Specialty Lines
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December 16, 2024
11th Circ. Says Citrus Grower's Coverage Row Was Ripe
A citrus grower's bid for damages from its insurer in connection with environmental remediation costs was ripe, the Eleventh Circuit said, reviving the case after finding that a Florida district court wrongly dismissed it by conflating the issue of ripeness with the merits of the grower's claims.
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December 13, 2024
Retirees Say Lumber Co.'s $1.5B Pension Transfer Upped Risk
A wood product manufacturer violated federal benefits law when it transferred $1.5 billion of pension obligations to a private equity-backed insurance company, substantially increasing the risk that retirees will see their benefits slashed, according to a proposed class action filed in federal court.
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December 13, 2024
NC Justices Topple Insurer Victory In COVID Coverage Battle
The North Carolina Supreme Court handed policyholders a rare win Friday in their bid to get property insurance coverage for their pandemic-related business interruption losses, unanimously finding that the insuring phrase "direct physical loss" included the loss of use of property due to COVID-19 public health orders.
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December 12, 2024
BIPA Ruling Split Muddies Policyholders' Hopes For Relief
Two opposing district court decisions on the application of a law limiting damages under an Illinois biometric privacy law marked a setback for policyholders searching for relief from an avalanche of litigation that has posed a challenge to coverage.
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December 12, 2024
Call To Scrap Insurance Monitor Raises Issue Of Federal Role
A recent call from North Carolina's insurance chief to eliminate the U.S. Department of the Treasury's insurance monitor could portend trouble for the office and federal initiatives to better understand climate risks to consumers, but experts say the monitor is already limited in power.
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December 12, 2024
USAA Inks $3.25M Data Breach Deal With 22K Customers
More than 22,000 USAA customers have asked a New York federal judge to grant preliminary approval to a $3.2 million settlement to resolve a proposed class action alleging the company's security failures in its online insurance quote system allowed cybercriminals to open fraudulent memberships.
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December 12, 2024
Recent M&A Surge Signals Boon In Reps & Warranties Market
An expected surge in mergers and acquisitions under President-elect Donald Trump's business-friendly agenda points to a positive outlook for an evolving representations and warranties insurance market, experts say, bringing welcome growth following a recent slump in M&A activity.
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December 11, 2024
Pillsbury Atty Talks Terrorism Liability Safeguards For CRE
Owners of commercial real estate properties such as office towers and concert venues can limit their liability in the event of a terrorist attack by bolstering their legal defenses through the federal Safety Act, a Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP public policy partner told Law360 Real Estate Authority.
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December 10, 2024
9th Circ Reverses Cert. In Widow's Allianz Life Insurance Suit
A unanimous Ninth Circuit panel on Tuesday reversed a lower court decision granting class certification in a case claiming that Allianz LIfe Insurance didn't follow statutorily required notice provisions before denying life insurance claims, saying the lead plaintiff wasn't an adequate representative for the proposed class, among other concerns.
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December 10, 2024
NC Law Firm, Insurer Drop Phishing Coverage Row
A law firm specializing in real estate transactions and its cyber insurer told a North Carolina federal court Tuesday they've agreed to settle their dispute over coverage for a phishing scam the firm said caused it to unwittingly wire roughly $647,000 to the hacker's bank account.
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December 10, 2024
Insurer Seeks Exit From Firm's Bid For $2.8M Hack Coverage
A private equity firm's insurer told a Nebraska federal court it owed no coverage for what the firm said was a $2.83 million loss from a hack, maintaining the event didn't meet its policy's definitions of "loss" or claims and fell under a cyber theft exclusion.
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December 10, 2024
NY AG Refuses To Drop $489M Fraud Case Against Trump
The office of New York Attorney General Letitia James has announced it won't drop its civil financial fraud case against President-elect Donald Trump, two of his sons, his companies and their executives, saying his upcoming inauguration has no bearing on litigating his appeal of the $489 million judgment.
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December 10, 2024
School Board, Zurich Agree To End Sex Abuse Coverage Suit
A New Jersey school board has reached a deal with Zurich to resolve a dispute over coverage for three underlying suits alleging sexual abuse by a teacher in the 1960s and 1970s, according to a notice filed in federal court.
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December 10, 2024
Insurer QBE Settles Suit Over Failed $18M Wind Support Deal
Belgium-based insurer QBE Europe has settled a lawsuit accusing it of wasting available policy limits on pointless litigation rather than make a reasonable offer in a separate $18 million dispute over a failed wind support vessel deal, according to a Tuesday filing.
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December 06, 2024
4 Big Developments In ERISA Cases From 2nd Half Of 2024
The Sixth Circuit reopened a retirement plan mismanagement suit against Parker-Hannifin Corp. and revived a manufacturing company worker's disability benefits bid, while the nation's highest court declined to review a plan trustee's unsuccessful attempt to force an employee stock sale dispute into arbitration. Here, Law360 looks at four recent decisions in Employee Retirement Income Security Act cases that benefits attorneys should know.
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December 05, 2024
Premium Concerns Centered In Calif. Reinsurance Hearing
California insurance regulators heard consumer concerns over high premiums during a public hearing Thursday as advocacy groups and insurance industry lobbyists offered thoughts on a proposal to allow insurers to pass down the cost of their own disaster coverage.
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December 05, 2024
SL Policyholders Gifted Court, Underwriting Wins In 2024
The past year was one filled with gifts to specialty lines policyholders, including favorable court rulings on key coverage issues and easing cyberinsurance markets to give policyholders more predictability and clarity after years of volatility.
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December 05, 2024
UN Insurer Climate Risk Report Is Light On Details, Pros Say
A recent United Nations guide advising insurers on how they should plan for the risks associated with climate change offers a broad-level view of ways carriers can support net-zero goals, but experts say more detail is warranted for forthcoming reports.
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December 05, 2024
Chinese Bank Faces New Suit Alleging Reinsurance Fraud
Another group of insurers has accused one of China's largest banks of participating in a "multi-billion-dollar fraud" in the reinsurance market, telling a New York federal court Thursday that the bank, including its New York branch, has refused to honor over $890 million worth of letters of credit.
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December 05, 2024
11th Circ. Won't Rethink $100M Credit For John Hancock
The Eleventh Circuit won't reconsider its decision to let John Hancock Life Insurance Co. keep $100 million in foreign tax credits, leaving in place its October ruling against a Florida law firm retirement plan's trustees.
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December 05, 2024
Insurance Litigation Week In Review
The Delaware Supreme Court will review 3M's bid for coverage in multidistrict litigation over defective earplugs, a California state appeals court relieved an insurer of covering a spa owner in an underlying sex abuse lawsuit, and a group of Hartford units said Proctor & Gamble isn't covered for underlying environmental lawsuits.
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December 05, 2024
Airbnb Customers Drop 'Assistance Fee' Suit Against Insurers
A proposed class of Airbnb customers permanently dropped a suit accusing two of the company's insurance providers of violating Washington state law by charging an "assistance fee" when selling travel coverage.
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December 04, 2024
P&C Insurers Post $4.1B Underwriting Gain In Big Reversal
The U.S. property and casualty insurance market recorded a $4.1 billion net underwriting gain in the first nine months of 2024, according to a report issued Wednesday by global credit rating agency AM Best, which called the turnaround a significant improvement from the prior year's $32.1 billion loss.
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December 03, 2024
Fla. High Court Takes Up Ex-Marvel Exec's Hate Mail Dispute
The Florida Supreme Court agreed Tuesday to take up the question of whether former Marvel Entertainment chair Ike Perlmutter can request punitive damages in a case against his neighbor in a long-running defamation dispute over hate mail.
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December 03, 2024
Insurance Execs Charged With $250M Fake Policy Scheme
An insurance company and two executives issued bogus insurance policies purporting to offer over $250 million in coverage to companies and homeowners, according to an indictment announced by the Manhattan district attorney Tuesday.
Expert Analysis
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State Of The States' AI Legal Ethics Landscape
Over the past year, several state bar associations, as well as the American Bar Association, have released guidance on the ethical use of artificial intelligence in legal practice, all of which share overarching themes and some nuanced differences, say Eric Pacifici and Kevin Henderson at SMB Law Group.
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Insurance Likely Kept Swift Out Of The Woods After Vienna
Financial losses Taylor Swift incurred from the cancellation of three concerts in Vienna in August will likely be covered by insurance policies, considering how the facts of the situation differ from those of the Foo Fighters' 2015 insurance dispute over event cancellation and terrorism coverage, say attorneys at Anderson Kill.
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Class Actions At The Circuit Courts: September Lessons
In this month's review of class action appeals, Mitchell Engel at Shook Hardy identifies practice tips from four recent class certification rulings involving denial of Medicare reimbursements, automobile insurance disputes, veterans' rights and automobile defects.
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3 Coverage Tips As 2nd Circ. 'Swipes Left' On Tinder Claim
The Second Circuit's recent opinion in Match Group v. Beazley Underwriting, overturning Tinder's victory on its insurer's motion to dismiss a coverage action, reinforces three best practices policyholders purchasing claims-made coverage should adhere to in order to avoid late-notice defenses, say Lynda Bennett and Alexander Corson at Lowenstein Sandler.
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What To Know About Insurance Coverage For Antitrust Risks
With all the regulatory activity surrounding antitrust and unfair competition claims, as highlighted by last month's D.C. federal court decision that Google is a monopolist, businesses must not only ensure compliance, but also understand their potential insurance coverage when such claims arise, says Micah Skidmore at Haynes Boone.
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Finding Coverage For Online Retail Privacy Class Actions
Following recent court rulings interpreting state invasion of privacy and electronic surveillance statutes triggering a surge in the filing of privacy class actions against online retailers, companies should examine their various insurance policies, including E&O and D&O, for defense coverage of these claims, says Alison Gaske at Gilbert LLP.
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What We Know From Early Cyberinsurance Rulings
Recent cyber disruption incidents, like the Crowdstrike outage and the CDK Global cyberattack this summer, highlight the necessity of understanding legal interpretations of cyberinsurance coverage — an area in which there has been little litigation thus far, say Peter Halprin and Rebecca Schwarz at Haynes Boone.
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6 Considerations To Determine If A Cyber Incident Is Material
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's recent guidance on material cybersecurity incidents covers a range of ransomware scenarios, from a company paying a sum and regaining operations to recovering payment via cyberinsurance, but makes it clear that no single factor determines whether a cybersecurity incident is material, say attorneys at Troutman Pepper.
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Insuring Lender's Baseball Bet Leads To Major League Dispute
In RockFence v. Lloyd's, a California federal court seeks to define who qualifies as a professional baseball player for purposes of an insurance coverage payout, providing an illuminating case study of potential legal issues arising from baseball service loans, say Marshall Gilinsky and Seán McCabe at Anderson Kill.
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Insurance Lessons From 11th Circ. Ruling On Policy Grammar
The Eleventh Circuit's recent decision in ECB v. Chubb Insurance, holding that missing punctuation didn't change the clear meaning of a professional services policy, offers policyholder takeaways about the uncertainty that can arise when courts interpret insurance policy language based on obscure grammatical canons, say Hugh Lumpkin and Garrett Nemeroff at Reed Smith.
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Ore. Insurance Litigation Is Testing The Bounds After Moody
Despite the Oregon Supreme Court’s attempt to limit application of its 2023 decision in Moody v. Oregon Community Credit Union, which for the first time awarded extracontractual damages stemming from alleged negligent claims handling, recent litigation shows Oregon insurance companies face greater exposure, says Sarah Pozzi at Cozen O’Connor.
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What's In NYDFS Guidance On Use Of AI In Insurance
Matthew Gaul and Shlomo Potesky at Willkie summarize the New York Department of Financial Services' recently adopted circular letter on the use of artificial intelligence in insurance underwriting and pricing, and highlight the material changes made to it in response to comments on the draft circular letter.
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After Jarkesy, IRS Must Course-Correct On Captive Insurance
The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent Securities and Exchange Commission v. Jarkesy decision has profound implications for other agencies, including the IRS, which must stop ignoring due process and curtailing congressional intent in its policing of captive insurance arrangements, says Peter Dawson at the 831(b) Institute.