First Republic Executives Fail in Attempt to Recover Nonqualified Deferred Compensation Plan Assets
As a father of three children, I have become intimately familiar with this defense to all manner of allegations (which, yes, often involve property damage). When it comes to coverage disputes, you often see insureds making...more
Plaintiff’s counsel often employ a range of strategic tactics to defeat diversity jurisdiction because they view federal court as an unfavorable forum. One such tactic is to challenge the amount in controversy—a key...more
Litigation arose over whether a suit for misrepresentation and breach of contract arising out of an easement triggered a Commercial General Liability (CGL) insurer's duty to defend. Internal confidential communications...more
Merchants Preferred Insurance Company filed a declaratory judgment action in New York seeking a declaration that it had no duty to defend or to indemnify its insureds in an underlying Florida personal injury action arising...more
The parent of an infant sued Kim Eichle for Eichle’s alleged negligence in serving alcohol to her houseguest, Jacob Russo, who allegedly assaulted the infant, and for negligence in failing to keep the sidewalk at her...more
The United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, applying Illinois law, has held that an insurer’s complaint plausibly alleged that the insured had breached the terms of the policy’s cooperation clause....more
The rising tide of climate change lawsuits is sure to bring with it a wave of declaratory judgment actions on the issue of whether liability insurers have an obligation to defend fossil fuel producers and other climate change...more
On November 23, 2021, the Montana Supreme Court issued an almost unanimous decision in National Indemnity Company v. State of Montana, a ten-year-old coverage dispute arising from claims against the State of Montana alleging...more
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
United States District Court Orders Insured To Produce Certain Pre-Litigation Documents But Not Others Deemed Work Product 99 Wall sued Allied World seeking coverage under a property policy for water losses at 99 Wall’s...more
In a sweeping decision, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit extended the absolute pollution exclusion to the unplanned discharge of “rock fines,” pellets produced during quarry operations, and denied coverage for...more
It has long been the rule, under Pennsylvania law, that an insurer's duty to defend is determined "solely" by the allegations in the "four corners" of the complaint against the insured. Kvaerner Metals Div. of Kvaerner U.S.,...more
In Spandex House v. Hartford Fire Insurance Company, an insurer prevailed in a breach of contract and declaratory judgment action arising from an underlying suit against its insured, Spandex House Inc. In the underlying...more
In Direct Auto Insurance Company v. Bahena, et al., 2019 IL App (1st) 172918, the Illinois Appellate Court sifted through a procedural nightmare in order to get to the very sensical conclusion that “It cannot be the case that...more
In Netherlands Ins. Co. v. Cellar Advisors, LLC, 2019 U.S. Dist. Lexis 10655 (E.D. Mo.), the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri considered the scope of a waiver of subrogation clause in two wine...more
In part one of this blog I discussed intervention, one option insurers may have when coverage questions arise. As I noted in my prior blog, procedures for intervention vary by state, and some states simply do not allow an...more
A lawsuit filed by Danielle Roland against Klub Kutter’s Bar & Lounge alleged that on September 6, 2015, Roland was a “business invitee” at Klub Kutter’s in Fort Lauderdale, Florida....more
No one should know what an insurance policy covers better than the insurer itself. After all, the insurer wrote the policy, right? Yet there are times when coverage questions arise that even the drafter of the policy cannot...more
The Eleventh Circuit of the United States Court of Appeals recently decided Selective Insurance Company of the Southeast v. William P. White Racing Stables, Inc., et al., 2017 WL 6368843 (December 13, 2017), a case addressing...more
As cyber hacking and phishing schemes become more common, one issue that is often raised is whether, and to what extent, damages resulting from these incidents fall within the coverage afforded under a standard commercial...more
A recent article in the Sports section of The Miami Herald read “Shooting coach helps Winslow.” Perhaps, but it probably didn’t help the coach much. The admonition to “eat every carrot and pea on your plate” undoubtedly...more
An Ohio appellate court recently addressed the much-debated issue of recoupment of defense costs, holding in a 2–1 decision, and on very narrow grounds, that an insurer could recoup nearly $12 million it expended on the...more
Applying Illinois law, the court in Country Mutual Insurance Co. v. Bible Pork, Inc., 2015 IL App (5th) 140211, held that an express request in an underlying complaint for damages because of property damage or bodily injury...more
The first line of the Seventh Circuit’s opinion says it all: “This case provides a warning for insurance companies who refuse to defend their insureds.” As the court’s admonishment suggests, insurers that improperly refuse to...more
The Declaratory Judgment Act, 28 U.S.C. § 2201, gives federal district courts “unique and substantial discretion” over whether to hear suits seeking a declaration of rights. Wilton v. Seven Falls Co., 515 U.S. 277, 286...more