdictions, an environmental claim under a liability policy with a “sudden and accidental” pollution exclusion has the same prospect of success as a due process claim under the strict scrutiny standard — strict in...more

Residential Insurance Policy Requiring Claim Against Insurer be Filed in Under 2 Years is Void

by Pavlack Law, LLC on 2/22/2013

This week we discuss the major Indiana Court of Appeals decision, which found that not only is an insurance policy's limitation for bringing a suit against the insurer to less than the statutory period set forth by statute...more

First Circuit Affirms Pro-Rata Damages Verdict in Boston Gas

by Choate Hall & Stewart LLP on 1/29/2013

What you need to know: The US First Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the trial court’s pro-rata, time-on-the-risk allocation of damages from environmental contamination in the long-running Boston Gas case. The court...more

California Court Holds That A Tripartite Attorney-Client Relationship Exists Between A Title Insurer, Its Insured And Counsel...

by Kenneth Styles | Miller Starr Regalia on 1/25/2013

Ten years ago, a California Court of Appeal took a relatively narrow view of the attorney-client privilege in conjunction with claims investigation and analysis conducted by a title insurer’s in-house counsel....more

Class Decertification, Case Law Update – Campbell v. First American Title Insurance Company

by Schecter Law on 1/14/2013

A class action is a lawsuit where one or members of a class may sue or be sued as representative parties on behalf of all members. The class action must have the characteristics of commonality, adequacy, numerosity, and...more

7th Circuit Holds Insured’s Voluntary Payments Barred Coverage

by Traub Lieberman Straus & Shrewsberry LLP on 1/9/2013

In its recent decision in West Bend Mut. Ins. Co. v. Arbor Homes LLC, 2013 U.S. App. LEXIS 428 (7th Cir. Jan. 8, 2013), the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, applying Indiana law, addressed whether an...more

California Federal District Court Holds Force-Placed Insurance Claims Not Preempted By National Bank Act

by BuckleySandler LLP on 1/7/2013

On December 11, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California refused to preempt under the National Bank Act claims that a mortgage lender breached its contract by force-placing a backdated flood insurance...more

Under Construction - December 2012

by Wade R. Budge, Stuart J. Einbinder, Richard G. Erickson, Joshua Grabel, Jennifer R. Phillips, Nora R. Pincus, Scott C. Sandberg, James J. Sienicki, Jeffrey M. Singletary, Nicole Sornsin | Snell & Wilmer L.L.P. on 12/31/2012

In This Issue: Letter from the Editor; Colorado Construction Law Developments in 2012; Arizona Court of Appeals Issues Decision Related to the Application of the Statute of Repose and Economic Loss Doctrine for...more

Developments in Law, Factual Discovery Lead Federal Judge to Decertify Class Action

by Jennifer M. Keas | Foley & Lardner LLP on 12/24/2012

In Campbell v. First American, a federal judge in Maine has issued a ruling decertifying a class action involving claims that First American Title Insurance Co. overcharged refinance customers for their title insurance....more

Bad Faith Sentinel - December 2012

by Gregory M. Boucher, Carolyn Due, Matthew M. Haar, Joseph C. Monahan, Amy L. Piccola, Thomas S. Schaufelberger | Saul Ewing LLP on 12/21/2012

In This Issue: - Florida Court Holds That Insurer’s Claim File, Including Log Notes And Internal Emails, Is Protected By Work Product Protection pages 1 - 2 - Southern District Of Mississippi: Insurer Has Right to...more

Colorado Construction Law Developments in 2012

by Scott C. Sandberg | Snell & Wilmer L.L.P. on 12/20/2012

While Colorado’s General Assembly passed no significant legislation affecting construction law in 2012, the Colorado Court of Appeals handed down a number of significant rulings....more

Court Dismisses In Part RMBS Suit Against Countrywide, Dismissed In Entirety Against Bank of America

by Orrick - Structured Finance Group on 12/18/2012

On December 6, Judge Mariana Pfaelzer of the United States District Court for the Central District of California dismissed in part claims brought by several insurance companies, including Minnesota Life Insurance Company, in...more

Governmental Actions That May Assist Insurance Recovery for Superstorm Sandy Claims

by Lynda A. Bennett, Andrew S. Zimmerman | Lowenstein Sandler LLP on 12/6/2012

Following the widespread destruction caused by “Superstorm Sandy,” the governors of New York and New Jersey declared states of emergency and issued numerous emergency executive orders and directives. Some of these orders have...more

Lender Wins Dismissal of Force-Placed Insurance Class Action

by BuckleySandler LLP on 11/12/2012

On October 30, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California dismissed a putative class action alleging that the lender breached certain mortgage contracts and violated state and federal law through its...more

Virginia Supreme Court Ends Chinese Drywall Debate

by Andrea Cortland | Cozen O'Connor on 11/8/2012

We are pleased to report that the Virginia Supreme Court has tacked down – or, more appropriately, “drywall-ed in” – the issue of whether a pollution exclusion in a property insurance policy precludes coverage for Chinese...more

Ohio Supreme Court Rules that Claims of Defective Workmanship Against a Builder Do Not Constitute an Occurrence Under a CGL Policy

by Scott Galla | Cozen O'Connor on 10/19/2012

On October 12, 2012, the Ohio Supreme resolved a longsimmering conflict among Ohio’s intermediate appellate courts by answering the following certified question: Are claims of defective construction/workmanship brought...more

Insurance Coverage: June 2012

by Low, Ball & Lynch on 10/4/2012

In This Issue: - Pacific Rim Mech. Cont. Inc. v. Aon Risk Ins. Services West, Inc. (2012) 203 Cal.App.4th 1278 - Axis Surplus Insurance Company v. Glenco Insurance Ltd. (April 2012) Court of Appeal, Fourth...more

[NEW CASE ALERT] A California Court Of Appeal Applies Equitable Subrogation To A Missed Deed Of Trust

by Miller Starr Regalia on 10/2/2012

It’s every title company’s nightmare. In the process of closing a secured real estate transaction, a previously-recorded deed of trust is missed, and now the title insurer is potentially responsible for the loss to the...more

Home

Legal News

Find a Lawyer

Browse Subjects

Subscribe

Pro Services

For Reporters

Residential Real Estate › Civil Procedure › Insurance