Subro Sense Podcast - Made Whole Rule: Lessons Learned From The 9/11 World Trade Center Litigation
When it comes to negotiating the insurance and risk-shifting terms of any garden variety business contract, the oft-used but rarely understood—or vaguely understood— “waiver of subrogation” arguably takes the lead for...more
This episode of Subro Sessions, hosted by associates Zachariah Sigda and Katherine Dempsey, entitled, “Insured Made Whole Doctrine: Texas and Washington State,” dives into the topic of the made whole doctrine. Zachariah and...more
Harbor Homeowner’s Association Inc. sued its insurers in Louisiana state court seeking to recover damages allegedly caused by the insurers’ failure to pay claims related to Hurricane Ida. The insurers removed to federal...more
In Ross v. Venerable Insurance & Annuity Co., a Missouri appellate court reversed judgment in favor of the named beneficiary of a flexible premium deferred annuity contract. Following the annuitant’s death, the beneficiary...more
In Okla. Farm Bureau Mut. Ins. Co. v. Omega Flex, Inc., No. CIV-22-18-D, 2023 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 197755, the United States District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma (the District Court) determined spoliation sanctions...more
In Vizio Inc. v. Arch Insurance Co., a case stemming from a class action settlement, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals clarified several areas of California law involving the interaction of primary and excess insurance...more
On September 13, 2023, the Oregon Court of Appeals ("Court") addressed several arguments made by an insurer, Arrowood Indemnity Company ("Arrowood"), as to why it did not have a duty to defend, or why it should only defend...more
Per and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) represent major exposures to insurers and their policyholders. Thousands of lawsuits are pending nationwide and several large settlements have already been reached. Insurers are...more
In Donegal Mut. Ins. Co. v. Thangavel, No. 379, 2022, 2023 Del. LEXIS 227, the Supreme Court of Delaware (Supreme Court) considered whether the Sutton Rule prevented the plaintiff from pursuing subrogation against the...more
In Nationwide Prop & Cas. Ins. Co. v. Fireline Corp., No. 1:20-cv-00684, 2023 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 104241, the United States District Court for the District of Maryland (District Court) considered whether the events giving rise...more
On May 31, Gov. DeSantis signed a new law that enacts several wide-ranging regulatory requirements on insurers transacting business in Florida. The regulatory changes instituted by the new Insurer Accountability Act, which...more
As discussed in a previous post, cyber insurance demand and premiums have significantly increased in recent years. Fitch Ratings forecasts that cyber-related premiums could balloon to $22.5 billion by 2025...more
In an issue of first impression, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed summary judgment for Allstate and held that the two-year statute of limitations for bad faith claims arising out of an uninsured/underinsured...more
In Florida, an excess judgment is when the judgment in the case exceeds the policy limits. The excess judgment rule requires an injured plaintiff to obtain an excess judgment before prosecuting a bad faith claim against an...more
Mudpie, Inc. v. Travelers Casualty Insurance Company of America, — F.4th —-, 2021 WL 4486509 (9th Cir. Oct. 1, 2021), Case No. 20-16858. In March 2020, California state and local authorities issued orders limiting...more
The Northern District of California has held that an insurer had a duty to defend a trustee against a suit by a trust beneficiary seeking his removal, even though the trustee was not specifically named as a defendant in the...more
The Ninth Circuit ruled on Thursday that a California retailer must pay its own legal fees in a state consumer protection lawsuit brought against it by the California Attorney General, despite its insurer’s agreement to cover...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
Pfizer, Inc. v. U.S. Specialty Insurance Company, C.A. No. N18C-01-310 PRW CCLD (Del. Super. Aug. 28, 2020) - On cross-motions for summary judgment in a director and officer insurance coverage dispute, the Superior Court...more
On August 25, 2020, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court split 3-3, with one Justice recused, on an appeal from a trial court’s insurance bad faith decision imposing $18 million in punitive damages and $3 million in attorney’s fees...more
Since the start of the pandemic, hundreds of businesses of all sizes have been forced to file lawsuits against their property insurers for failing to honor their contractual obligations to provide business interruption, extra...more
Commercial general liability (CGL) policies typically provide that an insurer will defend a “suit” that seeks covered “damages” that the insured may be “legally obligated to pay.” This seems simple enough. But can an...more
Virginia has a new law, the Insurance Data Security Act (New Law), going into effect on July 1, 2020, which will expand the data security and incident notification requirements on insurers licensed in the Commonwealth. The...more
The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic continues to wreak havoc across the globe and in the United States, bringing with it panic, sickness, and mass mortality. The U.S. health care system is under strain and the situation is...more