Property
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August 08, 2024
Insurance Litigation Week In Review
The Eleventh Circuit rejected insurers' coverage challenges in separate suits over a wood-theft settlement and a storm damage appraisal award, a Georgia federal court ordered an insurer to defend a farm in a couple's suit over foul smells, and the Eighth Circuit said Geico had no duty to cover a woman's HPV claims. Here, Law360 takes a look at the past week's top insurance news.
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August 08, 2024
Wash. HOA Says Allstate Must Cover $8M Water Damage
A Washington state condominium association accused Allstate of wrongfully denying coverage of an $8 million water damage claim it filed after discovering hidden damage to the exterior of its buildings.
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August 08, 2024
8th Circ. Avoids 'Absurd Results' In Geico HPV Suit
While the Eighth Circuit reasonably interpreted a Geico auto policy as not providing coverage for a woman's claim that she contracted HPV during sexual encounters in a policyholder's car, carriers should heed the case as a warning to draft clearer policy language, policyholder and insurer-side attorneys alike agreed.
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August 08, 2024
Agency Wants Out Of 7-Eleven Murder Coverage Dispute
An insurance agency told a Texas federal court that it was improperly joined to a dispute brought by 7-Eleven over coverage of underlying litigation seeking more than $1 million after a deadly shooting at a Houston gas station the chain rented.
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August 08, 2024
Community Insurance Can Plug NFIP Gaps, Expert Says
Community-based flood insurance can help cover insurance gaps and provide fast insurance relief to towns and cities at risk of flooding, UC Davis researcher and former Federal Emergency Management Agency engineer Kathleen Schaefer tells Law360.
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August 08, 2024
Conflicting Rulings Muddy Del. Stance On No-Action Clause
Conflicting Delaware state court rulings on the enforcement of no-action clauses in liability insurance policies have called into question the compatibility of such clauses with an insurer's duty to defend, policyholder experts say.
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August 07, 2024
Insurer Wants Bad Faith Claim Tossed In Russian Planes Suit
HDI Global and underwriters of insurance policies on airplanes stranded in Russia have asked a Florida court to toss a bad faith claim by aircraft leasing company Avmax, arguing that bad faith only applies to coverage denials without a reasonable basis and that in this case there has been no denial, and it is "fairly debatable" whether coverage applies.
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August 07, 2024
11th Circ. Affirms Unapportioned Wood-Theft Settlement
The Eleventh Circuit has unanimously upheld a Georgia federal court ruling forcing an insurer to cover a $557,000 settlement for shoddy work and wood theft during a deconstruction project by its policyholder, despite objections from the insurer that the amount was not apportioned between covered and noncovered losses.
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August 07, 2024
Texas Last-Resort Insurer Approves 10% Rate Hike
Texas' windstorm insurer of last resort approved a 10% rate hike subject to state approval following expectations that Hurricane Beryl and other spring storm claims will significantly deplete the insurer's $451 million catastrophe reserve trust fund.
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August 07, 2024
BP Malpractice Deal Needs Work, 5th Circ. Says
The Fifth Circuit scrapped a legal malpractice settlement in a consolidated lawsuit alleging attorneys were negligent in representing plaintiffs seeking compensation following the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill, with a panel finding the terms were not mutually agreed upon.
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August 06, 2024
11th Circ. Won't Let Chubb Unit Ax $13.8M Appraisal Award
A Florida condo association's insurer waived its ability to challenge an over $13.8 million storm damage appraisal award by only arguing in court that the association's appraiser had a conflict of interest, the Eleventh Circuit affirmed Tuesday, finding the insurer could've lodged a challenge during the appraisal process itself.
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August 06, 2024
Testing Lab Can't Add Bad Faith Claims In Income Loss Case
A Pennsylvania federal judge found Tuesday that a prior agreement between a medical testing lab and its insurer expressly precluded added allegations that the insurer acted in bad faith while handling the lab's claim for loss of records and business income.
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August 06, 2024
Blank Rome Adds Closed Insurance Boutique's Managing Atty
Blank Rome LLP has brought on an insurance partner from now-shuttered boutique Pasich LLP to join its insurance recovery group, the firm announced Monday.
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August 06, 2024
Farm Stench Insurance Coverage Case Saved By The Bugs
A Georgia couple accusing their poultry-farming neighbors of wafting putrid smells and failing to contain insects birthed upon their property succeeded Tuesday in forcing the farm's insurer to defend the business thanks to the bugs, a Georgia federal judge ruled.
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August 02, 2024
Insurers Seek Quick Win In $2M Injury Coverage Suit
An AmTrust Financial unit and a Hartford unit each told a New York federal court that the other must solely cover a Manhattan property owner in a construction worker's $2 million injury action, disagreeing over whether the owner is an additional insured under the Hartford unit's policy covering a lessee.
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August 02, 2024
Geico Auto Policy Doesn't Cover HPV Claim, 8th Circ. Says
Geico doesn't have to cover a woman's claim that she contracted HPV during sexual encounters in a policyholder's car, the Eighth Circuit ruled Friday, saying the woman's injuries did not arise out of the "use" of the vehicle as required by the auto policy.
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August 01, 2024
4 Top Property Insurance Suits To Keep Watching In 2024
A dispute in Hawaii's top court over defense for climate change claims and a Fifth Circuit suit over insurance for an arbitration award for construction defects are among some of the top cases in the property insurance sphere worth keeping an eye on. Here, Law360 looks at four cases with notable decisions or litigation to come.
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August 01, 2024
Judgment Insurance Market Continues To Solidify, Attys Say
Insurance covering losses from a specific judgment or one that is reversed on appeal has become increasingly popular, attorneys tell Law360, raising questions on the extent courts will mandate disclosure of such policies and whether a critical mass of big-name carriers will wade into the market too.
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August 01, 2024
Insurance Litigation Week In Review
The D.C. Circuit revived an insurer’s bid to enforce arbitration awards against Argentina, a California federal court freed two AIG insurers from defending McKesson’s opioid suits and an ex-Allied World Insurance executive pled guilty in a $1.5 million fraud case. Here, Law360 takes a look at the past week's top insurance news.
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August 01, 2024
Aon Cyber Head Says Recent Attacks Spur Insurer Scrutiny
A spate of recent cyberattacks that have cost companies millions have raised existential questions about how cyberinsurance policies will continue to offset the growing risks. Law360 spoke with Brent Rieth, head of cyber solutions for North America at insurance broker Aon, about the role that brokers play in navigating market volatility.
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August 01, 2024
Insurer Wants Quick Win In NBA Team's Virus Coverage Suit
The Sacramento Kings' insurer said it is entitled to an early win in a coverage dispute over pandemic-related losses that the basketball team and its arena operator incurred, telling a California federal court that the losses don't meet the policy requirement of "physical loss or damage" to property.
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August 01, 2024
Locke Lord Adds Insurance, Privacy Partners In Chicago
Locke Lord LLP announced on Wednesday that two partners formerly of Sidley Austin LLP and Thompson Coburn LLP have joined the firm's insurance and cybersecurity practices out of Chicago.
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August 01, 2024
Growth In Captives Gives Insureds More Control, Experts Say
As commercial policyholders continue to seek solutions addressing cost, coverage and control within the traditional insurance market, a steady uptick in captive insurance may be a viable option offering policyholders more control in their risk management programs, experts say.
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July 31, 2024
Rising Star: Cohen Ziffer's Orrie Levy
Orrie A. Levy of Cohen Ziffer Frenchman & McKenna beat insurers' attempts to avoid defending Walmart in opioid lawsuits and secured a rare ruling setting aside a Delaware jury's verdict favoring an AIG unit in an insurance coverage trial, earning him a spot among insurance law attorneys under age 40 honored by Law360 as Rising Stars.
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July 30, 2024
Fla. Insurance Co. Accused Of Causing Black Mold Death
A Florida insurance company was accused of wrongfully causing the death of a woman who died from black mold contamination in a state complaint brought by her sole descendant, who alleges the insurer didn't send a promised team to remediate the woman's home after it was damaged by Hurricane Ian.
Expert Analysis
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Insurers Should Prepare For 'Black Swan' Climate Disasters
As rapid climate change results in increased risk of casualties and property loss from rare, severe weather events, the insurance industry should take five crucial steps toward evolving and continuing operations, including advanced analytic techniques and investments in alternative energy sources, say Stephen Brown and Irena Maier at Wilson Elser.
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3 Quirks Of New Jersey Insurance Coverage Law
There are a multitude of state-specific requirements and nuances that make New Jersey insurance law unique, including in the areas of duty to defend, reservation of rights and bad faith, say attorneys at Goldberg Segalla.
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Conn. Insurers Should Note Stricter Market Exit Oversight
The Connecticut Insurance Department recently issued a bulletin that reflects a unique and stricter approach to insurers' market withdrawals and reductions in property and casualty business, making clear that it will not assess compliance based on an insurer's intent, but on the effect of the insurer's actions, says Elizabeth Retersdorf at Day Pitney.
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Extreme Weather And Renewable Project Insurance Coverage
Excerpt from Practical Guidance
The regularity and severity of extreme weather events driven by climate change are putting renewable energy projects increasingly at risk — so project owners, contractors and investors should understand the issues that can arise in these situations when seeking recovery under a builder's risk insurance policy, say Paul Ferland and Joshua Tumen at Cozen O'Connor.
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Potential Relief For Nevada Insureds Is On The Horizon
A proposed regulation recently issued by the Nevada Division of Insurance would severely restrict the state's new law prohibiting burning-limits policies, enacting welcome changes to address businesses' concerns that the law will make it harder to obtain cost-effective liability insurance, says Sheri Thome at Wilson Elser.
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NY Co-Ops Must Avoid Pitfalls When Navigating Insurance
In light of skyrocketing premiums, tricky exclusions and dwindling options, New York cooperative corporations must carefully review potential contractors' insurance policies in order to secure full protection, as even seemingly minor contractor jobs can carry significant risk due to New York labor laws, says Eliot Zuckerman at Smith Gambrell.
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Insurance Rulings Continue Expansion Of Appraisal's Ambit
Two recent Illinois insurance cases allowing property damage appraisers to determine causation — Wysoczan v. Cambridge in federal court and Shelter v. Morrow in state appellate court — perpetuate a judicial trend that will result in a slower, more expensive and cumbersome appraisal process that resembles litigation, says Matthew Fortin at BatesCarey.
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Suits Likely Over Nevada Law Limiting Claimant Injury Exams
A new Nevada law placing barriers on the mental or physical examinations that defendants use to evaluate claimants' injuries will likely spur waves of litigation to reconcile it with existing rules and practice, says Michael Lowry at Wilson Elser.
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Mass. Ruling Shows Value Of Additional Insured Specifics
A Massachusetts court’s recent D.F. Pray v. Wesco Insurance decision demonstrates that blanket additional insured endorsements can create issues with personal jurisdiction, so those named as additional insureds should require their lower-tier contractors to use specific endorsements, say Thomas Dunn and Sheya Rivard at Pierce Atwood.
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7 Ways Telco Operators Can Approach Lead Cable Claims
A recent spotlight on the telecommunication industry shows that companies in the field have known for decades that lead-wrapped cables proliferate in their vast networks, which is likely to provoke prolonged and costly legal battles — but seven best practices can efficiently resolve claims and minimize damage, say consultants at AlixPartners.
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What Wis. High Court Ruling Means For Coverage Analysis
Overturning insurance law precedent in 5 Walworth v. Engerman Contracting, the Wisconsin Supreme Court recently rejected the use of the economic loss doctrine and integrated systems analysis in commercial general liability cases, but a strongly worded concurrence could indicate that the court's opinion may have limited persuasive reach, say Laura Lin and Pierce MacConaghy at Simpson Thacher.
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Auto Insurers Should Reassess Calif. Diminished Value Claims
Many California auto insurers currently pay third-party claims for diminished value damages after a vehicle has been in an accident; however, federal decisions interpreting California law suggest that insurers may not have to pay some of these claims, says Charles Danaher at Sheppard Mullin.
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A Festival Of Litigation Could Arise From 'Electric Zoo' Fiasco
Over Labor Day weekend, thousands of electronic dance music fans were displeased with the organization of the New York City-based Electric Zoo festival, which quickly elicited comparisons to the 2017 Fyre Festival — and three kinds of litigation could ensue from the debacle, say attorneys at Seiden Law.