General Liability

  • August 22, 2024

    NY AG Tells Appeals Court To Uphold $465M Trump Judgment

    Donald Trump has barely challenged the extensive proof of financial statement lies undergirding a $465 million civil fraud judgment against him and his co-defendants, New York's attorney general said in an appeals brief looking to preserve the bench verdict.

  • August 22, 2024

    Fisher Phillips Brings Smith Gambrell Atty To DC Gov't Team

    Fisher Phillips' new D.C.-based agriculture employment partner has practiced several types of law throughout his career, and told Law360 Pulse Thursday that his employment law career started unexpectedly after a managing partner at one of his first firms called out sick before an interview.

  • August 22, 2024

    Ga. Mineral Co., Insurer Strike Deal In Talc Coverage Suit

    Phoenix Insurance Co. reached a contingent settlement with a Georgia-based mineral products company in litigation seeking to force the insurer to defend the company against an underlying suit claiming it supplied asbestos-containing talc products.

  • August 22, 2024

    7th Circ. Says Hidden IP Fight Doomed Insurance Coverage Bid

    The Seventh Circuit has agreed an insurer could rescind its policies covering a garbage services company because that company failed to disclose an already brewing trademark dispute, concluding the company's argument that it didn't need to disclose the feud was "not supported by the record or common sense."

  • August 22, 2024

    Cyber Incidents Accelerate Arms Race Over Broader Coverage

    A series of high-profile cybersecurity attacks, data breaches and system disruptions in 2024 have highlighted the growing pressure on policyholders to search for more coverage options beyond cyberinsurance and on insurers to limit their exposures.

  • August 21, 2024

    No Coverage For CVS In Additional Opioid Actions

    A Delaware state court ruled that CVS cannot get coverage for over 200 opioid-related actions that remained at issue after the pharmacy chain and its insurers agreed that thousands of other opioid suits aren't covered, finding the remaining suits asserted claims for economic harm, not bodily injury or property damage.

  • August 21, 2024

    Travelers Settles With Pa. Firm Over Stealing $1M From Client

    A Pennsylvania federal judge dismissed an insurance coverage dispute Wednesday, in light of a settlement between Travelers Insurance and a closed Pennsylvania law firm whose principal attorney was disbarred after he pled guilty to stealing almost $1 million from clients.

  • August 20, 2024

    At-Fault Driver Must Repay $4M Policy Limit, Insurer Says

    An insurer is seeking reimbursement of a $4 million policy limit it contributed to a $10 million settlement in connection with separate, underlying personal injury lawsuits stemming from a car accident, telling a Georgia federal court the at-fault driver entered an agreement admitting liability for the accident.

  • August 20, 2024

    A Deep Dive Into Law360 Pulse's 2024 Women In Law Report

    The legal industry continues to see incremental gains for female lawyers in private practice in the U.S., according to a Law360 Pulse analysis, with women now representing 40.6% of all attorneys and 51% of all associates.

  • August 20, 2024

    These Firms Have The Most Women In Equity Partnerships

    The legal industry still has a long way to go before it can achieve gender parity at its upper levels. But these law firms are performing better than others in breaking the proverbial glass ceiling that prevents women from attaining leadership roles.

  • August 20, 2024

    Philadelphia, Insurer Settle Trans Firefighter's Surgery Suit

    The city of Philadelphia, Independence Blue Cross and a firefighters union agreed to settle a transgender firefighter's suit claiming she was unlawfully denied coverage for facial feminization surgery, just weeks after a Pennsylvania federal judge refused to let the insurer out of the case.

  • August 19, 2024

    9th Circ. Partially Revives State Farm Car Value Class Action

    A split Ninth Circuit panel partially revived a class action accusing State Farm of undervaluing policyholders' totaled vehicles when paying out claims, saying Monday that a Washington federal court abused its discretion in decertifying one of two classes based on a previous Ninth Circuit ruling.

  • August 19, 2024

    Canadian Insurer Secures Arbitration In Auto Accident Dispute

    A Canadian man must arbitrate his dispute with a Canadian state-owned insurer over an underinsured motorist claim, a Hawaii federal judge ruled, finding that the man failed to prove that arbitration was precluded from being held in British Columbia.

  • August 19, 2024

    4th Circ. Cuts Liberty Loose In Medicare Reimbursement Row

    A North Carolina widow can't revive a proposed class action accusing Liberty Mutual of failing to reimburse Medicare for her deceased husband's medical costs, the Fourth Circuit said Monday, finding she wasn't injured and therefore lacked standing to sue.

  • August 19, 2024

    Free Speech Group Says NY Official Must Face NRA's Suit

    A former New York state official isn't immune from the National Rifle Association's suit claiming she violated the group's rights by pressuring financial institutions to cut ties with it, a free speech group told the Second Circuit on Monday, citing a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision in the dispute.

  • August 16, 2024

    Insurer Seeks Early Win In Faulty Home Construction Dispute

    A construction company's insurer echoed its stance that its insured is not owed coverage for an underlying faulty workmanship lawsuit, telling a Georgia federal court that the defects alleged do not equate to property damage outside the contractor's own work, thus falling outside the policy's scope of coverage.

  • August 15, 2024

    Specialty Line Insurance Cases To Note: 2024 Midyear Report

    The remainder of 2024 promises developments in several ongoing specialty line cases that can reshape bump-up exclusions in directors and officers policies, cyber coverage for loss mitigation costs and payment practices for defense costs.

  • August 15, 2024

    Harvard Late In Suing Broker For Tardy Admission Suit Notice

    Harvard University was 13 months late in bringing breach of contract claims against its insurance broker for its belated notification to Zurich American Insurance Co. about an ultimately successful legal challenge that upended affirmative action in higher education, a Boston federal judge said Thursday. 

  • August 15, 2024

    'Rise Of The Insurance Beast': Cases Take Over Colo. Courts

    Colorado's chief U.S. magistrate judge told a room full of attorneys Thursday that insurance cases have started to dominate the court's dockets, comprising almost half the district's civil jury trials last year.

  • August 15, 2024

    Insurance Litigation Week In Review

    The First and Third circuits asked state high courts to answer coverage questions, a Massachusetts state appeals court ruled on coverage for construction defects for the first time, the Second Circuit considered whether a letter constituted a claim and the Texas attorney general accused General Motors of misusing driver data.

  • August 15, 2024

    Calif. Virus Ruling Gives Clarity On Illusory Coverage

    California policyholders were disappointed while the state's high court continued to rule in insurers' favor on pandemic coverage, but experts say the emphasized standard of proof as to when coverage is actually rendered illusory could be a beacon of clarity for insureds.

  • August 15, 2024

    No Coverage For Las Vegas Apartment Fire Suits, Judge Says

    An excess insurer needn't cover the owners of a Las Vegas apartment building in underlying suits over a 2019 fire that left six people dead, a Nevada federal court ruled, saying the property was not a designated location under the policy.

  • August 15, 2024

    $1M Limit Applies For Motel Shooting, 4th Circ. Told

    A man injured in a motel shooting told the Fourth Circuit that his potential insurance recovery under the motel's policy with a Travelers unit should be $1 million, arguing the shooting was an accident and thus fell outside an assault and battery endorsement's $100,000 sublimit.

  • August 15, 2024

    Texas Windstorm Insurer Strikes Balance With Rate Hike

    A recent rate hike approved by Texas' windstorm insurer of last resort underscores the urgency of balancing the financial needs of both insurers and policyholders following damaging storms like Hurricane Beryl in an already strained property insurance market, experts say.

  • August 15, 2024

    Insurtechs Face Fewer Reg Roadblocks, Attorney Says

    Tech innovators in the insurance industry are facing a more understanding and cooperative regulatory environment than they once dealt with, said an insurance attorney who helped steer an early mover in the arena of insurtech.

Expert Analysis

  • How Ill. Supreme Court Could Shape Statutory Violation Cases

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    In Fausett v. Walgreens, the Illinois Supreme Court will take up the question of whether a violation of the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act satisfies the injury-in-fact requirement, and any outcome could significantly change the litigation landscape in Illinois, say Donald Patrick Eckler and Joshua Zhao at Freeman Mathis.

  • 3 Quirks Of New Jersey Insurance Coverage Law

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    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.

  • Conn. Insurers Should Note Stricter Market Exit Oversight

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    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.

  • Extreme Weather And Renewable Project Insurance Coverage

    Excerpt from Practical Guidance
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    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.

  • Potential Relief For Nevada Insureds Is On The Horizon

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    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.

  • Suits Likely Over Nevada Law Limiting Claimant Injury Exams

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    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.

  • Mass. Ruling Shows Value Of Additional Insured Specifics

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    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.

  • Insurance Cos. Are Stretching Construction Standard Limits

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    In the construction sector, the importance of closely vetting downstream parties' insurance policies has never been more critical — owners and general contractors need to be on the lookout for ever broader carrier-specific expansions of standard insurance provisions that are perilous for risk transfer, says Eric Clarkson at Saxe Doernberger.

  • 7 Ways Telco Operators Can Approach Lead Cable Claims

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    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.

  • What Wis. High Court Ruling Means For Coverage Analysis

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    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.

  • Auto Insurers Should Reassess Calif. Diminished Value Claims

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    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.

  • In Ga., Promptness Is Key To Setting Aside Default Judgments

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    The Georgia Court of Appeals' recent vacating of a lower court's decision to set aside a default judgment against Samsung Electronics America is a reminder of the processes and arguments provided by Georgia's statutes for challenging default judgments — including the importance of responding quickly, says Katy Robertson at Swift Currie.

  • 1st Circ. Harvard Ruling Provides Primer On Policy Provisions

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    In its recent finding of no coverage for Harvard due to the school's failure to give Zurich American Insurance timely notice of its claim, the First Circuit provides a good analysis of the distinctions between occurrence and claims-made policies, including the rationale for differences in notice provisions, says Andrew Paliotta at Cozen O'Connor.