Property

  • July 10, 2025

    Top General Liability Rulings From The First Half Of 2025

    Federal courts have handed down big wins for insurers, finding that they needn't cover claims related to a Home Depot data breach and opioid litigation brought against Publix, as well as issuing rulings favoring carriers in disputes over so-called ghost guns and PFAS-related litigation. Here, Law360 breaks down the top commercial general liability rulings from the first half of 2025.

  • July 10, 2025

    Texas Floods Highlight Risk Of Climate Cuts, Low Coverage

    A series of deadly floods in Texas Hill Country over the July 4 weekend underscore the danger of rollbacks and threats to federal programs for disaster relief and climate monitoring, while also showing the need for greater flood coverage uptake to avoid longer-term economic challenges. 

  • July 10, 2025

    Property Co. Says State Farm Wrongfully Delayed Fire Claim

    A State Farm unit acted in bad faith by unreasonably delaying and denying coverage for a fire that damaged a downtown Denver property more than two years ago, the property owner said in a suit removed to Colorado federal court.

  • July 10, 2025

    Insurance Litigation Week In Review

    Michigan's top court found that claims over personal injury protection coverage can be revived after they are transferred to third parties, the Eighth Circuit relieved a Chubb insurer from having to split an underlying $2 million settlement and the Fourth Circuit revived a South Carolina builder's condo repair coverage dispute. Here, Law360 takes a look at the past week's top insurance news.

  • July 10, 2025

    Judge Preserves Meritage Stucco Defect Coverage Claims

    A Texas federal judge largely sided with Meritage Homes in a lawsuit to force AIG to cover $11 million paid out to hundreds of homeowners that complained of construction defects on stucco homes in Texas and Florida.

  • July 09, 2025

    Insurer Accused Of Dodging $2M Claims For Hurricane Beryl

    A car dealership told a Texas federal judge that its insurance company stiffed it to the tune of $2 million after Hurricane Beryl blew through and damaged multiple buildings, saying in a Wednesday complaint the insurer wrongly found the damages fell below the deductible.

  • July 08, 2025

    Insurer Fights Coverage For $13M Townhome Arbitration Row

    An insurer told a Washington federal court it has no duty to defend or indemnify a developer facing a nearly $13 million arbitration demand from a construction lender, which claims the developer misrepresented the completion of underground facilities at a Seattle townhome project while requesting funds for the work.

  • July 08, 2025

    Insurer, Guam School Settle Typhoon Coverage Fight

    The owner of a high school in Guam and its property insurer resolved their coverage dispute over the owner's claims the insurer underpaid its more than $5.1 million typhoon damage claim in bad faith, in part through allegedly "causing delay," the parties told a Guam federal court.

  • July 07, 2025

    Fla. Condo Says Chubb Insurer Lowballed Hurricane Claim

    A nonprofit Florida condominium owner is urging a federal court to reject a Chubb subsidiary's final summary judgment bid against the nonprofit's hurricane coverage suit, arguing that the insurer offered only $23,801 for property damage that eventually resulted in the nonprofit receiving an award of more than $7.2 million.

  • July 07, 2025

    Ga. Property Owner, Insurer Settle Burst Pipe Coverage Suit

    A property owner and its insurer have agreed to settle a lawsuit in which the owner alleged it should have received coverage under a more than $30 million policy despite the insurer receiving late notice of property damage caused during a 2022 winter freeze.

  • July 03, 2025

    Hawaii Insurer Claims Defense Failures In Slip-And-Fall Suit

    Hiscox Insurance Co. failed to meet its obligation to contribute to a Hawaii-based restaurant property manager's defense against a slip-and-fall suit, the manager's insurer told a Hawaii federal court.

  • July 03, 2025

    The Firms That Won Big At The Supreme Court

    The number of law firms juggling three or more arguments before the U.S. Supreme Court this past term nearly doubled from the number of firms that could make that claim last term.

  • July 03, 2025

    Breaking Down The Vote: The High Court Term In Review

    The U.S. Supreme Court once again waited until the term's closing weeks — and even hours — to issue some of its most anticipated and divided decisions.

  • July 02, 2025

    State Farm Investigation In Calif. Spotlights Adjuster Issues

    A California regulatory investigation into State Farm's California subsidiary is spotlighting common issues in the insurance recovery process following major disasters, but experts also say that the insurer's high level of exposure opened it up to more consumer scrutiny.

  • July 02, 2025

    Local Restrictions In New Fla. Hurricane Law Cause Friction

    The Florida Senate hailed the signing late last week of a wide-ranging bill aimed at bolstering the state's handling of hurricanes, but a legal battle could lie ahead, as Gov. Ron DeSantis provided his signature over objections that portions will trample on local governments' authority to regulate land use and development in their own communities.

  • July 02, 2025

    Q&A: Policyholder Atty On Career Win Against Calif. FAIR Plan

    A major ruling last week that fire insurance offered by California's insurer of last resort doesn't meet minimum standards under state law should redefine the conversation around what constitutes insurable fire risk, according to one of the plaintiff's lawyers. Here, Law360 talks to policyholder attorney Dylan Schaffer of Kerley Schaffer LLP about the decision and case he regards as the most meaningful in his career.

  • July 02, 2025

    Auto Dividend Policies Can Be A Win For Drivers And Insurers

    Dividend policies from auto insurers can offer carriers more premiums up front, strengthening their bottom line, while encouraging drivers to be more risk-averse once they have a vested interest in receiving significant dividends, carrier-side attorney Michael Savett of Butler Weihmuller Katz Craig LLP told Law360. Here, Savett discusses the particulars of such policies.

  • July 02, 2025

    Marsh Says Brokerage Poached Employees, Client

    Insurance brokerage Marsh told a New York federal court that a competing brokerage orchestrated a scheme with former Marsh employees to steal clients in its surety business, noting that the competitor has faced over 70 other similar lawsuits.

  • July 02, 2025

    Houston Rodeo Says Unique Policy Means COVID Coverage

    The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo is asking an appellate court to reverse a summary judgment win in favor of its insurer, arguing two provisions of its policy mean it's covered for business losses it sustained during the COVID-19 pandemic.

  • July 02, 2025

    Kenyan Firm's Boeing Crash Fee-Sharing Suit Is Tossed

    An Illinois federal judge has thrown out a suit by a Kenyan firm alleging that an Illinois firm wrongly pushed it out of a fee-sharing agreement stemming from a settlement with Boeing over the 2019 Ethiopian Airlines 737 Max crash, finding some of the claims fall under Illinois' litigation privilege, while the rest are unsupported by the complaint.

  • June 27, 2025

    Insurer Seeks End Of Golf Co.'s $3.1M Hurricane Claim

    A property insurer for a golf course owner told a North Carolina federal court it should toss the owner's claims that the insurer failed to pay an additional $3.1 million in coverage for Hurricane Helene-related damage in bad faith, saying it failed to back up such claims with specific factual allegations.

  • June 27, 2025

    Insurer Asks Court To Sort Out Paying Of $4.1M Settlement

    An insurer asked a California federal court to decide who should receive a $4.1 million settlement of a homeowner's fire claims, saying it could not determine who was entitled to the payment because of a number of lien notices filed as the settlement was finalized.

  • June 26, 2025

    Calif. FAIR Plan Fire Policy Is Unlawful, Court Rules

    Fire insurance offered by California's insurer of last resort does not meet the minimum coverage standards laid out in the state insurance code, a California state court ruled, finding the policy's definition of "direct physical loss" and its smoke damage provision to be unlawfully restrictive.

  • June 26, 2025

    Iran Volatility Implicates Range Of Trade Coverages, Pros Say

    A growing market for insurance meant to protect companies from trade disruptions could help a wide array of industries cover risks associated with military hostilities in Iran and Israel, but experts caution that there are important limits to such coverages.

  • June 26, 2025

    Insurance Litigation Week In Review

    State Farm will likely face class certification in a California federal homeowners insurance case, the Ninth Circuit sought input from New York's top court over automakers' duties, and a New York federal court sided with a policyholder in coverage litigation over corporate sale and merger transactions. Here, Law360 takes a look at the past week's top insurance news.

Expert Analysis

  • 5 Insurance Types For Mitigating Tariff-Related Trade Losses

    Author Photo

    The potential for significant trade-related losses as a result of increased tariffs may cause companies to consider which of their insurance policies, including marine, builders risk, trade credit, and directors and officers, could provide coverage to alleviate the financial impact, say attorneys at Pillsbury.

  • A Cold War-Era History Lesson On Due Process

    Author Photo

    The landmark Harry Bridges case from the mid-20th century Red Scare offers important insights on why lawyers must be free of government reprisal, no matter who their client is, says Peter Afrasiabi at One LLP.

  • Texas Case Shows Why Juries Are Well-Suited To COVID Suits

    Author Photo

    The original jury verdict in Baylor College of Medicine v. Lloyd's, currently on appeal to the Texas Supreme Court after being overturned by an appellate panel, illustrates why COVID-19 business interruption claims with their case-specific facts need to be decided by juries, not by judges using a one-size-fits-all approach, says Jeremy Lawrence at Farella Braun.

  • In-House Expert Testimony Is Tricky, But Worth Considering

    Author Photo

    Litigation counsel often reject the notion of designating in-house personnel to provide expert opinion testimony at trial, but dismissing them outright can result in a significant missed opportunity, say David Ben-Meir at Ben-Meir Law and Martin Pitha at Lillis Pitha.

  • Tracking Changes To AI Evidence Under Federal Rules

    Author Photo

    As the first quarter of 2025 draws to a close, important changes to the Federal Rules of Evidence regarding the use of artificial intelligence in the courtroom are on the horizon, including how to handle evidence that is a product of machine learning, say attorneys at Debevoise.

  • Reconciling 2 Smoke Coverage Cases From California

    Author Photo

    As highlighted by a California Department of Insurance bulletin clarifying the effect of two recent decisions on insurance coverage, the February state appellate ruling denying coverage for property damage from smoke, ash and soot should be viewed as an outlier, say attorneys at Reed Smith.

  • Key Insurance Issues Likely To Arise From NY Superfund Law

    Author Photo

    The recently enacted New York Climate Change Superfund Act imposes a massive $75 billion in liabilities on energy companies in the fossil fuel industry, which can be expected to look to their insurers for coverage, raising a slew of coverage issues both old and new, say attorneys at Wiley.

  • How Fla. Is Floating A Raft Of Bills To Stem Insurance Woes

    Author Photo

    Proposed reforms that follow a report skewering Florida's insurance industry offer a step in the right direction in providing relief for property owners, despite some limitations, say attorneys at Farah & Farah.

  • What To Know About NAIC's Risk-Based Capital Task Force

    Author Photo

    Attorneys at Debevoise outline key details of the Risk-Based Capital Model Governance Task Force, which was recently launched by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, including the task force's objectives, and potential implications for insurers and their investment strategies.

  • How Calif.'s Wildfire Insurance Crisis Might Affect Texas

    Author Photo

    Attorneys at Munsch Hardt examine the implications of California's wildfire insurance crisis for Texas, including potential shifts in coverage availability, regulatory differences and how the insurers in the second-largest U.S. state may react to a major wildfire event.

  • How To Create A Unique Jury Profile For Every Case

    Author Photo

    Instead of striking potential jurors based on broad stereotypes or gut feelings, trial attorneys should create case-specific risk profiles that address the political climate, the specific facts of the case and the venue in order to more precisely identify higher-risk jurors, says Ken Broda-Bahm at Persuasion Strategies.

  • Managing Anti-Corporate Juror Views Revealed By CEO Killing

    Author Photo

    After the shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson laid bare deep-seated anti-corporate sentiments among the public, companies in numerous industries will have to navigate the influence of related juror biases on litigation dynamics, say Jorge Monroy and Keith Pounds at IMS Legal Strategies.

  • Notable Q4 Updates In Insurance Class Actions

    Author Photo

    In a continuation of trends in property and casualty insurance class actions, last quarter insurers struggled with defending the merits and class certification of sales tax and fee suits, and labor depreciation cases, but succeeded in dismissing privacy class actions at the pleading stages, says Mathew Drocton at BakerHostetler.

Can't find the article you're looking for? Click here to search the Insurance Authority Property archive.