General Liability

  • January 31, 2024

    $17.5M Hail Claim Mostly Not Covered, Insurer Says

    A storage company's insurer told a Texas federal court that much of the nearly $17.5 million in hail damage the company said it suffered wasn't actually caused by hail, adding that it refused to allow a construction consultant to inspect its property "despite multiple requests."

  • January 31, 2024

    College Philanthropy Slams Dismissal Bid In IP Coverage Suit

    A philanthropy associated with Kansas State University urged a Kansas federal court to keep alive its counterclaims in a fight over coverage for a lawsuit accusing it of stealing a man's idea relating to economic development, saying it met the pleading standards for this stage of litigation.

  • January 31, 2024

    Insurer Says Dispute Over Developer's HVAC Claim Settled

    A Tokio Marine unit notified a Minnesota federal court Wednesday that it has reached an agreement with a construction company and subcontractor in a coverage dispute over a property developer's claim that the companies must pay to replace part of a residential HVAC system.

  • January 31, 2024

    Church Says Insurer Improperly Denied Covering Schism Row

    A church accused its insurer of violating Pennsylvania's insurance bad faith law and breaching its insurance policy by failing to properly defend former members and trustees over the church's claims they diverted funds to start their own congregation, the church told a federal court.

  • January 31, 2024

    State Farm Policyholder Asks 11th Circ. To Revive Class Suit

    A State Farm auto policyholder urged the Eleventh Circuit to revive her proposed class action accusing the insurer of unlawfully denying coverage for medical expenses, saying a Georgia federal court's interpretation of the medical payments provision went against precedent and the policy language.

  • January 31, 2024

    Liberty Mutual Units Must Help Cover Warehouse, Court Told

    The insurer for a furniture retailer told a California federal court that it doesn't owe coverage to a warehouse owner in underlying bodily injury litigation, saying it was relieved of its defense duties by a lease termination agreement.

  • January 30, 2024

    Woman's Policy Settlement Blocks Crash Injury Claims

    A woman who claims she didn't give her attorney authority to enter a policy-limit settlement and release following an automobile collision is nevertheless bound by it and therefore cannot pursue injury claims, an Illinois state appellate panel has ruled.

  • January 30, 2024

    Paint Co., Insurer Denied Wins In Asbestos Coverage Spat

    A drywall and paint company and its excess insurer can't toss each other's cross-claims in a lawsuit by the company's primary insurers, a Texas federal judge ruled, finding Tuesday that both parties sufficiently pled their arguments in the dispute over whether the company exploited its primary insurers in underlying asbestos litigation.

  • January 30, 2024

    Injured Man Can't Sue Deli Insurer For Payment, 3rd Circ. Says

    The Third Circuit ruled Tuesday that the insurer of a Philadelphia deli doesn't have to indemnify the owner for a $900,000 settlement between him and a man who sued after being stabbed on the premises, reasoning that the victim was barred from relitigating the same issues with the insurance company.

  • January 30, 2024

    Amber Heard Tells 9th Circ. To Undo Defense Coverage Loss

    Actor Amber Heard asked the Ninth Circuit to nix a California federal court's ruling in favor of her insurer, arguing that the court wrongly found she had no right to independent defense counsel in a defamation suit brought in Virginia state court by her ex-husband and fellow actor Johnny Depp.

  • January 30, 2024

    Pipeline Builder Says Insurer Owes Defense In Explosion Suit

    A pipeline construction company told a Texas federal court Tuesday that a subcontractor's insurer must defend the company in a personal injury suit stemming from a nitrogen gas explosion, asserting that it qualifies as an additional insured.

  • January 30, 2024

    Zurich, Mont. Mill Workers End Asbestos Liability Dispute

    Zurich and a group of former mill workers suffering from the effects of asbestos exposure agreed to end their legal dispute in which the workers accused Zurich of unfair claim settlement practices by entering into retroactive reinsurance agreements, the parties told a Montana federal court.

  • January 30, 2024

    Fennemore Craig Growing In Calif. With Sullivan Hill Merger

    In its latest West Coast expansion, Fennemore Craig PC announced Tuesday it is widening its footprint in San Diego through a merger with Sullivan Hill, with the latter's experts in insurance, construction, commercial bankruptcy and employment law joining Fennemore's existing four-attorney team in the city.

  • January 30, 2024

    Insurer Says Agent Caused Day Care's Coverage Denial

    The insurance agent for a Florida day care that was ordered to pay $21.6 million in damages after the death of a 4-month-old baby misrepresented material information that caused the facility's insurer to deny coverage of the underlying action, Markel Insurance Co. told a Florida federal court.

  • January 30, 2024

    Pa. Justices Revive 'Regular Use' Auto Policy Exclusion

    An auto policy exclusion barring underinsured motorist coverage for injuries involving a nonowned vehicle that an insured regularly uses does not violate a Pennsylvania law, the state's Supreme Court ruled, reversing an appeals court's decision against Erie Insurance Exchange.

  • January 29, 2024

    Insurer's Counterclaim Tossed From $7M Elevator Verdict Row

    An insurer has no grounds to pursue a counterclaim against excess insurer Great American Insurance Co. in a dispute with an elevator maintenance company over a $7.3 million negligence verdict, a Florida federal judge ruled Monday.

  • January 29, 2024

    Insurer-Backed Docs Must Show Tax Records For Bias Check

    A split Michigan appellate court panel has said a car crash victim seeking coverage for his injuries can force the medical examiners hired by his insurer to turn over tax documents, finding the records are relevant to determine potential bias that couldn't be discovered otherwise.

  • January 29, 2024

    Increase In Trafficking Reveals Hospitality Coverage Concerns

    As human trafficking continues to increase and travel returns to prepandemic levels, hospitality industry policyholders may see more direct trafficking exclusions and increased education requirements as the insurance industry works to address this growing risk, experts said.

  • January 29, 2024

    Insurers' Ethylene Oxide Coverage Fight Stayed In Del.

    Four Zurich units cannot yet pursue litigation in Delaware over coverage for hundreds of underlying ethylene oxide pollution lawsuits against a medical equipment sterilization company and other entities, a state court ruled, finding a parallel coverage action in Illinois state court largely covers the same issues.

  • January 29, 2024

    Pollution Exclusion Applies In Oil Well Row, Underwriters Say

    Underwriters for a now-defunct oil services company told a Texas federal court they should not pay a $10.6 million underlying judgment to two companies over drainage losses to their oil wells, because the defunct company's policy excluded pollution and waste claims.

  • January 29, 2024

    Judge Won't Pause Ohio Trafficking Case For Centralization

    An Ohio federal judge denied a woman's bid to pause her sex trafficking lawsuit while she awaits a decision to have her case centralized with other trafficking cases because it would delay efficient resolution.

  • January 29, 2024

    Justices' Pass On Fracking Coverage Unsurprising To Attys

    The U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision not to review a Third Circuit panel's ruling finding no insurance coverage for $13 million in damage to hydraulic fracturing wells did not surprise many legal experts, who said persuading the justices to take up a diversity case involving a state law issue is an uphill battle.

  • January 26, 2024

    Nelson Mullins' Rates Spark Coverage Spat Over Builder's Suit

    An insurance policy battle between an exterior building product manufacturer and its insurer over who should pay for a law firm's services in a separate lawsuit spilled into Ohio federal court this week after the insurer removed the company's case from state court to the federal arena.

  • January 26, 2024

    School Says Security Insurer Failed To Cover Stabbing Row

    A security company's insurer failed to provide coverage to a school for behavioral problems in an underlying suit alleging a student was stabbed and bullied in the gym due to the school's negligence and tolerance of violence, according to a suit removed to D.C. federal court.

  • January 26, 2024

    Missing Comma Can't Impede Chubb Policy, 11th Circ. Told

    A French food wholesaler urged an Eleventh Circuit panel Friday to reverse a lower-court ruling that an insurance company does not have to cover a lawsuit for alleged negligent audits due to a policy clause's missing comma, arguing that the New Jersey law applied in the case favors broad interpretation.

Expert Analysis

  • NY Rulings Show Shift In Insurance Priority Approach

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    Some recent New York state decisions considering coverage priority of primary and excess insurance policies and contractual indemnity claims run against clear policy language, which should trump extrinsic evidence of intent, says Dan Kohane at Hurwitz Fine.

  • Tips For Plaintiffs Attorneys Ahead Of Expanded Fire Season

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    With the expansion of fire season — both in length of time and geography — plaintiffs lawyers can expect fire-related litigation to increase this coming year and need to prepare themselves and their clients for claims that are complex, time-consuming and costly, says Gerald Singleton at Singleton Schreiber.

  • Pollutant Insurance Case Holds Clues For Ohio Train Litigation

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    A recent Rhode Island Supreme Court decision in Regan Heating v. Arbella could mean that the wide-reaching impacts of the February train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, will trigger the enforcement of any total pollution exclusion contained in Norfolk Southern's commercial general liability policy, says Kayla O’Connor at Saxe Doernberger.

  • Establishing A Record Of Good Faith In Mediation

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    Viacom v. U.S. Specialty Insurance, and other recent cases, highlight the developing criteria for determining good faith participation in mediation, as well as several practical tips to establish such a record, says Richard Mason at MasonADR.

  • Using ChatGPT To Handle Insurance Claims Is A Risky Move

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    ChatGPT gets some insurance law questions surprisingly wrong, and while it handles broader coverage concepts significantly better, using it to assist with coverage questions will likely lead to erroneous results and could leave insurers liable for bad faith, says Randy Maniloff at White and Williams.

  • Fla. Bill Would Rein In Personal Injury Litigation Excesses

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    A recently proposed bill in the Florida House that would change bad-faith laws and the admissibility of medical bills for services performed under a letter of protection would provide reasonable checks on practices that are far too common in personal injury cases in the Sunshine State, say attorneys at Baker Donelson.

  • Takeaways From Tree-Clearing Co.'s 11th Circ. Insurance Win

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    The Eleventh Circuit's recent decision in Frankenmuth Mutual v. Brown's Clearing, interpreting the extent of knowledge required to trigger an insured's notice obligations under a commercial general liability policy, is both a welcome sign and a cautionary tale for corporate policyholders, say Garrett Nemeroff and Christopher Kuleba at Reed Smith.

  • High Court Ax Of Atty-Client Privilege Case Deepens Split

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's recent dismissal of In re: Grand Jury as improvidently granted maintains a three-way circuit split on the application of attorney-client privilege to multipurpose communications, although the justices have at least shown a desire to address it, say Trey Bourn and Thomas DiStanislao at Butler Snow.

  • Why General Liability Carriers Are Wary Of SEC Climate Rule

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    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's proposed rule to require companies to formally report climate change risks could come into play in five areas that should be concerning to companies and their general liability insurers, says Eric Scheiner at Kennedys.

  • Wis. High Court Ruling May Open Door To Coverage Exception

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    The Wisconsin Supreme Court’s recent decision in Dostal v. Strand finding that an insurer had to defend a civil action following the defendant's criminal conviction on the same facts nonetheless may suggest an exception to the complaint test for determining an insurance company's defense obligation, say David Hollander and Clementine Uwabera at Stafford Rosenbaum.

  • A Litigation Move That Could Conserve Discovery Resources

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    Bennett Rawicki at Hilgers Graben proposes the preliminary legal opinion procedure — seeking a court's opinion on a disputed legal standard at the outset, rather than the close, of discovery — as a useful resource-preservation tool for legally complex, discovery-intensive litigation.

  • Trial Lawyers Rejoice: Justices May Clarify Issue Preservation

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's recent grant of certiorari in Dupree v. Younger should be a boon to trial and appellate lawyers as the decision will likely standardize a rule for appellate issue preservation, bringing much-needed clarity to an area critical to general litigation success, says Jeremy Christiansen at Gibson Dunn.

  • Policyholder Lessons From 1st Circ. Duty To Defend Ruling

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    In Lionbridge Technologies v. Valley Forge Insurance, the First Circuit recently held that the obligation to defend an insured is not limited to the specific causes of action expressly stated in a complaint, providing policyholders with persuasive arguments in support of the duty to defend, say Catherine Doyle and Caroline Meneau at Jenner & Block.