First Republic Executives Fail in Attempt to Recover Nonqualified Deferred Compensation Plan Assets
Mitek Systems Inc. v. United Services Automobile Association, Appeal No. 2023-1687 (Fed. Cir. June 12, 2025) In our Case of the Week, the Federal Circuit examined the limits of declaratory judgment jurisdiction for a...more
The Minnesota Court of Appeals has held that a malpractice claim was “deemed made” against an insured law firm when it received from its former client’s new counsel a letter directing the law firm to preserve records related...more
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
With apologies to the pseudonymous children’s book author Watty Piper, this is the story of a humble buy-sell provision in a family-owned LLC’s operating agreement that temporarily ran out of steam in the lower court, only to...more
The Delaware Supreme Court's decisions in Henry I and Henry II have had a significant impact on workers’ compensation claims involving underinsured motorist (UIM) benefits. Here, we break down the complex issues surrounding...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
As noted in an April 27th blog post, the Arkansas Department of Energy & Environment – Division of Environmental Quality (“DEQ”) filed a Complaint for Declaratory and Injunctive Relief (“Complaint”) in the United States...more
Southern District Refuses To Use Extrinsic Evidence “Bound Up With Merits” Of Underlying Action To Defeat Duty To Defend- 622 Third Avenue LLC filed a declaratory judgment action against Harleysville Worcester Insurance...more
For companies involved in an active dispute, filing a declaratory judgment often offers a way to take control of the situation. This strategy comes with significant advantages that not only help pave the way for successful...more
Trimble Inc. v. PerDiemCo LLC, Appeal No. 2019-2164 (Fed. Cir. May 12, 2021) - In this week’s Case of the Week, the Federal Circuit revisited its decision in Red Wing Shoe Co. v. Hockerson-Halberstadt, Inc., 148 F.3d 1355...more
Cap Export, LLC v. Zinus, Inc., Appeal No. 2020-2087 (Fed. Cir. May 5, 2021) - The Federal Circuit issued a single precedential patent case this week. The district court set aside a judgement and injunction originally in...more
Decades ago, Andy Warhol created 15 silkscreen prints and pencil illustrations based on Lynn Goldsmith’s 1981 photograph of the artist Prince. Goldsmith’s agent had licensed Vanity Fair to use the image to publish an...more
On March 17, 2021, the Eastern District of Pennsylvania issued its decision in Estate Chimney & Fireplace v. IFG Companies & Burlington Insurance Company, 2021 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 50360 (E.D. Pa. March 17, 2021), finding that an...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
A Manhattan law firm sued Midvale Indemnity Company seeking coverage under the firm’s commercial property insurance policy for losses caused by stay-at-home and social distancing directives issued by New York State in...more
Southern District Of New York Holds That Insured Not Entitled to Coverage For Losses Resulting From COVID-19- Sparks Steakhouse in New York City filed a coverage action against its insurer, Admiral Indemnity, alleging that...more
Claimants sued Waiting Room Solutions alleging various causes of action arising out of an employee placing a video camera in its women’s restroom and Waiting Room’s handling of the employee’s actions. Waiting Room’s liability...more
Pierce Management, a general contractor, subcontracted with RJK Electric for electrical work on a drive-thru at a Starbucks. Pierce’s project manager was allegedly injured while walking to his car in the parking lot by a...more
On October 19, 2020, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of North Carolina held that a “hazardous materials” exclusion contained in a CGL policy did not preclude a duty to defend the insured against claims...more
PATENT CASE OF THE WEEK - In re: PersonalWeb Technologies LLC, Appeal No. 2019-1918 (Fed. Cir. June 17, 2020) - In this week’s only precedential opinion, the Federal Circuit addresses issues of claim preclusion and the...more
Earlier this month, the Federal Circuit ruled on an interesting case that discussed (1) when a case or controversy exists as to unasserted patent claims, and (2) the extent expert declarations affect a patent eligibility...more
American Inter-Fidelity Exchange v. Hope, et. al., (N.D. Illinois 17 C 7934) - Brief Summary - A federal district court in Illinois held that defendants, who were sued for malpractice after a default judgment was...more
The defendant, Preferred Contractors Insurance Company Risk Retention Group LLC (PCIC), is a risk retention group charted in Montana and doing business in New York. PCIC issued a CGL policy naming defendant Nadkos Inc. as an...more
• In a relatively rare opinion regarding design patents, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit weighed in recently on the requirements for design patents in its Automotive Body Parts Association v. Ford Global...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