General Liability
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May 13, 2024
Justices Decline To Hear $3.5B Insurance Surplus Case
A proposed class action accusing an insurer of failing to return an over $3.5 billion surplus of underwriting profits back to policyholder members will be litigated in Illinois state court, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled Monday, denying the company's bid for certiorari.
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May 13, 2024
Justices Won't Touch Insurer's Win In 401(k) Exit Fee Suit
The U.S. Supreme Court declined Monday to hear a dental office's case accusing an insurance company of unlawfully charging fees to 401(k) plans that left its platform, leaving in place a Fifth Circuit ruling that found the insurer was under no obligation to waive the charges.
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May 10, 2024
Ariz. Judge Allows Insurer To Target DOT For Canadian Arb.
An Arizona federal judge has issued an apparently novel ruling granting a Canadian government-backed insurer's request to subpoena the state's Department of Transportation for use in an arbitration stemming from a hit-and-run accident that took place in Scottsdale, Arizona, in 2016.
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May 10, 2024
Insurers Don't Owe Chiquita Coverage In Terrorism Settlement
An Ohio state appeals court ruled Friday that Chiquita Brands International Inc. is not owed coverage by a group of insurers for a settlement with families of six Americans killed by a terrorist group Chiquita had paid for protection, saying any errors the trial court made were harmless because it came to the correct conclusion.
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May 10, 2024
4th Circ. Tosses Driver's Allstate UIM Appeal As Untimely
The Fourth Circuit dismissed a South Carolina woman's appeal seeking underinsured motorist coverage from Allstate for injuries she suffered in a car accident, finding Friday that the appellate court lacked jurisdiction over the issue because outstanding, competing claims in the action remained.
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May 10, 2024
Medical Device Co., Insurers Settle Equipment Damage Loss
A medical device manufacturer and its insurers have settled their coverage dispute over the manufacturer's claim it suffered an "equipment breakdown loss" damaging its mills, lathes and vacuum pump, the insurers told a Florida federal court.
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May 09, 2024
10th Circ. Appeal May Expand Pollution Coverage In NM
The Tenth Circuit will hear oral arguments May 20 to determine whether absolute pollution exclusions doom a New Mexico property owner's quest for $120,000 in defense coverage in a case attorneys say could determine the future of such environmental coverage in the state.
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May 09, 2024
REIT Says Insurers Must Cover Antitrust Conspiracy Claims
A real estate investment trust accused its insurers of wrongfully denying coverage for an underlying multidistrict litigation alleging that the company was part of an antitrust conspiracy to inflate rents for multifamily housing, telling a Colorado federal court that the MDL falls plainly within multiple coverage parts of its policies.
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May 09, 2024
Syracuse Diocese Creditors Urge Contempt On Insurer Leaks
Unsecured creditors of the bankrupt Roman Catholic Diocese of Syracuse have asked a New York judge to hold insurers Interstate and an affiliate of Allianz in contempt for sharing confidential sex abuse survivors' claim information with third parties and failing to inform the debtor or the court.
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May 09, 2024
Md. Insurance Chief On Keeping Up With AI Regulation
The insurance industry is exploring artificial intelligence technology use in its business as regulators like Maryland Insurance Commissioner Kathleen Birrane work to keep up and protect consumers from the risks of the evolving technology. Here, Law360 checks in with Birrane on the subject.
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May 09, 2024
DEA Cannabis Proposal Likely To Keep Insurers Sidelined
Federal drug enforcers' recent proposal to remove cannabis' designation as a high-risk drug with no accepted medical use could portend insurance benefits, but experts say uncertainties over the drug's mixed legal status will keep insurers sidelined for now.
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May 09, 2024
Insurer Still Can't Escape Explosion Coverage Row
An insurer cannot yet avoid defending gas companies in personal injury litigation after a subcontractor caused an explosion injuring three people, an Indiana federal court has ruled, reiterating a previous finding that the subcontractor's ultimate release from liability following a settlement has no bearing on the gas companies' additional insured status.
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May 09, 2024
Insurance Litigation Week In Review
Michigan's top court mulled the effect of new liability coverage mandates on older auto policies, a group of insurers escaped arbitration in an airport terminal defect dispute, and South Carolina drivers were granted class certification in a suit over Progressive's total loss vehicle valuation methods.
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May 09, 2024
A Mother's Fight To Secure Insurance Benefits For Autism
After Lorri Unumb's son was diagnosed with autism, she spent over a decade drafting and securing legislative mandates for autism insurance benefits across the country. With Mother's Day on May 12, Law360 spoke with Unumb about how for her, motherhood included a calling to advocate for autism therapy coverage.
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May 08, 2024
Chevron's $52M Iran Oil Seizure Loss Not Covered, Court Told
Three insurers have told a California federal court they owe no coverage to Chevron under separate marine cargo and war risks policies after the oil giant said the Iranian military seized a vessel carrying nearly $52 million worth of Chevron's crude oil in retaliation for U.S. economic sanctions.
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May 08, 2024
No Reimbursement For $5.5M Crash Settlement, Insurer Says
A highway construction company is not entitled to reimbursement for a $5.5 million settlement in an underlying suit over multiple motorcycle accidents that killed one and injured two others, a subcontractor's insurer has told a North Carolina federal court, saying the company does not qualify as an additional insured.
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May 07, 2024
Insurer Cites Discovery Law In Info Bid For Accident Claim
A Canadian government-backed insurer is urging an Arizona court to force the state's Department of Transportation to provide documents or testimony in an arbitration stemming from an ex-professional soccer player's claim for damages after he was injured in a hit-and-run accident in Scottsdale in 2016.
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May 07, 2024
Insurer Seeks Hearing Cancellation In Arbitrator Bias Dispute
An insurer seeking the removal of an arbitrator in a Bermuda reinsurance coverage dispute told the Second Circuit on Tuesday that a hearing on the issue should be canceled as an award was issued in the arbitration, rendering the dispute moot.
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May 06, 2024
Meet The Attys For NC Insurance Mogul Facing Bribery Retrial
Nearly two years after the Fourth Circuit exonerated Greg E. Lindberg on bribery and wire fraud charges, a team of Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP partners with prosecution experience has joined forces with prominent white collar defense lawyer James F. Wyatt lll in hopes of staving off a second conviction for the embattled insurance tycoon.
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May 06, 2024
AIG Unit Will Arbitrate $20M Botched Tunnel Project Claims
An AIG unit agreed to go to arbitration with a Michigan county's water resources agency and sewage disposal system over their claims they incurred more than $20 million in damages due to a design contractor's faulty work on a tunnel project.
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May 03, 2024
Mich. Justices Reject Agency's 'Secret' Meeting Settlement
The Michigan Supreme Court said Friday that a county road commission's settlement with three of its insurers over a coverage dispute was not binding because the commission — a public body — never voted to approve it in a public meeting.
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May 03, 2024
How Big IP Judgment Winners Are Insuring 'Nuclear Verdicts'
Until a few years ago, intellectual property plaintiffs who scored large monetary awards — often referred to as "nuclear verdicts" — had to wait out a lengthy appellate process before knowing how much money they would end up with. But a relatively new type of insurance policy is allowing plaintiffs to insure part of their judgment in case it gets reduced or wiped out on appeal.
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May 03, 2024
Colo. Justices' Med Mal Cap Ruling A Win For Patients
The Colorado Supreme Court's recent decision prohibiting trial courts from considering an injured patient's insurance liabilities before imposing the state's $1 million medical malpractice damages cap was the right call, experts say, and prevents an unfair windfall for negligent health care providers.
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May 02, 2024
Farmers Face Uphill Fight In 5th Circ. Silo Coverage Row
A Texas farming cooperative faces an uphill battle in persuading the Fifth Circuit to undo a ruling that denied it coverage for a $1.3 million arbitration award for construction defects in their grain silos, experts told Law360.
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May 02, 2024
Insurers Are Covering Litigation Funders. Will It Catch On?
Insurers have started to cover losses from a third-party litigation funder's portfolio of plaintiff-side investments, experts tell Law360, calling into question the insurance industry's broader position that third-party litigation finance hikes carriers' litigation costs, thus requiring them to raise premiums for consumers.
Expert Analysis
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The Lawyer Personalities That Make Up Joint Interest Groups
As multiparty litigation rises and forces competing law firms to work together, George Reede at Zelle looks at the different personalities — from tactful synthesizers to misguided Don Quixotes — that often make up joint representation groups, and how lawyers can overcome the tensions in these and other team settings.
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NJ High Court Ruling Doesn't Negate Insurer Duty To Defend
The New Jersey Supreme Court's decision in Norman v. Admiral Insurance, finding a narrow exception to the duty to defend, doesn't allow insurers to skip out on their litigation defense obligations, say Eric Jesse and Seth Fiur at Lowenstein Sandler.
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Fla. Evidence Code Update Lowers Burden For Image Use
Florida's recent evidence code change permits judicial notice of images and certain other graphics, a hugely meaningful development for litigants across a wide range of practice areas, though the effect will likely be immediately felt in property insurance cases, say Eve Cann and David Levin at Baker Donelson.
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7th Circ. 'Reasonable Costs' Ruling Is A Win For Policyholders
The Seventh Circuit's decision in USA Gymnastics v. Liberty Insurance last month establishes useful precedent for policyholders, affirming and expanding on its rule that defense costs are presumed to be reasonable and necessary when insurers breach their duty to defend, say attorneys at Reed Smith.
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A Road Map To Insurance For PFAS Claims And Suits
In light of an uptick in regulation and litigation surrounding per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, product manufacturers potentially facing down massive liability settlements must properly investigate and understand the full scope of insurance available, says Jodi Green at Miller Nash.
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Forecasting A Rise In 11th Circ. State Court Class Actions
Two recent opinions from the Eleventh Circuit have created an unusual landscape that may result in a substantial increase of class action litigation in state courts, particularly in Florida, that will be unable to utilize removal tools such as the Class Action Fairness Act, says Alec Schultz at Hilgers Graben.
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Readying Companies For PFAS Regulation And Liability
Managing the uptick in regulatory oversight of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances and the potential civil liability for companies will require action now, from performing audits and reviewing insurance coverage to considering the Texas two-step merger method, say attorneys at Haynes and Boone.
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Contra Proferentem Will Remain Alive And Well In NY
Although a recent Law360 guest article argues that a New York state court's decision in Brooklyn Union Gas v. Century Indemnity creates a blanket exception to the principle that contractual ambiguities are construed against the drafter, leading appellate decisions suggest that the exception would only be applied under narrow circumstances, say attorneys at Pillsbury.
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Pa. Cannabis Banking Law Won't Allay Finance Industry Fears
Though a new Pennsylvania law allows financial institutions and insurers to provide services to the state’s legal cannabis industry, it’s unlikely to assuage most financial industry operators’ fears of federal reprisal, and their reluctance to work with cannabis businesses will surely persist, says Michael Sampson at Leech Tishman.
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NY Insurance Ruling Reveals Limits Of Contra Proferentem
A New York state court's decision in Brooklyn Union Gas v. Century Indemnity, finding that there's no need to construe an ambiguous policy against an insurer when the policyholder is a sophisticated company, shows that contesting the application of the contra proferentem rule is gaining more traction in courts, say John Ewell and Joanna Roberto at Gerber Ciano.
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What Wis. Anti-Assignment Ruling Means For Policyholders
A Wisconsin state court's recent decision in Pepsi-Cola v. Employers Insurance Co. of Wausau makes pivotal the question of when a loss occurs, meaning that policyholders subject to anti-assignment clauses cannot simply rely on plain contractual language, say Brian Scarbrough and Daniel Ergas at Jenner & Block.
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Taming Plaintiffs' Thriving 'Reptile' Tactics: How To Start
As rising social inflation increases the danger of plaintiffs attorneys' reptile tactics, which appeal to primal emotions instead of logic, defendants should carefully consider 22 strategies that can be employed in pretrial strategy or via traditional courtroom tools, say Scott Seaman and Diane Webster at Hinshaw.
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Taming Plaintiffs' Thriving 'Reptile' Tactics: Why It's Time
As insurers and corporate policyholders are looking down the dangerous double barrel of price level and social inflation, it's important to examine what they can do to contain a leading driver of social inflation — plaintiffs lawyers' reptile theory, which positions jurors as guardians against dangers for society, say Scott Seaman and Diane Webster at Hinshaw.