Mich. Justices Unsure New Mandate Altered Old Auto Policies

By Carolyn Muyskens

Michigan Supreme Court justices appeared divided Wednesday over whether an overhaul of the state's compulsory car insurance scheme affected pre-existing policies or applied only to policies issued after the reforms went into effect.   

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Chevron's $52M Iran Oil Seizure Loss Not Covered, Court Told

By Ganesh Setty

Three insurers have told a California federal court they owe no coverage to Chevron under separate marine cargo and war risks policies after the oil giant said the Iranian military seized a vessel carrying nearly $52 million worth of Chevron's crude oil in retaliation for U.S. economic sanctions.

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Committing Bribery Or Fixing 'Chaos': Mogul's Retrial Begins

By Hayley Fowler

An insurance mogul and his one-time political consultant resorted to "pure and simple" bribery when they promised North Carolina's insurance commissioner up to $2 million in campaign contributions to remove an inquisitive official, federal prosecutors told a jury Wednesday, while the mogul's counsel countered that he just wanted a fair shake from a department in "chaos."

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Hurricane Ads Suit Paused For Law Firm Amid Ch. 11 Case

By Lynn LaRowe

In light of its recent bankruptcy filing, a Texas federal judge has paused class claims against a beleaguered Texas law firm accused of misconduct in soliciting clients in hurricane-related property damage cases, but the case remains active against a legal funding outfit and other defendants.

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Water-Damaged Conn. Hotel Sues Insurer For More Coverage

By Ryan Harroff

A Connecticut hotel took Sompo America Insurance Co. to state court after the insurer only partially covered substantial water damage that forced the newly opened lodge's closure and purportedly offered "nonsensical" justifications for denying full coverage.

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No Reimbursement For $5.5M Crash Settlement, Insurer Says

By Hope Patti

A highway construction company is not entitled to reimbursement for a $5.5 million settlement in an underlying suit over multiple motorcycle accidents that killed one and injured two others, a subcontractor's insurer has told a North Carolina federal court, saying the company does not qualify as an additional insured.

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HSF, Ashurst-Led Ardonagh Buys Insurer For $1.5B

By Tom Fish

U.K. insurance broker Ardonagh Group Ltd. said on Wednesday it has agreed to acquire Australia-based PSC Insurance Group Ltd. in a transaction worth $2.25 billion Australian dollars ($1.48 billion), to help it expand into new markets.

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A Foley Hoag Co-Chair Joins Litigation Firm As Name Partner

By Andrea Keckley

Litigation and dispute resolution firm Elliott Kwok Levine & Jaroslaw LLP will operate under a new name after welcoming as its newest name partner a former federal prosecutor who most recently co-chaired Foley Hoag LLP's white-collar crime and government investigations practice.

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5 Climate Change Regulatory Issues Insurers Should Follow

The climate change landscape for insurers has changed dramatically recently — and not just because of the controversy over the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's climate-related risk disclosure rules, says Thomas Dawson at McDermott.

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Series

Swimming Makes Me A Better Lawyer

Years of participation in swimming events, especially in the open water, have proven to be ideal preparation for appellate arguments in court — just as you must put your trust in the ocean when competing in a swim event, you must do the same with the judicial process, says John Kulewicz at Vorys.

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Analysis

In Story Of Sex And Lies, Can Cohen Write Final Chapter?

By Phillip Bantz

The Manhattan District Attorney's Office has told a story of scandal and scheming to the jury in Donald Trump's criminal hush money trial, setting the stage for the prosecution's star witness to take the stand and wrap up the narrative.

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Ex-McElroy Deutsch CFO Cops To $1.5M Theft From Firm

By George Woolston

McElroy Deutsch Mulvaney & Carpenter LLP's former chief financial officer admitted Wednesday to embezzling more than $1.5 million from the firm and failing to pay income tax, New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin announced.

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Lewis Brisbois Atty Fatally Shot In McDonald's Altercation

By Ryan Boysen

A Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith LLP attorney was fatally shot at a McDonald's in Houston after reportedly stepping in as a good Samaritan and attempting to calm down an irate customer who'd been arguing with staff at the fast food restaurant.

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Titan Of The Plaintiffs Bar: Lieff Cabraser's Kelly Dermody

By Irene Spezzamonte

A semester off from Harvard University in the late 1980s meant for reflection instead turned into a pivotal moment in Kelly Dermody's life, settling the roots for her successful career during which she has become a lighthouse for employment and discrimination cases.

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ABA Will Study Rape Questions' Necessity For Bar Applicants

By Cara Bayles

An American Bar Association commission will issue a report and recommendations by August on the practice of requiring would-be lawyers to disclose and discuss their experiences of sexual violence during the attorney licensure process.

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ABA Directs Attys To Avoid Sharing Client Info On Listservs

By Emily Sawicki

It is in the best interest of clients for their legal counsel to avoid sharing information related to representation while seeking advice in an online listserv forum, if the comments or questions could be connected to a client's identity, according to American Bar Association guidance published Wednesday.

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Ga. Appeals Court Will Review Trump DQ Bid In Election Case

By Kelcey Caulder

The Georgia Court of Appeals on Wednesday agreed to review a judge's ruling allowing Fulton County District Attorney Fani T. Willis to continue prosecuting the election interference case she brought against former President Donald Trump.

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Fani Willis Is Outraising Primary Challenger More Than 5 To 1

By Chart Riggall

Less than two weeks from the first hurdle in her bid for reelection, Fulton County District Attorney Fani T. Willis is boasting a​​ campaign war chest more than five times heftier than her Democratic challenger's, according to campaign finance disclosures filed this week.

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Biden Picks US Magistrate Judge In Fla. For 11th Circ.

By Courtney Bublé

President Joe Biden announced Wednesday his intent to nominate U.S. Magistrate Judge Embry J. Kidd to the Eleventh Circuit.

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Robins Kaplan File Flub Bad Look For Both Sides, Panel Says

By Rachel Scharf

A Manhattan appeals panel expressed concern Wednesday that Robins Kaplan LLP had poked through an opposing party's Dropbox database that was accidentally shared in investor litigation, while also criticizing the other side for failing to catch the error.

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NJ Justices Approve Measures For Helping Atty Well-Being

By Emily Johnson

The New Jersey Supreme Court has accepted several recommendations from its committee focused on attorney well-being, paving the way for the committee to examine how attorneys can briefly postpone court dates or possibly receive an extension to meet deadlines so they can handle pressing wellness needs.

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Legal Access Program Being Set Up For Separated Families

By Alyssa Aquino

The Biden administration has tapped the Acacia Center for Justice to manage a court-ordered legal access program to help migrant families stay in the U.S. after they were separated under a Trump-era policy to prosecute anybody caught entering the country unlawfully.

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Colo. Judges Urge Attys To Take On More Pro Se Cases

By Thy Vo

A group of Colorado federal judges tried Wednesday to recruit more lawyers to help pro se litigants, who file about a third of the district's cases each year, with the judges recounting tactical mistakes and case delays that attorneys could have prevented.

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