Property
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April 16, 2024
11th Circ. Asks If Undivided Settlement Can Still Be Covered
An Eleventh Circuit panel seemed torn Tuesday on whether to allow insurance coverage for a $557,000 nonapportioned Georgia federal settlement that potentially included both covered theft and noncovered negligent deconstruction, awarded to a Georgia mill owner who hired the insured.
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April 15, 2024
Geico Must Arbitrate Fraud Claims Against Chiropractors
The Third Circuit held in a precedential opinion Monday that Geico must arbitrate three lawsuits accusing chiropractic practices of providing unnecessary services totaling $10 million, pointing to documentation indicating that disputes connected to personal injury protection benefits must be resolved out of court.
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April 15, 2024
Calif. AG Backs Unfair Competition Claims Against State Farm
California policyholders should be able to assert claims under the state's unfair competition law independent of a one-year claim filing deadline under their insurance policy, state Attorney General Rob Bonta told the California Supreme Court, backing a San Francisco homeowner's unfair competition claims against a State Farm unit.
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April 12, 2024
Ala. Church's Hurricane Claims Are Covered, 11th Circ. Rules
There was enough evidence for an Alabama federal jury to conclude that a church suffered nearly $170,000 in covered property damage from Hurricane Sally, the Eleventh Circuit has ruled, rejecting an insurer's argument that the church's claims failed as a matter of law under a wear and tear exclusion.
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April 12, 2024
The Week In Trump: Catch Up On The Ex-President's Cases
Donald Trump and his legal team proved that they are nothing if not persistent as they repeatedly tried — and failed — to hit the brakes on the former president's porn star hush money trial in Manhattan.
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April 11, 2024
Norfolk's Proposed Deal Shows Risk Management Is Critical
Norfolk Southern Railway Co.'s proposed $600 million settlement with residents and businesses stemming from last year's train derailment and toxic chemical spill in East Palestine, Ohio, highlights the importance of a proactive risk management department and transparency between policyholders and carriers, experts say.
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April 11, 2024
Insurer AI Rules Push Self-Oversight, Leave Enforcement Hazy
State regulators across the United States that advise insurers to establish protocols for testing, documenting and governing their artificial intelligence tools are offering clarity for companies to self-regulate, but leaving the prospect of enforcement vague, experts said.
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April 11, 2024
Chubb-Archdiocese Suit Raises Coverage Burden Issue
A Chubb lawsuit against the Archdiocese of New York over indemnity for sexual abuse claims is implicating questions over which party has the burden to show if a liability might be covered or not, a dispute inextricably tied to justice for the church's many alleged victims.
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April 11, 2024
Insurance Litigation Week In Review
Louisiana's top court was asked to examine the enforceability of certain insurance contracts' arbitration clauses, the Sixth Circuit ordered a company to pay back some of the defense bill its insurer footed, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court heard COVID-19 coverage arguments and the Ninth Circuit rejected such arguments under Washington law.
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April 11, 2024
Ex-Geico Agents Ask 6th Circ. To Revive Classification Suit
A group of former Geico agents asked the Sixth Circuit to revive their claims that they were misclassified and denied benefits, challenging the accuracy and relevance of plan documents that the lower court reviewed when dismissing the workers' suit.
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April 11, 2024
11th Circ. To Weigh If Wood Theft Is 'Intentional'
The Eleventh Circuit will review, on April 16, a Georgia federal ruling forcing an insurer to cover a $557,000 settlement for shoddy workmanship and wood theft during a deconstruction project by its policyholder, and the outcome could hinge on what constitutes an accident and which state law applies. Here, Law360 breaks down the case in advance of oral arguments.
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April 10, 2024
La. Top Court Asked To Hear Insurance Arbitration Questions
The Louisiana Supreme Court should examine the enforceability of arbitration clauses in certain insurance contracts as lawsuits seeking coverage for hurricane damage mount, a Louisiana district court said, certifying a series of questions to the state high court after the Fifth Circuit found they were enforceable.
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April 10, 2024
'Let's Get Physical': Pa. Justices Tune In To COVID-19 Coverage
One of late singer Olivia Newton-John's greatest hits struck a chord with a Pennsylvania Supreme Court justice Wednesday as he considered whether insurers should cover business losses stemming from government shutdown orders during the COVID-19 pandemic
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April 10, 2024
Ex-Trump Finance Chief Weisselberg Jailed For Perjury
A New York state judge on Wednesday sentenced former Trump Organization Chief Financial Officer Allen Weisselberg to five months in jail for lying under oath in the attorney general's civil fraud case against Donald Trump and his business associates, imprisoning a close ally of the former president on the eve of his hush-money trial.
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April 09, 2024
9th Circ. Says Hotel, Restaurant Virus Losses Not Covered
The Ninth Circuit on Tuesday said two groups of Washington state restaurants and hotels can't claim COVID-related business losses under their insurance policies because they failed to show they physically lost functional use of their properties as a result of the virus.
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April 09, 2024
4th Circ. Tosses Duty To Defend Case Over Oil Co.'s Objection
The Fourth Circuit said Tuesday that a West Virginia oil and gas company lacked standing to continue an appeal that was originally brought by a green grower, which had sought coverage from its insurer for an underlying $4 million land use dispute with the extractor.
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April 09, 2024
Insurance Firm Will Pay $4M To End Calif. Wage Class Action
A California federal judge gave the green light to a $4 million class action settlement resolving allegations that an insurance and risk management company didn't closely track workers' hours, which resulted in underpayment for over 2,100 workers.
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April 09, 2024
Trump Opposes NY Monitor Probe After Exec's Perjury
Attorneys for Donald Trump argued against allowing a court-appointed monitor of the Trump Organization to look into supposed discovery lapses in the New York attorney general's civil business fraud case related to a perjury plea by the company's former longtime Chief Financial Officer Allen Weisselberg.
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April 09, 2024
Embattled Houston Law Firm Files Ch. 11
Insurance law firm MMA Law Firm on Tuesday filed for Chapter 11 protection in a Texas bankruptcy court, weeks after a federal judge declined to toss a suit seeking class damages over the Houston firm's allegedly illegal efforts to solicit clients in hurricane-related property damage cases.
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April 08, 2024
AIG Acted In Bad Faith In Hurricane Dispute, Homeowners Say
Owners of a $95 million oceanfront mansion near Miami told jurors Monday that AIG should be punished for acting in bad faith in handling a claim for damage from Hurricane Irma, saying the company repeatedly prioritized maximizing profits at the expense of customer service.
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April 08, 2024
Texas School District Not Immune In Arbitration Row
A Texas school district isn't immune from a lawsuit by its insurers seeking to appoint an umpire in a $10 million hurricane damage dispute, a New York federal court ruled Monday, finding the district doesn't meet the standards set under the 11th Amendment.
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April 08, 2024
Conn. Law Firm Demands Insurer Pay More For Leak In Office
A Connecticut law firm and a real estate company have accused their insurer of failing to fully cover damage from a leak at their New Haven offices despite a $2.2 million policy in a suit removed to Connecticut federal court by the insurer.
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April 08, 2024
Insurer Fights 3rd Circ. Bid To Revive Crash Coverage Suit
An insurer has urged the Third Circuit to affirm that a Pennsylvania couple couldn't claim it had acted in bad faith by failing to immediately cover the husband's brain injuries from a crash with an underinsured motorist.
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April 05, 2024
NJ Recycler's Fire Damage Suit To Remain In NJ, Judge Rules
A New Jersey federal judge declined to move a paper recycler's fire coverage dispute to New York, but did agree to toss one of its claims against its insurer, finding the recycler's declaratory judgment and breach of contract claims were duplicative.
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April 05, 2024
Conn. Court Limits Payouts For Underinsured Motorist Policies
Siding with Safeco Insurance Co. and overturning a lower court's calculations, the Connecticut Appellate Court on Friday cemented the insurance industry's ability to escape underinsured motorist claims by injured policyholders whose coverage equals that of drivers at fault, even when at-fault drivers' insurers divvy up smaller payments.
Expert Analysis
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Indirect Hurricane Ian Losses Could Be Covered By Insurance
Even companies indirectly affected by Hurricane Ian — for instance, by losses in their supply chain — should review their commercial property policies as they might benefit from specific insurance clauses covering these types of losses, says William Wagner at Taft.
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Lessons From 1st COVID Biz Interruption Policyholder Verdict
Robyn Anderson at Lathrop examines what made Baylor College of Medicine's recent COVID-19 business interruption case a success in Texas state court, and considers whether this first win on behalf of an insured is an outlier or a sign of more to come.
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State COVID Insurance Rulings Highlight Errors In Dismissals
Recent California and Vermont decisions in favor of policyholders, along with a $48 million jury verdict in Texas, underscore the error that courts are making by dismissing COVID-19 business interruption lawsuits at the pleading stage without consideration of the facts and evidence in each case, say Joseph Niczky and Michael Levine at Hunton.
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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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Courts Are Not Shifting On COVID Biz Interruption Stance
Although a recent Law360 guest article suggested that the pendulum is about to swing in favor of policyholders seeking business interruption coverage for pandemic-related losses, the larger body of appellate case law — applying the laws of 25 states — continues to find no coverage, say attorneys at Dentons.
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What Snap Removal Debate Means For Insurance Disputes
A potential circuit split regarding the permissibility of snap removal to federal court, which allows defendants to circumvent the forum defendant rule, is particularly a concern in insurance cases due to the difficulty of removing such cases, and the perception that some state courts are more favorable to policyholders, says Greg Mann at Rivkin Radler.
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Questions Remain On Computer Fraud Coverage For Phishing
There are questions regarding the applicability of computer fraud coverage to phishing scheme losses in the wake of the Ninth Circuit's decision in Ernst & Haas v. Hiscox earlier this year, with a backdrop of differing case results and evolving fact patterns over the past few years, say Robert Callahan and Melissa D’Alelio at Robins Kaplan.
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Storm Insurance Considerations For Cos. New To Florida
As more and more businesses migrate to Florida, commercial property owners and tenants should carefully consider specific contract terms in order to avoid insurance issues and litigation in the event of storm damage, say Philippe Lieberman and Marko Cerenko at Kluger Kaplan.
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Business Insurance Considerations Amid Conflict In Ukraine
As the conflict in Ukraine continues to wreak havoc on global business operations and supply chains, companies should carefully assess all the various types of insurance coverage that may mitigate corporate losses, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.
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Recent State Rulings Buck Trend In COVID Insurance Disputes
For the last two years, policyholders have been mostly unsuccessful in arguing that commercial property policies should cover losses suffered due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but a trio of recent state court decisions suggests that the pendulum may swing in policyholders' favor, say attorneys at Reed Smith.
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NY Waterborne Property Ruling Is A Warning To Policyholders
A New York state court's recent decision in Mill Basin v. Markel, adopting an expansive interpretation of a waterborne exclusion, is a reminder to policyholders that courts may rule against them even when case law and insurance principles are seemingly in their favor, say Catherine Doyle and Caroline Meneau at Jenner & Block.
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2 Reasons Why Ill. Virus Coverage Ruling Is Significant
An Illinois federal court's recent decision in Dental Experts v. Massachusetts Bay Insurance is especially useful due to the scarcity of relevant pandemic-related business interruption case law involving first-party policies, and because it clarifies how the cause test should be applied in similar cases, say Christopher Kuleba and Adrienne Kitchen at Reed Smith.
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Tracking Class Certification Changes, 1 Year After TransUnion
In the year since the U.S. Supreme Court's TransUnion v. Ramirez decision, defense lawyers have invoked it as support for denying class certification or decertifying classes — but an analysis suggests that the main impact of the ruling has simply been closer scrutiny of class definitions by district courts, say James Morsch and Jonathan Singer at Saul Ewing.