Specialty Lines
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February 19, 2025
Insurer Must Cover Trucking Co. In Fatal Fire Row, Judge Says
A trucking company's insurer cannot rely on a hydrofracking exclusion to avoid covering an underlying suit over a fire at a saltwater disposal facility that killed one of the company's employees, a Texas federal court ruled, rejecting the insurer's request for a new trial.
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February 18, 2025
Calif. Insurance Chief Asks State Farm To Justify Rate Hikes
California's insurance commissioner asked State Farm General Insurance Co. to appear for an in-person "informal conference" later this month over its request for emergency rate hikes in the wake of the deadly Los Angeles wildfires in January, saying the insurer has not yet justified the move.
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February 18, 2025
Firm Says Insurer Refused To Repay It For $1.5M Cyber Theft
A law firm claimed its cyber insurer refused to reimburse it after hackers allegedly stole more than $1.5 million that was supposed to go to an attorney who had teamed up with the firm on a personal injury case.
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February 14, 2025
Insurers Say Del. Ruling Caps Redstone, NAI Coverage
Four insurers for National Amusements Inc. and Shari Redstone are pointing to a recent Delaware Supreme Court ruling as supporting their claim that common, underlying wrongful acts bar two separate multimillion-dollar coverage claims for litigation costs in 2016 and 2019 focused on control of CBS and Viacom.
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February 14, 2025
Insurer Can Proceed With Miami Retaliation Coverage Dispute
A Florida federal court partially rejected on Friday a magistrate judge's dismissal recommendations in a dispute between the city of Miami and an insurer over coverage for underlying lawsuits that allege political retaliation, allowing the parties to litigate the insurer's potential duty to defend.
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February 14, 2025
Smithfield Fires Back At 'Improper' CLO Deposition Bid
Smithfield Foods Inc. urged North Carolina's Business Court not to let a Chubb unit depose the pork producer's legal chief, calling the insurer's motion from last week an "improper and untimely attempt to seek discovery that Ace could have pursued before the fact discovery deadline."
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February 14, 2025
Calif. Insurance Chief Backs Wildfire Mitigation, Recovery Bills
California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara announced his support Friday for a slew of bills aimed at addressing wildfire mitigation and recovery, including measures to maximize insurance claim payouts and stabilize the state's insurer of last resort.
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February 14, 2025
Nonprofit Not Covered For Palestine Protest Suit, Insurer Says
An insurer said it has no duty to defend or indemnify a social justice organization against a proposed class action concerning a Chicago protest in support of Palestine, telling a New York federal court the allegations against the Westchester County foundation don't fall within its policies' scopes of coverage.
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February 13, 2025
Blake Lively Defamation Suits Bring Insurance Center Stage
A stream of defamation lawsuits stemming from the movie "It Ends With Us" could have insurers gearing up to determine potential coverage obligations for such litigation, as the debate over settling versus going to trial marks a gap in the insurer-insured relationship for celebrity policyholders, experts say.
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February 13, 2025
UnitedHealth Can't Escape All Claims In AI Denial Suit
A Minnesota federal judge Thursday allowed Medicare Advantage patients and the estates of deceased enrollees to pursue breach of contract claims against UnitedHealth over its alleged use of AI to override physician recommendations, finding they are not preempted by the Medicare Act, but tossed others by holding they are preempted.
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February 13, 2025
Del. Justices Affirm Broad View Of Related Insurance Claims
Delaware's highest court affirmed its broad view of related insurance claims when it ruled that Alexion Pharmaceuticals' stockholder settlement must draw from the same pool of coverage used for a separate settlement with regulators, reinforcing the stakes for notice and policy language that could create coverage gaps, experts say.
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February 13, 2025
Insurance Litigation Week In Review
A California appeals court used a high court pandemic insurance ruling to uphold a denial of fire debris coverage, the state's insurer of last resort will receive $1 billion in additional funding and the South Carolina Supreme Court considered receivership orders over foreign companies' insurance assets. Here, Law360 takes a look at this week's top insurance news.
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February 13, 2025
PFAS Claims Expose Insurance Industry To 'Next Asbestos'
With thousands of lawsuits pending nationwide over what plaintiffs and regulators allege are the harms caused by PFAS exposure and regulators pushing to limit the production and use of the chemicals, policyholders are bracing for both increased liabilities and uncertain scopes of insurance coverage.
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February 13, 2025
Insurers Say Adjuster Must Cover $66M Suit Over Boat Death
Insurers told a North Carolina federal court that a company they contracted with failed to perform its agreed-upon adjustment duties on claims related to a 2021 fatal Florida boat accident and didn't pay legal fees when a more than $66 million suit erupted over the incident.
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February 11, 2025
Calif.'s Insurance Safety Net Gets $1B Infusion For Fire Claims
California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara has signed off on $1 billion in additional funding for California's FAIR Plan, the state's insurer of last resort, to ensure the plan can keep paying consumer claims to survivors of the Southern California wildfires, according to an order issued Tuesday.
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February 11, 2025
SC Justices Question Receivership Orders In Asbestos Row
The South Carolina Supreme Court on Tuesday appeared to agree with a trial court's imposition of sanctions against two Canadian companies found to disobey discovery orders in asbestos injury lawsuits, but questioned whether the judge's corresponding appointment of a receiver over their insurance assets was premature.
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February 11, 2025
Progressive Inks $3.25M Data Breach Deal With 350K Members
Approximately 350,000 Progressive Casualty Insurance customers on Tuesday asked an Ohio federal judge to grant final approval to a $3.25 million settlement stemming from a data breach event that exposed their personal information, noting the resolution is a favorable outcome, given the risks to their claims if litigation continued.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
Expert Analysis
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NY Wrongful Death Law Revamp Retains Original's Drawbacks
If approved by New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, the Grieving Families Act will transform the landscape of wrongful death law in New York by increasing the potential for damages, raising insurance premiums, burdening hospitals and courts, stifling the economy and subjecting parties to the unsettling effects of retroactive legislation, say attorneys at Shaub Ahmuty.
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SEC, NY Cybersecurity Rules Create Complexity For Insurers
Two separate cybersecurity rules recently adopted by the New York Department of Financial Services and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission pose distinct challenges for insurance industry participants, with important interactions, and potential tensions, for those required to comply with both frameworks, say attorneys at Debevoise.
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Exploring Middle-Market M&A Trends In 2023 And Beyond
Middle-market merger and acquisition activity this year was affected by a number of economic, legal and regulatory shifts, with certain trends pointing to favorable transaction conditions in 2024, say Jason Brauser and William Goodling at Stoel Rives.
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Del. Insurance Co. Liquidation Reveals Recovery Strategies
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.
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The Basics Of Law Firm Cyber Liability Insurance Applications
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.
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Insurance Considerations For Cos. Assessing New AI Risks
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.
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AI Brings New Insurance Concerns For Healthcare Providers
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.
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3 AI Regulation Developments Insurers Must Follow
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.
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Deal Over Jets Stranded In Russia May Serve As Blueprint
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.
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How Shareholder Activists Are Targeting Insurers
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.
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Unlocking Value In Carve-Out M&A Transactions
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.
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Tips For Negotiating Strong D&O Insurance Protection
Excerpt from Practical Guidance
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.
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Insurers Should Prepare For 'Black Swan' Climate Disasters
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.