Some jurisdictions consider the ISO-form "bodily injury" definition to be ambiguous as to whether emotional distress requires physical harm to be bodily injury. Many insurers have amended bodily injury to expressly require a...more
In our January insurance update, we include three state cases addressing some less common situations. It’s not often that a pollution exclusion is interpreted in the context of an auto policy. But the South Dakota Supreme...more
In a case of first impression, the United States District Court for the District of Columbia (applying Illinois law) rejected a LEG3 exclusion as ambiguous. See S. Capitol Bridgebuilders “SCB” v. Lexington Ins. Co., 2023...more
Courts took up some interesting insurance questions this past month. Here’s some we address in our June Insurance Update. When a government sponsored cyberattack infects computers worldwide, does the war exclusion apply? ...more
Insurers regularly argue that commercial general liability (“CGL”) policies are not performance bonds and therefore there is no coverage for claims seeking damages for defective or faulty workmanship. Insurers also argue...more
The construction industry operates under the constant spectre of claims seeking damages for defective or faulty workmanship. Fortunately, the law in most states treats these claims as covered under commercial general...more
On Oct. 28, 2021, the Nevada Supreme Court in Zurich American Insurance Company v.. Ironshore Specialty Insurance Company, 137 Nev. Adv. Op. 66, held that an insured can rely on extrinsic facts to show that an insurer has a...more
Potential Six-Year Delay in Notice of Flood and Mold Damage “Substantially Prejudiced” Insurer - In Atain Specialty Insurance Company v. Carolina Professional Builders, LLC et al., 2:18-cv-2352-BHH (D.S.C. Oct. 2, 2020),...more
The insurance coverage analysis under a commercial general liability (“CGL”) insurance policy begins with the “insuring agreement.” The standard CGL policy provides coverage for “those sums that the insured becomes legally...more
In a recent decision, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals (a federal appellate court supervising the federal trial courts in Delaware, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and the Virgin Islands) enforced the plain meaning of an...more
In Ohio N. Univ. v. Charles Constr. Servs., 2018 Ohio LEXIS 2375 (No. 2017-0514, October 9, 2018), the Supreme Court of Ohio was recently called upon to determine if a general contractor’s Commercial General Liability (CGL)...more
Earlier this month, in Frederick Mutual Insurance Company v. Hall, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit concluded that coverage for faulty workmanship claims is “simply not the kind of coverage insurance agents and...more
Last week, the Ohio Supreme Court unfortunately narrowed the scope of coverage for a subcontractor’s faulty workmanship. The court held in Ohio Northern University v. Charles Construction Services, Inc. that faulty...more
In an opinion released on October 9, 2018, the Supreme Court of Ohio held that a general contractor’s commercial general liability insurance did not cover the defective work of either that contractor or its subcontractors....more
When does an excluded loss end and a covered “resulting loss” begin? This thorny question was the subject of a recent decision out of the Southern District of Texas, EMS USA, Inc. v. The Travelers Lloyds Insurance Co., No....more
In Double AA Builders, Ltd. v. Preferred Contractors Insurance Company, LLC, --- P.3d ----, 2016 WL 7508079, *1 (Ariz. Ct. App. Dec. 30, 2016), the Arizona Court of Appeals reversed the trial court’s grant of summary...more
As this blog has reported, a line of cases deciding coverage disputes over faulty workmanship runs against (or, at least, around) a basic rule for interpreting insurance policies. Under that rule, the scope of coverage is...more
Court Rejects Attempt to Broaden "Employer's Liability" Exclusion, Requiring Coverage - Why it matters: A New York federal court recently ruled that an "Employer's Liability" exclusion in a CGL policy applies only when...more
Building construction frequently generates silica dust, a substance that can cause lung disease and other respiratory problems. Abrasive sand-blasting or jack hammering as well as concrete drilling and block cutting can lead...more