What is an Appraisal?
In Berardi v. FMI Insurance Co., a panel of New Jersey’s Superior Court, Appellate Decision, affirmed a lower court’s ruling, which ordered a primary home insurer to defend its insured in a dog bite lawsuit, stemming from...more
A policy renewal requires a living insured to form a valid insurance contract, the Sixth Circuit recently ruled. In Boby Davis, et al. v. Westfield Ins. Co., Case No. 21-2797 (6th Cir. Mar. 14, 2022), Della Shields received a...more
Florida’s Second District Court of Appeal recently issued a decision that serves as a reminder not to take for granted a proposition that most practicing attorneys regularly encounter: a motion for summary judgment must be...more
Many typical homeowner’s insurance policies contain an exclusion for damages as a result of freezing unless the homeowner uses “reasonable care” to maintain heat in the home....more
When can an insured recover policy benefits as damages under the Insurance Code, potentially trebling what would otherwise be ordinary contract damages? That question, which has divided Texas insurance lawyers for more than a...more
Can something short of the filing of a complaint trigger an insurer’s duty to defend? It’s not an idle question. Uncertainty on this issue could produce an unintended breach, and, in some jurisdictions, breach of the duty to...more
The court in Thompson v. State Farm Fire & Cas. Co., 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 30308 (D. Ga. 2016), recently issued a mixed ruling on class certification regarding diminished value claims for Georgia homeowners. The plaintiffs...more