The Holding -
In Anderson v. State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co., 917 F.3d 1126 (9th Cir. 2019) (Wash.), the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals held that the thirty-day removal deadline under 28 U.S.C. § 1446(b)(1) does...more
The Holding -
In Centeno v. American Liberty Ins. Co., 2019 WL 568926 (D. Ariz. Feb. 12, 2019) (Order), an insurance bad faith case arising from a workers’ compensation claim, the Arizona District Court granted a motion to...more
2/26/2019
/ Aiding and Abetting ,
Appeals ,
Bad Faith ,
Covenant of Good Faith and Fair Dealing ,
Denial of Insurance Coverage ,
Dismissals ,
Insurance Contracts ,
Insurance Litigation ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Privity of Contract ,
TPAs ,
Workers' Compensation Claim
The Holding -
In Doneson v. Farmers Ins. Exch., 2018 WL 4781382 (Ariz.App. Oct. 3, 2018), an insurance bad faith case, the Arizona Court of Appeals upheld an exclusion precluding MedPay benefits “if workers’ compensation...more
11/29/2018
/ Appeals ,
Bad Faith ,
Breach of Contract ,
Declaratory Relief ,
Insurance Litigation ,
MedPay ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Parole Evidence ,
Policy Exclusions ,
Policy Terms ,
Reaffirmation ,
Tortious Interference ,
Workers' Compensation Claim
The Holding -
In Fisher v. USAA Casualty Insurance Company, 2018 WL 3804114 (Ariz. App. Aug. 7, 2018), a case arising from an underinsured motorist (“UIM”) arbitration, the Arizona Court of Appeals affirmed the trial...more
The Holding -
In Farmers Ins. Exchange v. The Honorable David Udall, 2018 WL 2931906 (June 12, 2018), the Arizona Court of Appeals accepted special action jurisdiction to hold that Insureds validly assigned post-loss...more
8/9/2018
/ Anti-Assignment Clauses ,
Appeals ,
Assignees ,
Assignment of Benefits (AOB) ,
Assignments ,
Breach of Contract ,
Consent ,
Contractors ,
Homeowner's Insurance ,
Insurance Litigation ,
Jurisdiction ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Policy Terms ,
Post-Loss Claims ,
Remediation ,
Water Damage
The Holding -
In Hanfelder v. Geico Indem. Co., WL 2018 WL 2315949 (May 22, 2018), the Arizona Court of Appeals reversed summary judgment granted to an Insurer because the Policy’s “imprecise” anti-stacking language did...more
6/11/2018
/ Affiliates ,
Anti-Stacking Provisions ,
Appeals ,
Commercial Insurance Policies ,
Contract Drafting ,
Declaratory Rulings ,
Insurance Industry ,
Insurance Litigation ,
Policy Terms ,
Reversal ,
Summary Judgment ,
Uninsured and Under-Insured Motorists
The Holding -
In Knightbrook Insurance Company v. Payless Car Rental System Incorporated, 2018 WL 769295 (Ariz. February 8, 2018), an insurance bad faith and equitable indemnification case arising from an auto claim, the...more
3/14/2018
/ Appeals ,
AZ Supreme Court ,
Bad Faith ,
Duty to Indemnify ,
Duty to Pay ,
Equitable Indemnity ,
Indemnification ,
Insurance Industry ,
Insurance Litigation ,
Restitution ,
Third-Party Liability
Although the Arizona Court of Appeals resolved this issue 20 years ago, I frequently see insureds' counsel argue that an insurer must pay the "undisputed amount" of a UM or UIM claim—and I just saw this argument last week—so...more
The Holding -
In Preciado v.Young American Insurnace Company, 2017 WL 2805631 ( Ariz.App . June 29, 2017) (unpublished), the Arizona Court of Appeals held the trial court erroneously failed to grant an Insurer’s motion for...more
11/1/2017
/ Abuse of Discretion ,
Appeals ,
Attorney's Fees ,
Auto Insurance ,
Bad Faith ,
Breach of Contract ,
Insurance Litigation ,
Motion for JMOL ,
Prevailing Party ,
Property Theft ,
Property Valuation ,
Punitive Damages ,
Reaffirmation ,
Reversal ,
Reversible Error
The Holding -
In Robert W. Baird & Co. Inc., v. The Honorable Christopher Whitten, 2017 WL 4296583 (Ariz. App. Sep. 28, 2017) (774 Ariz. Adv. Rep.4), the Arizona Court of Appeals just held that a legal malpractice...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
In Sobieski v. Am. Standard Ins. Co. of Wisconsin, 2016 WL 5436588 (Ariz.App. Sept. 29, 2016), despite upholding a bad faith judgment for an insurer conducting an unreasonable investigation and denying a claim, the Arizona...more
10/21/2016
/ Appeals ,
Arbitration ,
Auto Insurance ,
Bad Faith ,
Breach of Contract ,
Business Profits ,
Comparative Negligence ,
Denial of Insurance Coverage ,
Insurance Adjusters ,
Insurance Litigation ,
Judgment As A Matter Of Law ,
Jury Verdicts ,
Motion for Judgment ,
Motorcycle Accidents ,
Punitive Damages ,
Reversal ,
Uninsured and Under-Insured Motorists
In Arellano v. Primerica Life Insurance Company, 235 Ariz. 371, 332 P.3d 597 (App. 2014), despite finding an insurer’s conduct moderately to highly reprehensible, the Arizona Court of Appeals recently reduced a punitive...more
5/27/2015
/ Appeals ,
Bad Faith ,
Breach of Contract ,
Compensatory Damages ,
Due Process ,
Forgery ,
Fraud ,
Insurance Litigation ,
Life Insurance ,
Misrepresentation ,
Professional Negligence ,
Punitive Damages
In Newman v. Cornerstone National Insurance Company, 2014 WL 1257129 (Ariz.App. Mar. 27, 2014), the Arizona Court of Appeals held that a valid offer of underinsured motorist (“UIM”) coverage need not include premium prices...more