First Republic Executives Fail in Attempt to Recover Nonqualified Deferred Compensation Plan Assets
Conversion of State-Law Declaratory Judgment Actions Concerning First-Party Coverage Disputes into Federal Declaratory Judgment Actions Is Not Required Upon Removal - Addressing the thorny issue of whether a state-law...more
Litigation arose over whether a suit for misrepresentation and breach of contract arising out of an easement triggered a Commercial General Liability (CGL) insurer's duty to defend. Internal confidential communications...more
Merchants Preferred Insurance Company filed a declaratory judgment action in New York seeking a declaration that it had no duty to defend or to indemnify its insureds in an underlying Florida personal injury action arising...more
A New Jersey appellate court, applying New Jersey law, has held that the capacity exclusion in a directors and officers policy precluded coverage for a settlement of lawsuits alleging that an insured director defrauded a...more
The parent of an infant sued Kim Eichle for Eichle’s alleged negligence in serving alcohol to her houseguest, Jacob Russo, who allegedly assaulted the infant, and for negligence in failing to keep the sidewalk at her...more
Over the past five plus years, the Missouri legislature has continued to grant insurer’s new rights and protections. This includes requirements for time-limited demands, interpleader protections and the ability to intervene...more
Lost Business Income Not Covered Because Not Caused by Direct Physical Loss Or Damage, Third Department Finds- 87 Uptown Road, LLC owned an apartment complex with 11 apartment buildings in Ithaca, New York, which were...more
Claims Made and Reported policies are their own animal. Proper reporting of claims is vital to ensure coverage for any loss. Knowing what constitutes a “claim” that must be reported and when and how to report the claim can be...more
The Supreme Court of Delaware has held that a letter received by an insured from an attorney purporting to represent unidentified plaintiffs and forecasting future litigation did not constitute a “claim for damages” under a...more
In Princeton Excess & Surplus Lines Insurance Co. v. A.H.D. Houston Inc., the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals clarified the meaning of the undefined term “advertising idea” in the insuring agreement of a commercial general...more
On September 22, 2023, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit held in a non-precedential opinion that an insurer had no duty to defend a school bus transportation company under an auto policy for an alleged assault...more
The United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi, applying Mississippi law, has held that noncompliance with a 30-day notice provision in an asset protection policy does not bar coverage unless the...more
Bottom Line, Up-Front - A recent South Carolina federal district court ruling interprets South Carolina law in a new and potentially dangerous way – by allowing for an award of attorney’s fees against a property insurer...more
The United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, applying Illinois law, has held that an insurer’s complaint plausibly alleged that the insured had breached the terms of the policy’s cooperation clause....more
Almost everyone loves insurance in lawsuits. Plaintiffs love the potential pocket to pay the claim; defendants love the safety net of their insurer funding the defense and potentially the damages that may flow from an adverse...more
The rising tide of climate change lawsuits is sure to bring with it a wave of declaratory judgment actions on the issue of whether liability insurers have an obligation to defend fossil fuel producers and other climate change...more
In Citizens Ins. Co. of Amer. v. Thermoflex Waukegan, LLC no. 20-05980 (N.D. Ill. Mar. 1, 2022), the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois rejected the application of three separate general...more
On November 23, 2021, the Montana Supreme Court issued an almost unanimous decision in National Indemnity Company v. State of Montana, a ten-year-old coverage dispute arising from claims against the State of Montana alleging...more
A recent federal appeals court case applying Utah law goes to the heart of the conflict that arises between a policyholder and insurer when an insurer defends a policyholder under a reservation of rights and receives a...more
In our March Insurance Update, we discuss four state supreme court cases and four cybercrime cases. The state high courts address: •From whose perspective should a consent-to-settle provision be judged? •What standard...more
Two more federal court judges in the Northern District of Ohio have weighed in on whether insurance carriers in the cases pending before them must cover claims for damages caused by the COVID19 pandemic. In both cases, the...more
The United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, applying Illinois law, has held that a professional liability insurer had no duty to defend or indemnify an employee of its insured realty management...more
Southern District Of New York Holds That Insured Not Entitled to Coverage For Losses Resulting From COVID-19- Sparks Steakhouse in New York City filed a coverage action against its insurer, Admiral Indemnity, alleging that...more
United States District Court Orders Insured To Produce Certain Pre-Litigation Documents But Not Others Deemed Work Product 99 Wall sued Allied World seeking coverage under a property policy for water losses at 99 Wall’s...more
In Builders Mut. Ins. Co. v. Island Pointe, LLC, No. 27970, 2020 S.C. LEXIS 68 (May 13, 2020), the South Carolina Supreme Court clarified that insurers are not required and, absent unusual circumstances...more