Insurance

  • April 11, 2024

    UnitedHealth Patients' Addiction Coverage Suit Revived, Again

    The Ninth Circuit on Thursday revived for the second time a proposed class action accusing UnitedHealth of wrongly rejecting coverage for outpatient substance use disorder treatments in violation of federal benefits law, finding the plaintiff plausibly alleged the insurer employed an excessively strict review process for those claims.

  • April 11, 2024

    Judge Invalidates Software Patents Over Generic Parts

    A Nebraska federal judge ruled Thursday that agricultural software developer AGI Suretrack's claims for a series of software hardware patents were too abstract to be valid.

  • April 11, 2024

    Energy Co. Says Insurer Can't Execute $21M Death Settlement

    A Berkley unit should be barred from executing a $21 million policy-limit settlement demand in a wrongful death suit, an energy company facing a separate suit told a Texas federal court, saying it will be left without coverage for a competing settlement demand if the insurer exhausts its policy limits.

  • April 11, 2024

    Ex-Geico Agents Ask 6th Circ. To Revive Classification Suit

    A group of former Geico agents asked the Sixth Circuit to revive their claims that they were misclassified and denied benefits, challenging the accuracy and relevance of plan documents that the lower court reviewed when dismissing the workers' suit.

  • April 11, 2024

    Insurer Drops Suit After Evidence Clears Stihl In Fire Case

    Pennsylvania National Mutual Casualty Insurance Co. agreed Wednesday to drop a lawsuit in North Carolina federal court seeking to hold Stihl Inc. liable for fire damages at a policyholder's home after evidence showed a hedge-trimmer battery didn't cause the fire.

  • April 11, 2024

    Syracuse Diocese Told Its Ch. 11 Plan Needs More Work

    A New York bankruptcy judge Thursday told the Roman Catholic Diocese of Syracuse that its Chapter 11 plan disclosure statement needs another round of revisions to address objections by insurance carriers claiming the plan impairs their contractual rights.

  • April 11, 2024

    11th Circ. Says Insurer Owes Defense In Home Damage Suit

    A general contractor's insurer must defend it against claims that it abandoned the construction site of a custom-built home, the Eleventh Circuit ruled Thursday, rejecting the insurer's reliance on two exclusions barring coverage for damage to "that particular part" of property the contractor worked on and corresponding repairs.

  • April 11, 2024

    Insurer Says Firm Not Covered For Bogus Check Scheme

    An insurance firm has filed a complaint in Washington federal court seeking a declaration that it doesn't owe coverage to a Seattle-area firm and its sole attorney, who are embroiled in litigation with a bank after the firm fell prey to a counterfeit check scheme.

  • April 11, 2024

    $24M Hidden Fee Deal Between Class, AIG Units Gets 1st OK

    A California federal court granted preliminary approval of a nearly $24 million settlement between a class of travel insurance buyers and several AIG units resolving claims that the companies stacked hidden fees on top of insurance travel premiums.

  • April 11, 2024

    6th Circ. Orders Redo In Brokerage's Trade Secrets Row

    The Sixth Circuit ordered an Ohio district court to take another look at its ruling that a team of insurance brokerage's workers who defected for a competitor must comply with non-compete terms, reasoning that the lower court referenced standards for the injunction, but didn't actually consider them. 

  • April 11, 2024

    Latham, Goodwin Lead Nursing-Care Co.'s Upsized $450M IPO

    Nursing-care provider PACS Group Inc. will begin trading Thursday after it raised an upsized $450 million initial public offering within its price range late Wednesday, selling more shares than originally expected, represented by Latham & Watkins LLP and underwriters' counsel Goodwin Procter LLP. 

  • April 10, 2024

    DOJ Hits Regeneron With False Claims Act Suit Over Eylea

    The federal government has brought a False Claims Act intervenor complaint in Massachusetts against Regeneron, alleging the pharmaceutical giant fraudulently withheld information from its Medicare reports seeking reimbursement for its drug Eylea, the U.S. Department of Justice announced Wednesday. 

  • April 10, 2024

    BDO Fights SEC's 'Misdirected' Call For 2nd Circ. Rehearing

    BDO USA LLP is urging the Second Circuit not to reconsider a decision that freed the firm from private litigation over AmTrust Financial Services Inc.'s financial restatements, saying the court should not heed "misdirected concerns" from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission about the ruling's supposed impact on shareholders' ability to sue public company auditors.

  • April 10, 2024

    La. Top Court Asked To Hear Insurance Arbitration Questions

    The Louisiana Supreme Court should examine the enforceability of arbitration clauses in certain insurance contracts as lawsuits seeking coverage for hurricane damage mount, a Louisiana district court said, certifying a series of questions to the state high court after the Fifth Circuit found they were enforceable.

  • April 10, 2024

    Milliman Tells Trial Judge It Has No Liability For 401(k) Losses

    Milliman Inc. said its directors had a limited duty related to alleged risky investments in employee retirement plans because responsibilities were delegated to a committee, in response to the Seattle federal judge who questioned during a trial's closing arguments Wednesday why the board "really didn't do much of anything."

  • April 10, 2024

    Ex-Art Institutes Execs Want Insurers To Avert $336M Suit

    Former executives of a holding company that bought now-defunct for-profit colleges Argosy University, South University and The Art Institutes asked an Ohio federal court to force excess insurers to settle receivership claims before the pair are formally accused of leaving a $336 million debt in their wake.

  • April 10, 2024

    Deported Man Can't Undo Fraud Conviction After Feds' Error

    A deported Nigerian national who confessed to fraud on promises that prosecutors would submit a letter to immigration authorities supporting his deportation defense couldn't convince the Eighth Circuit to toss his guilty plea after prosecutors mistakenly disavowed the letter.

  • April 10, 2024

    Insurer Slams 'Price-Gouging' Doctor's COVID Billing Suit

    Health plan administrator United Medical Resources Inc. fired back at a doctor's $783,000 suit claiming that he and his practice firms were shortchanged for COVID-19 testing services, with multiple counterclaims alleging that the doctor billed for unnecessary extra testing and put in claims for services that were never rendered.

  • April 10, 2024

    Honeywell Sues Insurer For $8.75M Performance Bond

    A company that issued a $8.75 million performance bond is refusing to honor its deal with Honeywell International Inc. after a subcontractor declared bankruptcy and didn't finish its work at the Tobyhanna Army Depot in Pennsylvania, Honeywell claims in a suit filed Tuesday in Pennsylvania federal court.

  • April 10, 2024

    'Let's Get Physical': Pa. Justices Tune In To COVID-19 Coverage

    One of late singer Olivia Newton-John's greatest hits struck a chord with a Pennsylvania Supreme Court justice Wednesday as he considered whether insurers should cover business losses stemming from government shutdown orders during the COVID-19 pandemic 

  • April 10, 2024

    6th Circ. Says Firm Owes Insurer Part Of Defense Bill

    A financial advisory firm's professional liability insurer had no duty to defend the company in underlying securities suits after underlying plaintiffs removed their common law violations, the Sixth Circuit ruled, further allowing the insurer to be reimbursed for some of its defense costs.

  • April 10, 2024

    NJ Law Firm Not Covered In Malpractice Suit, Insurer Says

    A law firm in Princeton, New Jersey, is not owed coverage of a malpractice action alleging one of its attorneys misappropriated the assets of a client's husband, the firm's insurer argued, telling a federal court the firm knew of the underlying legal claims before its policy's inception.

  • April 10, 2024

    Feds Cleared To Use Undercover Recording In Atty's Tax Trial

    Federal prosecutors trying an attorney next week on charges he orchestrated a tax fraud scheme that spanned seven states will be allowed to play for the jury an audio recording made by an undercover agent, a North Carolina federal judge ruled.

  • April 10, 2024

    Liberty Mutual Says Former Star Sales Rep Poached Clients

    A former high-performing sales representative for a Liberty Mutual Group Inc. subsidiary violated nonsolicitation and nondisclosure agreements when he left to start his own competing agency, the insurer alleged in a Massachusetts state court complaint.

  • April 10, 2024

    Ex-Trump Finance Chief Weisselberg Jailed For Perjury

    A New York state judge on Wednesday sentenced former Trump Organization Chief Financial Officer Allen Weisselberg to five months in jail for lying under oath in the attorney general's civil fraud case against Donald Trump and his business associates, imprisoning a close ally of the former president on the eve of his hush-money trial.

Expert Analysis

  • Series

    Riding My Peloton Bike Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Using the Peloton platform for cycling, running, rowing and more taught me that fostering a mind-body connection will not only benefit you physically and emotionally, but also inspire stamina, focus, discipline and empathy in your legal career, says Christopher Ward at Polsinelli.

  • Class Actions At The Circuit Courts: March Lessons

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    In this month's review of class action appeals, Mitchell Engel at Shook Hardy discusses four notable circuit court decisions on topics from consumer fraud to employment — and provides key takeaways for counsel on issues including coercive communications with putative class members and Article III standing at the class certification stage.

  • Rebuttal

    High Court Should Maintain Insurer Neutrality In Bankruptcy

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    While a recent Law360 guest article argues that the U.S. Supreme Court should endorse insurer standing in Truck Insurance Exchange v. Kaiser Gypsum, doing so would create a playground for mischief and delay, and the high court should instead uphold insurance neutrality, say attorneys at Lowenstein Sandler.

  • Spartan Arbitration Tactics Against Well-Funded Opponents

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    Like the ancient Spartans who held off a numerically superior Persian army at the Battle of Thermopylae, trial attorneys and clients faced with arbitration against an opponent with a bigger war chest can take a strategic approach to create a pass to victory, say Kostas Katsiris and Benjamin Argyle at Venable.

  • What 2 Years Of Ukraine-Russia Conflict Can Teach Cos.

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    A few key legal lessons for the global business community since Russia's invasion of Ukraine could help protect global commerce in times of future conflict, including how to respond to disparate trade restrictions and sanctions, navigate war-related contract disputes, and protect against heightened cybersecurity risks, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • Cos. Seeking Cyber Coverage Can Look To Key Policy Terms

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    As cyberattacks increasingly threaten business operations, including one last month that partially paralyzed UnitedHealth's services, expanded interpretations of several key policy terms may allow affected companies to recover under cyber business interruption policies or other coverage, even if their business hasn't completely shut down, say attorneys at Kasowitz.

  • What Recent Study Shows About AI's Promise For Legal Tasks

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    Amid both skepticism and excitement about the promise of generative artificial intelligence in legal contexts, the first randomized controlled trial studying its impact on basic lawyering tasks shows mixed but promising results, and underscores the need for attorneys to proactively engage with AI, says Daniel Schwarcz at University of Minnesota Law School.

  • How Calif. Video Recording Ruling May Affect Insured Exams

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    A recent California appellate decision, Myasnyankin v. Nationwide, allowing policyholders to video record all parties to an insurance examination under oath, has changed the rules of the road for EUOs and potentially opened Pandora's box for future disputes, say John Edson and Preston Bennett at Sheppard Mullin.

  • Opinion

    Insurance Industry Asbestos Reserve Estimates Are Unreliable

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    Insurance regulators rely on industry self-reporting in approving insurance company reorganizations, but AM Best data reveals that actuarial and audit estimates have been setting perniciously low levels of loss reserves for asbestos liabilities and thus should be treated with deep skepticism, says Jonathan Terrell at KCIC.

  • Insurance Implications Of Trump's NY Civil Fraud Verdict

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    A New York state trial court’s $450 million judgment against former President Donald Trump and affiliated entities for valuation fraud offers several important lessons for companies seeking to obtain directors and officers insurance, including the consequences of fraudulent misrepresentations and critical areas of underwriting risk, says Kevin LaCroix at RT ProExec.

  • Business Litigators Have A Source Of Untapped Fulfillment

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    As increasing numbers of attorneys struggle with stress and mental health issues, business litigators can find protection against burnout by remembering their important role in society — because fulfillment in one’s work isn’t just reserved for public interest lawyers, say Bennett Rawicki and Peter Bigelow at Hilgers Graben.

  • Understanding Insurance Is Key To Limiting Antitrust Liability

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    As regulators signal their intent to continue last year's aggressive campaign of corporate antitrust litigation, businesses must make active management of their liability insurance policies, along with a firm knowledge of the limits of their coverage, central to their strategies for limiting the enormous financial risks of enforcement, say attorneys at Nossaman.

  • Series

    Skiing Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    A lifetime of skiing has helped me develop important professional skills, and taught me that embracing challenges with a spirit of adventure can allow lawyers to push boundaries, expand their capabilities and ultimately excel in their careers, says Andrea Przybysz at Tucker Ellis.

  • Opinion

    High Court Should Endorse Insurer Standing In Bankruptcy

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    In Truck Insurance Exchange v. Kaiser Gypsum, the U.S. Supreme Court will examine bankruptcy standing doctrine as applied to insurers in mass tort cases, and should use the opportunity to eliminate spurious standing roadblocks to resolving insurer objections on their merits, says Frank Perch at White and Williams.

  • Texas Insurance Ruling Could Restore Finality To Appraisal

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    The Texas Supreme Court's decision in Rodriguez v. Safeco, determining that full payment of an appraisal award precludes recovery of attorney fees, indicates a potential return to an era in which timely payment undoubtedly disposes of all possible policyholder claims, says Karl Schulz at Cozen O'Connor.

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