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
You’ll find some notable decisions in our May Insurance Update.
Appeals over pandemic-related business interruption losses have made their way up to state high courts. And so far, these courts have continued the trend...more
5/19/2022
/ Appellate Courts ,
Assignment of Benefits (AOB) ,
Bodily Injury ,
Business Interruption ,
Car Accident ,
Contaminated Properties ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Duty of Care ,
Good Faith ,
Hazardous Substances ,
Insurance Claims ,
Insurance Industry ,
Insurance Litigation ,
Lead Paint ,
Negligence ,
Opioid ,
Post-Loss Claims ,
Property Damage ,
Public Nuisance ,
SC Supreme Court ,
Supply Chain ,
TX Supreme Court
Cases in our April Insurance Update address several questions:
•Are costs incurred to comply with a subpoena covered?
•What must an insured show to rebut the presumption of prejudice in a late notice situation?
•What...more
4/21/2022
/ Amtrak ,
Appellate Courts ,
Claims Made Policy ,
Class Action ,
D&O Insurance ,
Data Breach ,
Insurance Claims ,
Insurance Industry ,
Insurance Litigation ,
Misrepresentation ,
Notice Requirements ,
Pollution Liability Insurance ,
Prejudice ,
Property Damage ,
Retroactivity ,
Securities ,
Subpoenas ,
Target
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
On February 25, 2022, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul signed into law amendments that relieve some of the most stringent insurance disclosure obligations for defendants under the December 2021 Comprehensive Insurance Disclosure...more
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
Cases discussed in our January Insurance Update answer these questions:
•A commercial crime policy covers property that the insured “holds for others.” In the context of a phishing scheme, does “hold” mean the insured...more
1/24/2022
/ Asbestos ,
Auto Insurance ,
Commercial Crime Insurance Polices ,
Construction Project ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Exclusions ,
Hazardous Waste ,
Independent Contractors ,
Insurance Industry ,
Liability Insurance ,
Online Payments ,
Opioid ,
Payment Processors ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Phishing Scams ,
Property Damage ,
Third-Party ,
Trucking Industry ,
Wastewater ,
Wells Fargo ,
Wind Damage
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
Our December Insurance Update features four cases.
The Minnesota Supreme Court decides if a resident-relative exclusion violates public policy.
A Texas appellate court considers, for a second time, if damage from...more
12/21/2021
/ Bodily Injury ,
Demolition ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Homeowners ,
Insurance Claims ,
Insurance Industry ,
MN Supreme Court ,
Policy Exclusions ,
Property Damage ,
Property Insurance ,
Public Policy ,
Trustees
We bring you our November Insurance Update.
Here’s what happened over the past month.
Insurers scored a hat trick before the Ninth Circuit, as the court found no coverage for pandemic-related business interruption...more
11/22/2021
/ Bodily Injury ,
Business Interruption ,
Business Losses ,
Car Accident ,
Causation ,
Commercial General Liability Policies ,
Commercial Insurance Policies ,
Construction Defects ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Criminal Convictions ,
Homicide ,
Injunctive Relief ,
Insurance Claims ,
Insurance Industry ,
NV Supreme Court ,
Policy Exclusions ,
Property Damage ,
Statutory Damages ,
TCPA ,
Telemarketing
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
September. Synonymous with back to school, the end of summer, and the start of the NFL season. And while the Cowboys and Bucs kicked off the season this year, another epic battle was brewing out west in the corridors of the...more
9/20/2021
/ Arbitration ,
Business Interruption ,
Business Losses ,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Debt Collection ,
FDCPA ,
Insurance Industry ,
Mandatory Arbitration Clauses ,
McCarran-Ferguson Act ,
Misrepresentation ,
Pollution Exclusion ,
Property Damage ,
Reimbursements ,
Reservation of Rights
Here is what you will find in our August Insurance Update:
•Pollution Exclusion Bars Coverage for Criminal Proceeding Over Submission of Fraudulent Coal-Dust Samples, Sixth Circuit Affirms-
•Fifth Circuit Finds Insurer...more
8/23/2021
/ Bodily Injury ,
Credit Cards ,
D&O Insurance ,
Data Breach ,
False Arrest ,
Insurance Industry ,
Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) ,
Personal Information ,
Pollution Exclusion ,
Ponzi Scheme ,
State Securities Claims ,
Wrongful Acts
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
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
Insurance coverage litigation often centers on the interpretation of specific terms and phrases in an insurance policy.
In our June Insurance Update:
The Illinois Supreme Court decides whether disclosure of biometric...more
6/24/2021
/ Biometric Information Privacy Act ,
Bodily Injury ,
Breach of Contract ,
CAN-SPAM Act ,
Class Action ,
Commercial General Liability Policies ,
Forgery ,
IL Supreme Court ,
Opioid ,
Property Managers ,
TCPA ,
VIZIO ,
Wire Fraud
We bring you our May Insurance Update.
In this month’s update:
•The Minnesota Supreme Court considers an issue of first impression over the reasonableness of settlement agreements that fail to allocate between covered and...more
5/24/2021
/ Appeals ,
Appellate Courts ,
Bodily Injury ,
Common Law Claims ,
Construction Defects ,
Damages ,
False Advertising ,
Leases ,
Liability ,
Misrepresentation ,
MN Supreme Court ,
Pollution Exclusion ,
Summary Judgment ,
TCPA ,
Unsolicited Faxes ,
Your Work Exclusions
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
Our February insurance update discusses several issues involving first-party and third-party insurance claims.
•The Florida Supreme Court answers a certified question about the type of damages available to first-party...more
2/18/2021
/ Bodily Injury ,
Commercial General Liability Policies ,
Contractors ,
Damages ,
FL Supreme Court ,
Groundwater ,
Homeowners ,
Insurance Industry ,
Oil Spills ,
Partial Summary Judgments ,
Property Damage
Courts ended 2020 with a flurry of insurance decisions. Our January 2021 Update highlights some of these decisions, including several by state supreme courts.
We begin with a new twist on pandemic-related claims. ...more
1/26/2021
/ Bicycles ,
Breach of Contract ,
Captive Insurance Company ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Easements ,
Harassment ,
KY Supreme Court ,
Motor Vehicles ,
MT Supreme Court ,
OK Supreme Court ,
Pedestrians ,
Pollution Liability Insurance ,
Property Insurance ,
TN Supreme Court ,
Unfair Claims Settlement Practices Act ,
Uninsured and Under-Insured Motorists ,
WA Supreme Court
Here is what we cover in our December Insurance Update.
In a case of first impression, the Illinois Supreme Court construes a mechanical device exclusion in an auto policy.
A New Jersey federal judge considers whether...more
12/18/2020
/ Appellate Courts ,
Auto Insurance ,
Class Action ,
Copyright Infringement ,
Disparagement ,
Email ,
False Statements ,
IL Supreme Court ,
Insurance Litigation ,
Lanham Act ,
Salmonella ,
Spoofing ,
Summary Judgment
Our November Insurance Update touches upon some novel issues.
•Is an appraisal action – a proceeding to determine fair stock value on the date of merger – a Securities Claim for purposes of a D&O policy?
•Must a workers’...more
11/19/2020
/ Auto Insurance ,
Commercial General Liability Policies ,
Construction Contracts ,
Contaminated Properties ,
Contractors ,
D&O Insurance ,
Hazardous Substances ,
Insurance Industry ,
Landlords ,
MA Supreme Judicial Court ,
Medical Marijuana ,
Methamphetamine ,
Pollution Exclusion ,
Rental Property ,
Third-Party ,
Workers' Compensation Claim