Careening race cars, missing diamonds, and gold treasure provide some of the backdrop for insurance issues that courts had to decide this past month. We begin in Pennsylvania where the state’s high court reined in some loose...more
5/20/2024
/ Appellate Courts ,
Breach of Duty ,
Defense Costs ,
Duty of Care ,
Duty to Defend ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Homeowners ,
Insurance Claims ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Misappropriation ,
PA Supreme Court ,
Securities Violations ,
Wrongful Death
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
1/23/2024
/ Bad Faith ,
Condominium Associations ,
Contamination ,
Demolition ,
Duty to Defend ,
Faulty Workmanship ,
Insurance Claims ,
Insurance Industry ,
Insurance Litigation ,
Occurrence ,
Policy Exclusions ,
Professional Service Exclusion ,
Property Damage ,
Renovations ,
SD Supreme Court ,
State Farm ,
Statute of Limitations
In our November Insurance Update, we address consent, “occurrence,” malicious prosecution, claims-made reporting requirements, and the duty to defend.
Consent has seemed to plague TV-maker Vizio. First, it got into trouble...more
11/17/2023
/ Agricultural Sector ,
Claims Made Policy ,
Consent ,
Department of Environmental Management ,
Duty to Defend ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Insurance Industry ,
Loss Coverage ,
Lost Profits ,
Malicious Prosecution ,
Policy Exclusions
Mental state, in some form, is the common theme running through our first three cases this month.
The Fifth Circuit decides whether directors and officers of an ice cream company, accused of breaching their fiduciary...more
8/22/2023
/ Assault ,
Bodily Injury ,
Breach of Duty ,
Duty to Defend ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Insurance Claims ,
Insurance Industry ,
Insurance Litigation ,
Listeria ,
Mental Health ,
No-Fault Insurance ,
OH Supreme Court ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Shareholders ,
Subpoenas
Here are some of the leading insurance cases from the past month.
The Sixth Circuit is the latest appellate court to address whether insurers must defend drug companies in local government opioid suits. Joining the Ohio...more
2/17/2023
/ Bodily Injury ,
Business Closures ,
Business Interruption ,
Commercial Litigation ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Duty to Defend ,
First Impression ,
Insurance Industry ,
Insurance Litigation ,
Opioid ,
Pollution Exclusion ,
Professional Liability
Kidnapping, treasure hunts, insurgents shooting down airplanes — sounds like the Fall TV lineup. But no, it’s our October Insurance Update.
And in honor of the month’s most treasured sporting event, the Fall Classic, we...more
10/25/2022
/ Auto Insurance ,
Biometric Information Privacy Act ,
Business Interruption ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Cyber Insurance ,
Duty to Defend ,
Insurance Industry ,
Insurrection ,
Intentional Torts ,
Kidnapping ,
Negligence ,
Personal Information ,
Umbrella Policies ,
Uninsured and Under-Insured Motorists ,
Western Union ,
Wire Fraud ,
Wrongful Death
Some important insurance decisions were handed down over the past month.
We begin in Ohio, where public nuisance claims by state and local governments over opioids and lead paint were on full display. In Acuity, the...more
9/22/2022
/ Abatement ,
Actual Damages ,
Bodily Injury ,
Business Closures ,
Claims Made Policy ,
Commercial General Liability Policies ,
Computer Fraud Insurance ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Duty to Defend ,
Hazardous Substances ,
Insurance Industry ,
Lead Paint ,
OH Supreme Court ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
SC Supreme Court ,
Theft ,
WA Supreme Court ,
Wrongful Death
A few years back, we discussed the Montana Supreme Court’s Parker decision, which interpreted an earth movement exclusion in a first-party claim under a homeowner’s policy. There, a boulder dislodged from a hillside and...more
8/23/2022
/ Arbitration ,
Bad Faith ,
Bodily Injury ,
Commercial General Liability Policies ,
Condominium Associations ,
Consumer Fraud ,
Duty to Defend ,
Homeowner's Insurance ,
MT Supreme Court ,
NJ Supreme Court ,
Property Damage
Our July Insurance Update is here. This is what we discuss.
“Hoosier” daddy? When a Little Daddy’s bouncer chased a drunk patron from Big Daddy’s parking lot, who knew it would lead to the Indiana Supreme Court...more
7/21/2022
/ Business Pursuits ,
Class Action ,
Commercial General Liability Policies ,
Duty to Defend ,
Earthquakes ,
Fracking ,
IN Supreme Court ,
Negligence ,
Oil & Gas ,
Oil Wells ,
OK Supreme Court ,
Policy Exclusions ,
Pollution Exclusion ,
Subrogation
Coverage disputes often center on whether the policy language is clear. Under the rules of contract construction, unambiguous language in an insurance policy must be given its plain and ordinary meaning. Sometimes,...more
Texas practitioners can add a new term to their legal vocabulary: “the Monroe exception.” The Texas Supreme Court has finally weighed in on whether to create an exception to the eight corners rule when determining if an...more
3/22/2022
/ ASIC ,
Assault ,
Bodily Injury ,
Collusion ,
Confidential Information ,
CT Supreme Court ,
Duty to Defend ,
Evidence ,
Extrinsic Evidence ,
Fire Insurance ,
Insurance Industry ,
Malware ,
No Contest Clause ,
Property Damage ,
Property Insurance ,
Reservation of Rights ,
State Attorneys General ,
Trademark Infringement ,
TX Supreme Court
Causation, an issue courts often wrestle with when deciding insurance coverage issues, lands the starring role in our February Insurance Update.
•A county experienced higher costs due to the opioid crisis. Does its...more
2/23/2022
/ Advertising ,
Bodily Injury ,
Contaminated Properties ,
Duty to Defend ,
Email ,
Environmental Violations ,
Fraud ,
Fraudulent Transfers ,
GEICO ,
Insurance Claims ,
Insurance Industry ,
Logos ,
Opioid ,
Pharmacies ,
Property Damage ,
Trade Dress
Many states have statutes or public policy that prohibits insurers from indemnifying policyholders for claims caused by their own willful acts. This is typical in the context of criminal acts or punitive damages, which many...more
Here’s our October Insurance Update.
The Sixth Circuit had insurance on its mind this past month. Three of the decisions we discuss in our update are from that court.
First, the Sixth Circuit joins the Eighth and...more
10/19/2021
/ Appellate Courts ,
Biometric Information ,
Biometric Information Privacy Act ,
Business Interruption ,
Business Losses ,
Commercial Property Owners ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Duty to Defend ,
Errors and Omissions Policy ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Insurance Claims ,
Insurance Industry ,
Misrepresentation ,
OIG ,
Personal Information ,
Prejudice ,
Professional Service Exclusion ,
Qui Tam ,
Subpoenas ,
USAA
Appellate courts have been busy the last few weeks deciding a wide swath of insurance issues.
The Eighth Circuit became the first federal appellate court to weigh in on pandemic-related business interruption claims. ...more
7/20/2021
/ Appellate Courts ,
Arson ,
Assault ,
Attorney Malpractice ,
Bad Faith ,
Business Interruption ,
Business Losses ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Discharge of Pollutants ,
Duty to Defend ,
Elder Abuse ,
FL Supreme Court ,
Fraudulent Concealment ,
Insurance Industry ,
Invasion of Privacy ,
KY Supreme Court ,
Living Trust ,
MSHA ,
Pollution Exclusion ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
TCPA ,
WI Supreme Court
In this month’s update, state high courts consider reimbursement of defense costs, reimbursement of medical marijuana costs, and reimbursement of ransomware payments.
Federal courts determine whether a debt collector is...more
4/23/2021
/ Bad Faith ,
Bitcoin ,
Business Partners ,
Car Accident ,
Debt Collection ,
Defense Costs ,
Duty to Defend ,
Emotional Injury Claims ,
Environmental Claims ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
FDCPA ,
Hackers ,
IN Supreme Court ,
Medical Devices ,
Medical Marijuana ,
Mortgages ,
NH Supreme Court ,
NV Supreme Court ,
Phishing Scams ,
Ransomware ,
Reimbursements ,
TCPA ,
Workers' Compensation Claim ,
Workplace Injury
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
3/18/2021
/ Appellate Courts ,
Attorney Malpractice ,
AZ Supreme Court ,
Class Action ,
Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA) ,
Corporate Executives ,
Data Breach ,
Declaratory Judgments ,
Default Judgment ,
Duty to Defend ,
Email ,
Failure To Disclose ,
Fire Insurance ,
Forgery ,
Fraudulent Transfers ,
Hackers ,
Homeowners ,
Independent Contractors ,
Insurance Industry ,
Insurance Litigation ,
Insurer Liability ,
KY Supreme Court ,
Mediation ,
Motion for Summary Judgment ,
MT Supreme Court ,
NE Supreme Court ,
Objective Standard ,
Phishing Scams ,
Property Damage ,
Reservation of Rights ,
Spoofing ,
State Farm ,
Stocks ,
Summary Judgment ,
Target ,
Texas ,
Wells Fargo ,
Wire Fraud
Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation Centralizes Some COVID‐19 Related Insurance Cases
As reported in our September update, the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation at its July 2020 hearing session requested...more
10/19/2020
/ Appeals ,
Business Interruption ,
Commercial Insurance Policies ,
Construction Disputes ,
Contaminated Properties ,
Contamination ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Drinking Water ,
Duty to Defend ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
ERISA Litigation ,
Florida ,
Hazardous Substances ,
Motion To Centralize ,
Multidistrict Litigation ,
Policy Exclusions ,
Pollution Liability Insurance ,
Reversal ,
State and Local Government ,
Summary Judgment ,
Texas ,
Waste Management ,
Water Pollution
Eleventh Circuit Affirms “Exceptional Case” Ruling: Insurer Had No Duty to Defend Construction Debris Claim Where Amended Complaint Omitted Crucial Fact Implicating Pollution Exclusion
The Eleventh Circuit, affirming the...more
8/21/2020
/ Blood Tests ,
Bodily Injury ,
Clinical Laboratories ,
Construction Site ,
Conversion ,
Duty to Defend ,
Extrinsic Evidence ,
False Reporting ,
Four-Corners Rule ,
Fraud ,
Human Trafficking ,
Make-Whole Doctrine ,
Medical Testing ,
Negligence ,
Policy Exclusions ,
Self-Insurance ,
State and Local Government ,
Subrogation ,
Trademark Infringement ,
Wages ,
Waste
First and foremost, we hope everyone is staying safe and healthy.
As you probably have noticed, Rivkin Radler has issued a series of bulletins over the past several days to help our clients navigate through this difficult...more