We touch upon several issues in this month’s update.
Negligent breach of contract: Courts recognize that a CGL policy does not cover breach of contract claims. But where the insured is accused of negligently performing its...more
As temperatures in the Northeast have made it feel more like winter than spring, it’s only fitting that we begin our April Insurance Update with a case from Alaska. There, the Alaska Supreme Court decides for the first time...more
4/18/2025
/ AK Supreme Court ,
Appeals ,
Appellate Courts ,
Carbon Monoxide Exposure ,
Dismissals ,
Insurance Claims ,
Insurance Industry ,
Insurance Litigation ,
Manufacturers ,
Opioid ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Policy Exclusions ,
Pollution Exclusion ,
Property Insurance ,
Summary Judgment
The 2014 Home Depot data breach was one of the more notorious cyberattacks. A decade later, litigation over that incident continues. The Sixth Circuit recently decided whether an electronic data exclusion cleared insurers...more
2/21/2025
/ Commercial Insurance Policies ,
Cyber Insurance ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Data Privacy ,
Denial of Insurance Coverage ,
Duty to Defend ,
Insurance Claims ,
Insurance Industry ,
Insurance Litigation ,
Liability ,
Litigation Strategies ,
Policy Exclusions ,
Risk Management
We kick off the year with a quartet of state supreme court decisions and an intermediate appellate court ruling that has insurers breathing a harmonious sigh of relief. Policyholders and insurers often disagree over what the...more
1/23/2025
/ Abatement ,
Appellate Courts ,
Business Closures ,
Business Losses ,
Car Accident ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
CT Supreme Court ,
Damages ,
Duty to Defend ,
Insurance Claims ,
Insurance Industry ,
Insurance Litigation ,
OH Supreme Court ,
Policy Exclusions ,
Policy Terms ,
Property Damage ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices ,
Workers’ Compensation
There’s been plenty of litigation over whether construction defect claims qualify for coverage under a CGL policy. This month, we discuss two federal circuit court rulings (First and Seventh Circuits) that reach opposite...more
12/19/2024
/ Auto Insurance ,
Breach of Duty ,
Commercial General Liability Policies ,
Construction Defects ,
Construction Industry ,
D&O Insurance ,
Defamation ,
Duty to Defend ,
Insurance Claims ,
Insurance Industry ,
Insurance Litigation ,
Johnny Depp ,
Liability Insurance ,
Policy Exclusions ,
Policy Terms
There is a famous scene in The Pink Panther Strikes Again where inspector Clouseau asks a hotel clerk if his dog bites, to which the clerk responds “no.” When Clouseau goes to pet the dog, it viciously bites him on the hand....more
10/23/2024
/ Bodily Injury ,
Claims Adjusters ,
Distributors ,
Insurance Claims ,
Insurance Contracts ,
Insurance Industry ,
Insurance Litigation ,
Manufacturers ,
Policy Exclusions ,
Policy Terms ,
Property Damage ,
Sellers ,
Subpoenas
It’s not often that the U.S. Supreme Court weighs in on insurance issues. That’s because the McCarran-Ferguson Act gives states the primary authority to regulate the business of insurance. So when the Supreme Court speaks on...more
7/25/2024
/ Anti-Assignment Clauses ,
Asbestos Litigation ,
Bankruptcy Court ,
Horizontal Exhaustion Doctrine ,
Insurance Claims ,
Insurance Industry ,
Insurance Litigation ,
Liability ,
McCarran-Ferguson Act ,
Policy Exclusions ,
Pollution Exclusion ,
SCOTUS ,
Truck Insurance Exchange v Kaiser Gypsum Co Inc
Dominance was the theme of this year’s NCAA basketball tournament, with the UConn men’s team winning back-to-back championships and the South Carolina women’s team reclaiming the title with a perfect record. But let’s not...more
4/12/2024
/ Anti-Stacking Provisions ,
Auto Insurance ,
Breach of Contract ,
D&O Insurance ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Insurance Claims ,
Insurance Industry ,
Insurance Litigation ,
Notice Prejudice Rule ,
Policy Exclusions ,
Policy Terms ,
Professional Liability Insurance ,
Rescission ,
Storm Damage ,
Uninsured and Under-Insured Motorists ,
Wrongful Acts
In this month’s insurance update, we address:
•Whether opioid suits allege an occurrence -
•Whether the recurring presence of wild turkeys is “infestation” -
•Whether improper copying of an industry publication was in...more
2/23/2024
/ Commercial General Liability Policies ,
Copyright Infringement ,
Eviction ,
Insurance Claims ,
Insurance Industry ,
Insurance Litigation ,
Leases ,
Natural Person Requirement ,
Opioid ,
Pest Infestation ,
Policy Exclusions ,
Pollution Liability Insurance ,
Professional Liability Insurance ,
Property Damage ,
Tenants ,
USAA
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
Here’s what we discuss in our October Insurance Update.
Illinois: Environmental Suits Alleging Non-Compliance with Laws and Regulations Did Not Assert an “Occurrence”-
Massachusetts (federal): Insurer May Consider Sums...more
10/24/2023
/ Bodily Injury ,
Claims Made Policy ,
Clean Water Act ,
Defense Costs ,
Denial of Insurance Coverage ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Illinois ,
Insurance Claims ,
Insurance Industry ,
Insurance Litigation ,
Insureds ,
Occurrence ,
Opioid ,
Policy Exclusions ,
Professional Service Exclusion ,
Property Damage
We touch upon several topics in our September Insurance Update.
We begin with two federal circuit court rulings on late notice – one involving a claims-made policy and the other an occurrence policy. In these cases, the...more
9/26/2023
/ Affirmative Action ,
Aircraft ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Claims Made Policy ,
Data Breach ,
Failure to Notify ,
Harvard University ,
Insurance Claims ,
Insurance Industry ,
Insurance Litigation ,
Invasion of Privacy ,
Late Notices ,
Loss of Use ,
Medical Certification Requests ,
Policy Exclusions ,
Policy Terms ,
Pro Rata Allocation Rule ,
Property Damage
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
6/20/2023
/ Advertising Injury ,
Commercial General Liability Policies ,
Cyber Attacks ,
Cyber Insurance ,
False Advertising ,
Faulty Workmanship ,
Insurance Claims ,
Insurance Industry ,
Insurance Litigation ,
Intentional Torts ,
Merck ,
Negligence ,
Policy Exclusions ,
Professional Liability Insurance ,
Reservation of Rights
We bring you our March Insurance Update.
As college basketball programs embark on the road to the final four, we select our top four insurance cases from the past month.
In a dispute over the priority of coverage, the...more
3/16/2023
/ Bias ,
CT Supreme Court ,
Disinterested Parties ,
FEHA ,
FL Supreme Court ,
Insurance Claims ,
Insurance Industry ,
Insurance Litigation ,
Liability Insurance ,
NJ Supreme Court ,
Policy Exclusions ,
Public Adjusters ,
Retaliation ,
Self-Insurance ,
State Farm ,
Umbrella Policies
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
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
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