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Insurance
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May 20, 2013
Calif. Insurer Accused Of Bilking Policyholders
A California man claiming he is being shortchanged on his medical insurance benefits lodged a putative class action in state court accusing Unum Life Insurance Co. of America of denying an annual benefit increase guaranteed in its long-term care policies.
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May 17, 2013
ING Gave Morgan Stanley Kickbacks For 401(k) Biz, Suit Says
An Alabama medical laboratory filed a proposed class action in New York federal court on Friday alleging Morgan Stanley & Co. Inc. encouraged the lab to use ING Life Insurance and Annuity Co. to administer its employees' 401(k) plan because ING paid the brokerage firm extra fees.
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May 16, 2013
LandAmerica Trustee Sues To Erase PE Firm's $10M Claim
Bankrupt title insurer LandAmerica Financial Group asked a Virginia bankruptcy court Wednesday to toss a $10 million claim brought by American Capital Ltd. accusing a company subsidiary of failing to catch defects in two apartment complexes secured by loans in a risky mortgage-backed investment vehicle.
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May 15, 2013
Indian Harbor Wants No Part Of San Diego Gas Leak Suits
The city of San Diego's primary insurer Indian Harbor Insurance Co. lodged a complaint against the municipality’s excess insurer in New York federal court Tuesday, arguing that it has no obligation to defend the city against a trio of underlying sewer pipe gas leak suits.
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May 13, 2013
Quik Park Wants $2M For Sandy Coverage From Lexington
Several dozen Manhattan-based Quik Park franchises lodged a suit in New York state court Thursday demanding that Lexington Insurance Co. cough up $2 million to cover property damage and business losses from Superstorm Sandy.
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May 9, 2013
Prudential Says UBS Fraud Doomed $208M MBS Purchase
Prudential Insurance Co. of America is accusing UBS Americas Inc. of misrepresenting the quality of $208 million in mortgage-backed securities by shirking underwriting guidelines and failing to follow the proper appraisal process, according to a suit removed to New Jersey federal court on Wednesday.
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May 8, 2013
Travelers Wants Money Back For Honeywell Asbestos Defense
Travelers Casualty and Surety Co. has sued several insurers and Honeywell International Inc. in New Jersey court seeking coverage contributions and retrospective premiums in connection with underlying asbestos, silica and mixed dust claims against Honeywell and a kiln maker.
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May 8, 2013
GOP Donor's Suit Says ACA Breached Origination Clause
A prominent Republican donor on Tuesday sued the U.S. Health and Human Services Department in Texas federal court to invalidate the Affordable Care Act, arguing that the landmark law failed to follow proper legislative procedures and impermissibly requires Americans to buy private insurance.
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May 6, 2013
Girardi Keese Owes $1.4M For Stiffed Fees, LA Firm Says
Personal injury firm Girardi Keese allegedly owes Hart Watters & Carter PLC $1.4 million for stiffing the Los Angeles-based firm on fees after Hart Watters referred a client's fire damage suit to Girardi Keese, according to a lawsuit filed Friday in California state court. Correction: A previous version of this article incorrectly stated the lawsuit's amount. The error has been corrected.
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May 3, 2013
Insurer Sued Over O'Melveny's Role In Crane Collapse Cases
East 51st Street Development Co. sued Illinois Union Insurance Co. on Wednesday in New York state court, claiming the insurer refused to drop O'Melveny & Myers LLP after the firm allegedly botched $100 million litigation over a fatal crane collapse and tried to "churn its bill" through wasteful practices.
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May 3, 2013
Starbucks, HP Sued By Patent Adviser Over Workflow Software
A unit of Marathon Patent Group Inc. filed a suit Friday in Texas federal court alleging Starbucks Corp., Hewlett-Packard Co., Avon Products Inc. and five other major corporations have infringed its patents relating to online systems for workflow management and collaboration.
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May 3, 2013
Insurer Sues To Duck $1M Patient Data Breach Settlement
Peerless Insurance Co. filed suit in Pennsylvania federal court Thursday to get out of covering losses for a company that mishandled patient medical records when relocating a clinic acquired by hospital operator Select Medical Corp., causing Select to pay $1 million to Texas health authorities over privacy claims.
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May 3, 2013
Lehman Sues To Slash Syncora’s $1.3B Mortgage Note Claim
Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. on Thursday sued Syncora Guarantee Inc. in New York bankruptcy court, aiming to slash the bond insurer’s $1.3 billion claim alleging the fallen investment giant misled it about the quality of mortgage-backed notes it insured.
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May 2, 2013
IRS Accused Of Overreach On ACA Exchange Subsidies
A group of small business owners and individuals on Thursday sued the Internal Revenue Service in Washington federal court, alleging it had unlawfully exposed them to potential penalties through a rule expanding Affordable Care Act insurance subsidies to states that don’t run their own insurance exchanges.
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May 2, 2013
Steward Accuses Blue Cross Of Blocking $40M Hospital Deal
Private equity-owned Steward Health Care System LLC on Wednesday hit Blue Cross Blue Shield of Rhode Island with an antitrust suit in state court, alleging the insurer had blocked a $40.1 million hospital acquisition deal to maintain its market power in the state.
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May 1, 2013
Insurer Wants Out Of Mining Cos.' Trade Secrets Fight
Imperium Insurance Co. on Tuesday hit Star Mine Services Inc. with a lawsuit claiming it doesn't owe the coverage to the company in litigation with GMS Mine Repair & Maintenance Inc., which alleges two former GMS employees stole its confidential information to establish Star Mine.
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April 30, 2013
Brooklyn Complex Owner Seeks $20M In Sandy Coverage
Cammeby's Management Co. LLC launched a suit in New York federal court Monday accusing Affiliated FM Insurance Co. of stiffing it on $20 million in coverage for Superstorm Sandy damage suffered by a commercial complex it owns in Brooklyn.
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April 29, 2013
Insurers Face $21M Suit Over Jet Detained In Russia
An aircraft leasing company seeking coverage for $21 million worth of losses incurred since Russian customs officials indefinitely detained one of its Boeing 757 jets five years ago lodged a suit Friday against Lloyd's of London underwriters and other insurers in California state court.
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April 26, 2013
Insurers Needn't Cover Old Lead Contamination, Court Told
National Fire Insurance of Hartford and Continental Casualty Co. asked a Wisconsin federal judge on Wednesday to block a sheet metal manufacturer's demands that they cover costs connected to decades-old lead and organic compound contamination, arguing that their policies exclude pollution claims.
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April 25, 2013
Insurer Sues Power Plant Contractors Over Blast Coverage
North River Insurance Co. asked a Connecticut federal judge Wednesday to declare that it didn't owe coverage for part of a $37 million settlement stemming from an explosion at a Kleen Energy power plant, saying that two construction companies connected to the blast colluded to improperly exhaust underlying policies.
Expert Analysis
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Calif.'s Subcontractor Defense Regime: Order or Chaos?
With the enactment of Civil Code Section 2782.05, the California Legislature has created a new regime to govern a subcontractor's duty to defend a general contractor or construction manager on most nonresidential projects. While this new regime appears intended to benefit construction participants, its lack of guidance will likely result in disagreements and litigation among the participants, say attorneys with Jones Day.
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Ill.'s Unclear Endorsement For Asbestos-Injury Losses
The Illinois appellate court decision in John Crane Inc. v. Admiral Insurance Co. on joint and several liability of excess insurers covering asbestos-related injury claims left several questions unanswered — most importantly, regarding separate injury triggers and the "all sums with stacking" approach, say attorneys with Wilson Elser Moskowitz Edelman & Dicker LLP.
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Rise Of The Machines — Predictive Coding Goes Mainstream
The pros of using predictive coding far outweigh the cons. Given the heavy pressure on law firms and in-house counsel to reduce discovery costs, as well as the Justice Department's recent stance on the subject, it appears predictive coding will continue to emerge from the obscure world of legal technology to the mainstream of legal practice, say Michael Moscato and Myles Bartley of Curtis Mallet-Prevost Colt & Mosle LLP.
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The Evolution Of Ohio's Statute On Employer Tort Claims
With the recent change in Ohio law on employer intentional tort claims comes changes to the good faith obligations an insurance carrier owes to its insureds: In cases involving employer intentional tort claims, insurers may no longer select counsel. Rather, insureds have the right to select counsel with whom they have a preferred relationship and whom they trust, says Thomas Wyatt Palmer of Thompson Hine LLP.
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Know Your Risks Before Going Green In Construction
Although there are benefits to “going green” in the construction, development and operation of buildings, there are also risks unique to green building that will test the boundaries of coverage under typical liability insurance policies, say attorneys with Sedgwick LLP.
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Avoiding Bad Faith Liability Just Got More Difficult
For insurers in Florida, the Florida District Court of Appeal decision in Goheagan v. American Vehicle Insurance Co. is troublesome as it suggests that even the best claims-settlement practices may not completely shield an insurer from potential bad faith liability, says Kip Adams of Edwards Wildman Palmer LLP.
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How The Fed's Stress Test Rules Mitigate Systemic Risk
The savings and loan holding company regulatory regime established by the Dodd-Frank Act appears to be having the ultimate effect of reducing the number of SLHCs, especially those that are predominantly insurance enterprises, say attorneys with Debevoise & Plimpton LLP.
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Past Its Prime: Weedo V. Stone-E-Brick
It is time for the New Jersey Supreme Court to take up again the construction-defect coverage issues first addressed in Weedo v. Stone-E-Brick Inc. and to update them for the post-1986 commercial general liability coverage of subcontractors’ faulty workmanship, says Carl Salisbury of Kilpatrick Townsend Stockton LLP.
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Calif. To Draw The Lines In Disparagement Liability
The California Supreme Court's upcoming decision in Hartford Casualty Insurance Co. v. Swift Distribution Inc. will resolve a hot debate about the scope of implied disparagement liability under California law, likely determining whether insurers must defend lawsuits involving allegations of intellectual property infringement, unfair competition and false advertising, says Tyler Gerking of Farella Braun & Martel LLP.
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Don't Underestimate The Power Of FIO
The importance of the Federal Insurance office should not be underestimated. In order to understand why, one has to examine how the regulation of the insurance business actually operates and what forces are driving the U.S. regulatory agenda, says Skip Myers of Morris Manning & Martin LLP.