Specialty Lines

  • February 10, 2025

    Calif. Ruling Holds Wildfire Debris Not A Coverable Loss

    Two California homeowners didn't have a covered claim for wildfire debris that infiltrated their home, a state appeals panel ruled, saying there was no evidence the debris caused the kind of loss or damage required for coverage.

  • February 10, 2025

    Chubb Wants Depo Of Smithfield Foods CLO In Coverage Row

    A Chubb unit facing coverage claims from Smithfield Foods Inc. asked the North Carolina Business Court to let it depose the company's chief legal officer before the parties' upcoming April trial even though discovery for the case has ended.

  • February 07, 2025

    5th Circ. Upholds High School's Win In Gym Fire Suit

    The Fifth Circuit on Thursday upheld a Louisiana high school's win in its suit claiming that a flooring company caused a gym fire, holding that the high school has a right of action for property damage to the gymnasium.

  • February 07, 2025

    Plaintiffs Lawyers Swarm Los Angeles Post-Fires

    A deadly wildfire may be among the first covered by a new state fund that reimburses at-fault utility companies. This could mean billions of dollars for plaintiffs lawyers, and, if past fires are any indication, frustration and confusion for some victims.

  • February 06, 2025

    Trump Tariffs Portend Higher Insurance Industry Costs

    President Donald Trump's tariff regime is threatening sections of the insurance industry with higher costs or uncovered exposures, pushing policyholders with few applicable coverage lines at their disposal to explore more indirect forms of risk mitigation.

  • February 06, 2025

    Insurance Co. Must Cover Truck Driver Injury, 11th Circ. Rules

    The Eleventh Circuit has affirmed a Georgia federal judge's decision to hand a win to a transport company in a coverage dispute with Crum & Forster Insurance, ruling the insurer must cover a workers' compensation claim brought by a trucker maimed in an accident.

  • February 06, 2025

    SC Justices To Weigh Jurisdictional Limits In Asbestos Cases

    The South Carolina Supreme Court will consider Tuesday whether its first female justice and former chief, who now oversees the state's asbestos cases, can continue to exercise jurisdiction over companies not incorporated in the state or haven't directly done business there, and nevertheless appoint a receiver over their insurance assets.

  • February 06, 2025

    Pillsbury Adds Insurance Partner From Morgan Lewis

    Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP has announced the addition of an insurance recovery expert from Morgan Lewis as a partner in its Washington, D.C., office to advise and represent insurance policyholders.

  • February 06, 2025

    Insurance Litigation Week In Review

    The Delaware Supreme Court agreed that a jury's fraud verdict against an ex-Xerox unit was improper and also limited a pharmaceutical company's recovery for a securities suit, while the Sixth Circuit refused to review Home Depot's data breach coverage loss. Here, Law360 takes a look at the past week's top insurance news.

  • February 06, 2025

    Insurance Expert Tackles Super Bowl Coverage Risks

    The Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles earned their way to the Super Bowl only last week, but the NFL, host city New Orleans, the stadium and others have spent years planning and securing the necessary insurance coverage to ensure the biggest sporting event of the year is properly protected. Here, insurance industry veteran Lori Shaw spoke with Law360 about insuring one of the world's most-watched sporting events.

  • February 05, 2025

    Seattle Garage Not Covered For Deadly Shooting, Insurer Says

    An insurer said Wednesday that it does not owe the owners of Seattle's "sinking ship" public garage coverage in an underlying wrongful death lawsuit filed by the family of a man fatally shot while parking his car at the downtown facility.

  • February 05, 2025

    6th Circ. Won't Revisit Home Depot Data Breach Coverage Suit

    The Sixth Circuit refused Wednesday to review its January finding that an electronic data exclusion in Home Depot's commercial general liability policies barred coverage for the retail giant's $50 million claim for defense and settlement costs over a 2014 data breach.

  • February 05, 2025

    Del. Justices Undo Insurance Cap Ruling In Alexion Suit

    Delaware's top court has reversed a Superior Court ruling that upheld Alexion Pharmaceuticals' claim to coverage under a $105 million "tower" of insurance for potential stockholder claims in a suit accusing the company of propping up share prices with misleading information.

  • February 04, 2025

    Funeral Home BIPA Violations Not Covered, Insurer Says

    An insurer told an Illinois federal court to dismiss a suit seeking $10 million in coverage for underlying litigation from a funeral home it insured, arguing that claims in a proposed class action by family members of decedents against the facility were all for noncovered biometric privacy violations.

  • February 04, 2025

    Insurer Points To Limits In McDonald's Franchisees' Policies

    An insurer told a Washington federal court that it owes limited coverage to two McDonald's franchisees it insures in suits accusing them of illegally withholding specific pay figures in job postings. 

  • February 03, 2025

    Del. Justices Agree Conduent Fraud Verdict Wasn't Proper

    Delaware's Supreme Court on Monday affirmed a Superior Court judge's ruling setting aside a jury verdict that Delaware-chartered Conduent State Healthcare LLC tried to defraud insurers after paying a $236 million Medicaid settlement in Texas.

  • February 03, 2025

    Co.'s Coverage Suit Over $1.9M Email Spoof Scheme Tossed

    An Alaska federal court on Monday officially dismissed a construction company's lawsuit accusing Travelers of a bad faith refusal to provide directors and officers coverage for a $1.9 million email spoofing scheme, days after the construction company filed a voluntary motion to dismiss with prejudice.

  • February 03, 2025

    Climate Group Says Insurance Hikes Threaten Housing Market

    The U.S. housing market could sustain a $1.4 trillion loss in value over the next 30 years as insurance costs surge and consumer demand shifts due to climate change, according to a report Monday from climate analytics company First Street.

  • February 03, 2025

    NC Justices Urged To Reject Appeal Over Rate Hike Approvals

    North Carolina's insurance commissioner urged the state's highest court to reject a policyholder's appeal challenging a series of insurer rate hike approvals in court, saying an appeals panel correctly found that the policyholder failed to support his claims that intervening in the preceding approval process was impossible.

  • February 03, 2025

    Yacht Building Co. Faces Sanctions For Hiding Hoist Failure

    A Washington federal judge has said yacht builder Delta Marine Industries owed sanctions over its failure to provide access to parts related to a boat hoist that failed during the launch of a yacht in a $3.4 million dispute between Lloyd's syndicates, underwriters and a Seattle boat builder.

  • January 31, 2025

    Supreme Court Eyes Its 'Next Frontier' In FCC Delegation Case

    A case about broadband subsidies will give the U.S. Supreme Court the chance to revive a long-dormant separation of powers principle that attorneys say could upend regulations in numerous industries and trigger a power shift that would make last term's shake-up of federal agency authority pale in comparison. And a majority of the court already appears to support its resurrection.

  • January 31, 2025

    Judge Blocks Symetra Life Policyholders' $32.5M Deal

    A Washington federal court rejected a $32.5 million settlement bid brought by a proposed class of Symetra life insurance policyholders who accused the life insurer of using undisclosed nonmortality factors to overcharge monthly rates, noting the proposed settlement notice leaves information on the class counsel's cost reimbursement blank.

  • February 14, 2025

    Law360 Seeks Members For Its 2025 Editorial Boards

    Law360 is looking for avid readers of our publications to serve as members of our 2025 editorial advisory boards.

  • January 30, 2025

    Ex-Doc Wants Insurer's Defense Against Sex Misconduct Suits

    A former Ohio doctor facing civil suits after being indicted for sexual misconduct including rape during medical exams told an Ohio federal court that his insurer can't cancel his coverage and must keep defending him regardless of prior alleged misconduct, because he wasn't required to report it.

  • January 30, 2025

    Allstate Units Say No Coverage For Rental Home Fire Dispute

    Two Allstate insurers told a Pennsylvania federal court Thursday that they shouldn't have to cover an underlying suit accusing a group of college students of breaching their lease agreement after the New Jersey-based property they were renting caught fire due to improper disposal of smoking materials.

Expert Analysis

  • Del. Insurance Co. Liquidation Reveals Recovery Strategies

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    Arrowood's recent liquidation in the Delaware Chancery Court offers a positive development for policyholders and claimants, providing access to guaranty association protections amid the company's demise, say Timothy Law and Ann Kramer at Reed Smith.

  • The Basics Of Law Firm Cyber Liability Insurance Applications

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    Cyber liability insurance has become a common consideration for law firms as cyber threats have escalated, but these insurance forms can be quite complicated given the nature of the industry and associated risks, so simply filling out the form won't necessarily result in an ideal policy for your firm, says Kevin Haight at WAMS.

  • Insurance Considerations For Cos. Assessing New AI Risks

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    Because no two businesses will have the same artificial intelligence risk profile, they should consider four broad risk categories as a baseline for taking a proactive approach to guarding against AI-related exposures, say attorneys at Hunton.

  • AI Brings New Insurance Concerns For Healthcare Providers

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    As the healthcare industry increasingly invests in medical artificial intelligence tools, it confronts a variety of liability risks that necessitate careful consideration and potential recalibration of providers' insurance programs, say Marialuisa Gallozzi and Megan Mumford Myers at Covington.

  • 3 AI Regulation Developments Insurers Must Follow

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    Insurance regulators continue to actively develop regulations and guidance on the use of artificial intelligence, so insurers should be aware of recent developments from the Colorado Division of Insurance, the National Association of Insurance Commissioners and the New York Department of Financial Services, say attorneys at Willkie.

  • Deal Over Jets Stranded In Russia May Serve As Blueprint

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    In the face of a pending "mega-trial" over leased airplanes held in Russia after its invasion of Ukraine, a settlement between leading aviation lessor AerCap Holdings NV and NSK, the Russian state-controlled insurance company, could pave the way for similar deals, say Samantha Zaozirny and Timeyin Pinnick at Browne Jacobson.

  • How Shareholder Activists Are Targeting Insurers

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    As shareholder activists take a closer look at the insurance industry, they are pushing insurers to take value-enhancing and climate-related measures — but insurers can prepare by anticipating activist concerns, maintaining robust shareholder engagement, and considering changes in response to the universal proxy rules, say attorneys at Debevoise.

  • Unlocking Value In Carve-Out M&A Transactions

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    Some of the largest mergers and acquisitions in 2023 were carve-out transactions, and despite their unique intricacies and challenges, these transactions offer both buyers and sellers the opportunity to generate outsized returns in an otherwise vigorously competitive landscape, when carefully planned and diligently executed, say Kevin Crews and Rami Totari at Kirkland.

  • Tips For Negotiating Strong D&O Insurance Protection

    Excerpt from Practical Guidance
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    D&O insurance is often the last line of defense for the personal assets of a director or officer, so taking the time to negotiate improvements to their D&O policies and ensuring that the coverage is appropriate for the insureds' risk profile can greatly improve the chances that their policies will protect them when they need coverage the most, says Thomas Bentz at Holland & Knight.

  • Insurers Should Prepare For 'Black Swan' Climate Disasters

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    As rapid climate change results in increased risk of casualties and property loss from rare, severe weather events, the insurance industry should take five crucial steps toward evolving and continuing operations, including advanced analytic techniques and investments in alternative energy sources, say Stephen Brown and Irena Maier at Wilson Elser.

  • 3 Quirks Of New Jersey Insurance Coverage Law

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    There are a multitude of state-specific requirements and nuances that make New Jersey insurance law unique, including in the areas of duty to defend, reservation of rights and bad faith, say attorneys at Goldberg Segalla.

  • How Del. 'Arising Out Of' Ruling May Affect Insurance Cases

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    The Delaware Supreme Court decision in Ace American Insurance v. Guaranteed Rate focused on a professional services exclusion, but the ruling has wide-ranging application in insurance coverage disputes involving any exclusions that employ "arising out of" or similar prefatory language, say Keith McKenna and Maria Brinkmann at Cohen Ziffer.

  • Assessing D&O Coverage Amid Challenges To DEI Policies

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    As the recent backlash against corporate diversity, equity and inclusion policies leads to shareholder litigation and other legal challenges, companies bolstering their DEI efforts should ensure that their directors and officers and employment practices' liability insurance policies provide sufficient coverage for potential claims, say Peter Gillon and Patrick Blood at Pillsbury.