Hinshaw Releases Second Edition of Duty to Defend: A Fifty-State Survey
Loading and Unloading Under GL and Auto Policies: 2022
Prior & Pending Litigation
What is a Damron Agreement?
On June 12, 2023, the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia held in WW Consultants, Inc. v. Pocahontas County Public Service District and A-3 USA, Inc., Orders Construction Company, Inc., and Pipe Plus, Inc., No. 21-0485,...more
The insureds, a country club and motorcycle group, held an annual motorcycle rally. They were sued by two motorcycle riders who were struck by an automobile as the riders and automobile were entering the premises of the club...more
Southern District Refuses To Use Extrinsic Evidence “Bound Up With Merits” Of Underlying Action To Defeat Duty To Defend- 622 Third Avenue LLC filed a declaratory judgment action against Harleysville Worcester Insurance...more
On August 11, 2022, the Washington State Supreme Court, answering a certified question from the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington, held that a contractor’s commercial general liability insurance...more
Second Circuit Holds That Insurer Precluded From Relying On Exclusions Because Unreasonably Delayed Disclaiming While Basis Was, Or Should Have Been, Apparent- In December 2015, Luis Alberto was working on a construction...more
Obtaining additional insured coverage is one critical tool in the risk transfer toolbox. Owners and contractors on construction projects routinely ask “downstream” contractors and subcontractors to sign contracts wherein the...more
Court Holds That Contractor’s Insurer Must Defend Owner As Additional Insured In Personal Injury Action Filed By Subcontractor’s Employee- A premises owner hired a contractor to perform an oil-to-gas boiler conversion, and...more
On Labor Day, Governor Kathy Hochul signed into law an amendment to New York Labor Law that holds prime and general construction contractors jointly and severally liable for unpaid wages, benefits, and wage supplements owed...more
Southern District of New York Holds That COVID-19 Claim Not Covered- Café du Soleil (the Café) operates a small Manhattan restaurant that suffered financial losses during the COVID-19 pandemic and suspended operations...more
The Connecticut Supreme Court recently addressed whether an insurer has a duty to defend when faced with legal uncertainty as to whether coverage is owed: for example, when there is no Connecticut case law on point, and...more
McMillin Homes Constr., Inc. v. National Fire & Marine Ins. Co., 35 Cal.App.5th 1042 (2019); Fourth Appellate District Court of Appeal, Division One, Case No. D074219 (June 5, 2019). McMillin Homes Construction, Inc....more
Pennsylvania law suggests construction defects generally are not considered an "occurrence" under most CGL insurance policies because defects are not true accidents, e.g., a fortuitous event. However, an exception generally...more
This article addresses potential issues and concerns, which may arise between General Contractors (“General”), Subcontractors (the “Sub”) and their insurers when claims by outside parties (also known as third-parties) may...more
That it took an appellate court to order AIG’s Lexington Insurance to honor its additional insured obligations is a measure of how frequently insurers attempt to dodge this important contractual obligation. The case of...more
In McMillin Management Services v. Financial Pacific Ins. Co. (No. D069814, filed 11/14/17), a California appeals court held that an insurer had a duty to defend a general contractor under an “ongoing operations” additional...more
Amberwood Dev., Inc. v. Swann’s Grading, Inc., No. 1 CA-CV 15-0786, 2017 Ariz. App. Unpub. LEXIS 207 (Ct. App. Feb. 23, 2017) - This case arose out of a housing development project, with Amberwood Development Inc....more
In Amerisure Mut. Ins. Co. v. Arch Specialty Ins Co., No. 14-20239 (5th Cir. April 21, 2015), a case that applied Texas law, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit recently held that the word “expenses,” as used in a...more
Involuntary Dismissal of Counterclaims – In a suit between a developer and general contractor, the trial court erred in dismissing the general contractor’s counterclaims, without a motion by the developer, before the...more
In QBE Ins. Corp. v. Adjo Contracting Corp. (N.Y. App. Div. 2d Dep’t Oct. 29, 2014), an intermediate appellate court in New York confronted cross-appeals involving 15 different insurers embroiled in multiple lawsuits,...more
Lack of Direct Contractual Relationship Doesn’t Doom Coverage - Why it matters: The companies involved in a workplace accident are additional insureds pursuant to a sub-subcontractor’s policy and the insurer...more
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit issued an opinion this month that should serve as a reminder to prime contractors to review the coverage granted to them as additional insureds on their subcontractors’...more