In a recent decision in the case of Pyramid Technologies, Inc. v. Hartford Casualty Ins. Co., 752 F.3d 807 (9th Cir., May 19, 2014), the Ninth Circuit, relying on California law upheld a grant of summary judgment dismissing the insured’s business interruption claim as speculative and, by a split decision, reversed in part and remanded in part the trial court’s exclusion of the testimony from the insured’s expert witnesses under Daubert standards.  In addition, and most importantly, it also reversed a grant of summary judgment  concerning the insurer’s “genuine dispute” defense to the insured’s bad faith claims, holding that bad faith was an issue for the factfinder under the facts of the case.

In an upcoming Alert, Joann Selleck of the firm’s San Diego office and Maria Louise (Ria) Cousineau of Cozen’s office in Los Angeles will provide a considerably more detailed discussion of the case.