General Liability

  • April 04, 2024

    Trump Fraud Appeal Spotlights Underwriting Irregularities

    Donald Trump's ongoing challenge to a $465 million civil fraud judgment for a decadelong valuation fraud conspiracy raises questions about insurance procedures, how underwriters price risk and who is harmed by the alleged fraud perpetrated by the former president and his associates.

  • April 04, 2024

    Del. Justices Eye Atty Conduct In Medicaid Fraud Verdict

    The Delaware Supreme Court handed insurers a victory when it agreed to review a ruling setting aside a favorable verdict for the carriers in a coverage dispute over an ex-Xerox unit's $236 million Medicaid fraud-related settlement, but carrier counsel's conduct may present challenges moving forward, according to a civil procedure expert.

  • April 04, 2024

    Insurance Litigation Week In Review

    The Ninth Circuit heard a coverage dispute over an unsuccessful shipwreck salvaging expedition, Delaware's justices agreed to consider whether an ex-Xerox unit tried to defraud insurers into covering a $236 million settlement, and the owner of Washington, D.C., professional sports teams ended its bid for COVID-19 coverage.

  • April 04, 2024

    A College Professor's Approach To Insurance

    A strong education is crucial to address the role insurance plays on both the personal and professional level — something University of Georgia professor Rob Hoyt demonstrates in his classroom. Here, Law360 speaks to Hoyt about how research, teaching and service guide his work.

  • April 04, 2024

    NY AG Wants Trump Insurer To Guarantee $175M Bond

    New York Attorney General Letitia James asked a Manhattan judge Thursday to make sure the California insurer that agreed to post Donald Trump's $175 million bond in his civil business fraud case can actually pay.

  • April 04, 2024

    Last-Resort Insurers Grapple With Increasing Exposure

    Insurance pools meant to serve as backstops for consumers shut out of traditional markets are grappling with increased exposure to natural disasters, according to experts and market data, a trend that observers say is concerning as climate change intensifies storms.

  • April 04, 2024

    BMW Dealer, Claims Manager End $4M Injury Settlement Fight

    A South Carolina BMW dealership and its insurers have agreed to end their suit against a claims manager over a $4 million personal injury settlement, with the claims manager also dropping allegations against the dealership's automotive group, according to a notice filed in North Carolina federal court.

  • April 04, 2024

    Surfside, Fla., Condo Collapse Victims To Get Additional $4.8M

    A Florida judge signed off Thursday on an additional $4.8 million distribution to the victims of the deadly collapse of the Champlain Towers South condominium after the receiver overseeing the defunct condominium association told the court the association had fewer financial obligations and tax liabilities than expected. 

  • April 03, 2024

    Mayo Clinic Stuck Workers With Hefty Medical Bills, Suit Says

    A medical claims administrator steered Mayo Clinic health plan participants toward out-of-network healthcare providers and then forced them to foot the bulk of the bill, a proposed class action filed in Minnesota federal court said.

  • April 03, 2024

    Auto Insurer Seeks Payback After $2M Car Crash Settlement

    A business insurer of a man who crashed a rental car into a motorcyclist while working in Los Angeles should pay something in connection with a $2 million settlement with the injured biker, an auto insurer told a California federal court, seeking to recoup its expenses.

  • April 02, 2024

    Chubb Asks Panel To Revive Archdiocese Abuse Coverage Suit

    Counsel for Chubb urged a New York state appeals court at a hearing Tuesday to undo a trial court decision finding it owed insurance coverage to the Archdiocese of New York for myriad childhood sexual abuse claims against the church.

  • April 02, 2024

    Consultant, Insurer's Pesticide Coverage Row Headed To Trial

    A dispute over coverage must continue following a $1.8 million judgment against a pesticide consulting company blamed for negligent pest control of a wheat crop, an Arizona federal judge ruled, denying an insurer's quest for an early win.

  • April 01, 2024

    7th Circ. Affirms $672K Payout In Illinois Delivery Driver Crash

    A Seventh Circuit panel on Monday affirmed an Illinois federal court's decision awarding a delivery driver $672,000 from an insurer following his 2017 work-related crash with an underinsured motorist.

  • April 01, 2024

    AIG Unit Can't Toss Conn. Utility's $3M Defense Cost Bid

    An AIG unit can't escape the Connecticut Municipal Electric Energy Cooperative's third-party suit seeking to recoup $3 million in legal expenses, a Connecticut federal court ruled, saying the cooperative has standing to pursue coverage on behalf of its former CEO who was convicted of stealing public funds.

  • April 01, 2024

    Insurer Can't Avoid Indemnity Payments Over Grocery Fire

    West Bend Mutual cannot avoid making extra indemnity payments to a Detroit grocery store over a fire or collect its insured's unpaid premium from another insurer, a Michigan federal court ruled after previously compelling both insurers to provide coverage because their policies were active when the fire occurred.

  • April 01, 2024

    Insurer Defends Gas Station Cleanup Exclusion To 11th Circ.

    An insurer has asked the Eleventh Circuit to reject a Florida gas station owner's bid to make it pay for contamination caused by a leaking underground fuel tank, telling the appeals court the station's policy doesn't cover an incident discovered well before the policy went into effect.

  • March 29, 2024

    Liberty Units Lose $13.3M Motel Murder Coverage Bid

    CNA and Chubb units have no duty to reimburse two Liberty Mutual units for a $13.3 million judgment stemming from a motel murder, an Ohio federal court ruled, saying no bad faith claim was asserted against the Liberty Mutual units triggering their errors and omissions policies.

  • March 29, 2024

    2nd Circ. Backs Insurer In Sanitizer Ad Injury Coverage Suit

    An insurer doesn't owe coverage to a company accused of falsely advertising that its sanitizing products were effective in disinfecting surfaces, the Second Circuit ruled Friday, affirming a lower court's decision that the underlying class action can't be "reasonably construed" to substantially allege a claim of disparagement.

  • March 29, 2024

    Baltimore Diocese Sues Insurers For Abuse Claims Coverage

    The Roman Catholic Diocese of Baltimore, its parishes and schools have filed an adversary action in Maryland bankruptcy court against its insurance carriers, alleging they failed to live up to their contractual obligation to defend against and pay for sexual abuse claims.

  • March 28, 2024

    Baltimore Bridge Collision Raises Massive Insurance Fallout

    A container ship collision that destroyed Baltimore's landmark Francis Scott Key Bridge caused a level of death, injury, destruction and economic harm that will likely cost the insurance sector billions of dollars and leave many without closure or compensation for years.

  • March 28, 2024

    Insurer Won't Pay Half Snow Remover's Fraud Coverage Suit

    An insurer avoided paying for half of a nearly $360,000 wire fraud scheme targeting a snow removal company Thursday, after a Minnesota federal judge found its policy precluded coverage for a variety of reasons.

  • March 28, 2024

    Q&A: Former Calif. Insurance Chief On Climate & Rate Setting

    From intense wildfires to devastating floods, the effects of climate change on California's insurance market cannot be understated, a fact that experts point to often as regulators weigh how to bring insurers back to business in the Golden State.

  • March 28, 2024

    Insurance Litigation Week In Review

    A marine insurer confirmed it's cooperating with Baltimore authorities after an insured cargo ship collided with the Francis Scott Key Bridge, music festival South by Southwest's class action coverage efforts were renewed, and North Carolina justices dismantled 30 years of intermediate appellate court adherence to "stacking" underinsured motorist policies.

  • March 28, 2024

    Foxwoods Tribal Owner Loses $76M COVID Insurance Appeal

    The Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation, which owns and operates the Foxwoods Resort Casino in Connecticut, did not meet a key burden when suing its insurer for more than $76 million in losses tied to the COVID-19 pandemic, the state's intermediate-level appeals court ruled Thursday in declining to revive the litigation.

  • March 28, 2024

    Wash. Appeals Court Asked To Mull COVID Coverage Question

    A Washington state court has halted litigation over the University of Washington's bid for COVID-19 business interruption coverage from a Liberty Mutual unit, asking a state appeals court to first determine whether the presence of COVID-19 satisfies UW's policies' direct physical loss or damage requirement and if a contamination exclusion applies.

Expert Analysis

  • Insurance Considerations For Cos. Assessing New AI Risks

    Author Photo

    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

    Author Photo

    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.

  • Superfund Site Reopenings Carry Insured Risk, Opportunity

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's reported plans to reopen certain Superfund sites citing the presence of per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances raise notable liability concerns, but may also present unique opportunities for policyholders under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act, say attorneys at Haynes and Boone.

  • 3 AI Regulation Developments Insurers Must Follow

    Author Photo

    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.

  • Harvard's Broker Fight Shows Active Risk Management Is Key

    Author Photo

    Harvard University’s recently filed suit against its insurance broker for alleged malpractice in handling the Students for Fair Admissions claim illustrates that risk management requires the concerted effort of policyholders, brokers and insurers to protect against disastrous losses, say William McMichael and David Klein at Pillsbury.

  • Illinois Trump Tower Ruling Illuminates Insurance 'Occurrence'

    Author Photo

    In Continental Casualty v. 401 North Wabash Venture, an Illinois appellate court found that Trump Tower was not entitled to insurance coverage for operating its HVAC system without a permit, helping to further define a widely litigated general liability insurance issue — what constitutes an "occurrence," say Robert Tugander and Greg Mann at Rivkin Radler.

  • How Shareholder Activists Are Targeting Insurers

    Author Photo

    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.

  • Breaking Down Insurers' Improper Recoupment Efforts

    Author Photo

    In a recent trend, insurance companies have sought to recoup defense costs from their policyholders, but there are four counterarguments that policyholders can deploy to fend off these concerning recoupment efforts, say William Passannante and Nicholas Bradley at Anderson Kill.

  • Insurers Should Prepare For 'Black Swan' Climate Disasters

    Author Photo

    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.

  • How Ill. Supreme Court Could Shape Statutory Violation Cases

    Author Photo

    In Fausett v. Walgreens, the Illinois Supreme Court will take up the question of whether a violation of the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act satisfies the injury-in-fact requirement, and any outcome could significantly change the litigation landscape in Illinois, say Donald Patrick Eckler and Joshua Zhao at Freeman Mathis.

  • 3 Quirks Of New Jersey Insurance Coverage Law

    Author Photo

    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.

  • Conn. Insurers Should Note Stricter Market Exit Oversight

    Author Photo

    The Connecticut Insurance Department recently issued a bulletin that reflects a unique and stricter approach to insurers' market withdrawals and reductions in property and casualty business, making clear that it will not assess compliance based on an insurer's intent, but on the effect of the insurer's actions, says Elizabeth Retersdorf at Day Pitney.

  • Extreme Weather And Renewable Project Insurance Coverage

    Excerpt from Practical Guidance
    Author Photo

    The regularity and severity of extreme weather events driven by climate change are putting renewable energy projects increasingly at risk — so project owners, contractors and investors should understand the issues that can arise in these situations when seeking recovery under a builder's risk insurance policy, say Paul Ferland and Joshua Tumen at Cozen O'Connor.