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Mealey's Construction Defects Insurance

  • October 23, 2025

    Homeowners Argue District Court Erred In Finding Insurer Didn’t Act In Bad Faith

    SAN FRANCISCO — In their opening brief filed in the Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals, several homeowners, as assignees of a developer, argue that the Ninth Circuit should reverse a federal judge in Washington’s dismissal of their case alleging that a general liability insurer breached its duty to defend and indemnify the developer for claims arising from the developer’s defective construction of the homeowners’ houses; they specifically argue that the lower court erred in ruling that the insurer did not act in bad faith.

  • October 23, 2025

    Judge Denies Subcontractor’s, Insurer’s Summary Judgment Motions Over Defense

    SEATTLE — A federal judge in Washington denied a subcontractor’s and its insurer’s motions for summary judgment of the subcontractor’s complaint that the insurer failed to defend it against a counterclaim in an underlying suit arising out of the subcontractor’s microtunneling work for a water project in Seattle, finding disputes of fact material to the claims.

  • October 23, 2025

    Insurer Argues It’s Not Required To Defend Against Negligence Allegations

    FLORENCE, S.C. — A commercial general liability insurer filed a complaint in federal court in South Carolina seeking a declaratory judgment that it does not have to defend two construction companies in an underlying complaint alleging that the companies’ installation of siding and trim led to water intrusion and damages to townhomes.

  • October 23, 2025

    Construction Company Sues Insurer For Denying Coverage Based On Wrong Exclusion

    LOS ANGELES — A construction company sued its insurer and insurance broker in California state court, arguing that the insurer breached its contract by not defending it in an underlying complaint against the company alleging construction defects in the building of five houses; the company argues that the insurer wrongly denied coverage based on a condominium construction exception.

  • October 21, 2025

    Insurer Argues Court Should Not Amend Judgment As To Defective Bin Coverage

    INDIANAPOLIS — A grain equipment company’s insurer argues that a federal court in Indiana should not grant a grain production firm’s motion to alter or amend a partial summary judgment order in favor of the insurer in which the judge held that some of the claimed losses for the repair and replacement of leaky grain storage bins related to a contractual dispute rather than to coverage liability; the insurer argues that the judge correctly found that “the grain bins did not sustain ‘property damage’ as defined (and required) by the Policy.”

  • October 21, 2025

    Insurer: No Connection Between Subcontractor’s Work, Company’s Liability

    SANTA ANA, Calif. — A subcontractor’s insurer says that a federal court in California should grant its motion to dismiss a construction company’s third amended complaint (TAC) against it alleging that it wrongly denied the coverage for claims brought against the company by a builder for damages the company alleges were caused by using the subcontractor’s drawings for the project, arguing the company provides no connection between the subcontractor’s work and the company’s liability.

  • October 20, 2025

    Judge Tosses Faulty Stucco Coverage Suit After Insurer, Contractor Reach Settlement

    CHARLESTON, S.C. — One day after a commercial general liability insurer and a general contractor filed a notice of settlement, a federal judge in South Carolina dismissed without prejudice a coverage dispute arising from damages caused after stormwater seeped through faulty stucco.

  • October 17, 2025

    Insurer Says Subcontractor’s Arguments Rejected, Shouldn’t Be Reconsidered

    LOUISVILLE, Ky. — An insurer opposed a subcontractor’s motion for reconsideration of a Kentucky federal judge’s finding that the subcontractor was required to release its counterclaims as part of a global settlement regarding the construction of off-campus student housing and the judge’s grant of summary judgment on the insurer’s behalf, arguing that the court has already rejected the subcontractor’s arguments.

  • October 15, 2025

    Project Owner’s Insurance, Not Subcontractors’, Covered Fire Damage, Judge Finds

    INDIANAPOLIS — The Indiana Court of Appeals found that the insurers of a subcontractor and a sub-subcontractor did not owe coverage for the cleanup of damage after a fire broke out while the sub-subcontractor was welding because the damage was covered under the project owner’s all-risk insurance policy and the project owner’s master agreement with the contractor required the project owner and contractor to waive their subrogation rights.

  • October 14, 2025

    Subcontractor Seeks Reconsideration Of Summary Judgment In Coverage Dispute

    LOUISVILLE, Ky. — A subcontractor filed a motion for reconsideration of a federal judge in Kentucky’s finding that it was required to release its counterclaims as part of a global settlement regarding the construction of off-campus student housing and the judge’s grant of summary judgment on an insurer’s behalf, arguing that the dismissal of the subcontractor’s bad faith counterclaim hadn’t been negotiated and agreed to as part of that global settlement.

  • October 10, 2025

    Judge Finds No Coverage After Insurer, Construction Worker Rescind Policy

    LOS ANGELES — A federal judge in California granted an insurer’s motion for summary judgment on its complaint seeking a declaration that an insurance policy it issued to a construction worker had been rescinded and, therefore, that it did not need to provide indemnity for any sums for which the construction worker could be found liable to a property owner whose property was damaged allegedly due to the construction worker’s faulty work; the judge found that the worker and insurance company had mutually rescinded the policy.

  • October 10, 2025

    Judge Determines Insurers’ Split Of Concrete Work Settlement

    ATLANTA — A federal judge in Georgia granted a primary insurer’s motion for summary judgment and denied an umbrella insurer’s motion for summary judgment in a declaratory judgment case seeking to determine the amount of a subcontractor’s $4.5 million settlement over faulty concrete slab-on-grade of an apartment building each is responsible for paying, applying the continuous trigger to hold that coverage was limited to one policy period and the umbrella insurer owed the primary insurer for the amount over the $1 million primary policy coverage limit.

  • October 09, 2025

    Roof Damage Coverage Suit Dismissed With Prejudice After Parties Settle

    NEWARK, N.J. — A federal judge in New Jersey has dismissed with prejudice a suit brought by homeowners against their homeowners insurer and a shingle manufacturer related to claims that the homeowners’ roof was damaged by a hailstorm and by defective shingles after the parties notified the court that the matter had been “amicably resolved.”

  • October 08, 2025

    Building Designer Dismissed From Latch Defect Insurance Suit

    FORT MYERS, Fla. — A federal judge in Florida on Oct. 7 granted subrogee insurers’ stipulation of dismissal to dismiss the designer of an Amazon sorting center in Fort Myers from a suit the insurers brought against the designer and others alleging that defects in the HVAC units caused damage to the building during Hurricane Ian.

  • October 08, 2025

    Panel Refuses To Review Trial Court’s Reinstatement Of Insurer’s Subrogation Case

    SAN ANTONIO — The Texas Fourth District Court of Appeals on Oct. 8 denied a homeowners insurer’s petition for a writ of mandamus in a subrogation suit stemming from a roofing contractor’s defective work, refusing to review a trial court’s decision to set aside a default judgment and final judgment by default entered against the roofing contractor.

  • October 06, 2025

    Judge Clarifies Order Granting Homebuilder’s, Contractor’s Attorney Fees Motions

    ORLANDO, Fla. — A federal judge in Florida on Oct. 3 granted a homebuilder’s motion to clarify an order that adopted a magistrate judge’s report and recommendation granting the homebuilder’s and general contractor’s motions for entitlement to attorney fees following a summary judgment ruling in their favor in a commercial liability insurer’s lawsuit seeking a declaration as to coverage for construction-related damages at a condominium development, clarifying the deadline for the parties to move for determination of amounts owed.

  • October 03, 2025

    Grain Production Firm Seeks Amended Judgment As To Coverage For Defective Bins

    INDIANAPOLIS — A grain production firm moved to alter or amend a partial summary judgment order in favor of a grain equipment company’s insurer in which a federal judge in Indiana held that some of the claimed losses for the repair and replacement of leaky grain storage bins related to a contractual dispute rather than to coverage liability; the grain production firm argues “that unintentional, defective workmanship constitutes an ‘occurrence’ under Indiana law.”

  • October 01, 2025

    Judge: Insurer Properly Asserted Collusion In Case Brought After Defective Work

    DENVER — A federal judge in Colorado granted an insurer’s motion for summary judgment of a townhome management company, as subrogee for a contractor’s complaint against it for insurance bad faith regarding the coverage of an underlying action the company brought against a contractor for alleged defective construction work in repairing the townhome community’s buildings’ roofs, gutters and siding; the judge found that the facts establish that a Nunn agreement between the company and the contractor was the result of collusion.

  • October 01, 2025

    Insurer Argues 7th Circuit Should Affirm Judgment, Find Exclusion Applies

    CHICAGO — An insurer asked the Seventh Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals to affirm a lower court’s grant of judgment on the pleadings to the insurer in its suit seeking a declaration that it has no duty to defend or indemnify a roofing contractor in an underlying suit alleging that the contractor’s negligent repair work contributed to the collapse of a building’s façade,  which killed two people, arguing that a Prior Work Exclusion applies to bar coverage for the underlying action.

  • September 29, 2025

    Judge Finds Policy Exclusion Preempts Duty To Defend Property Damage Suit

    RIVERSIDE, Calif. — A federal judge in California granted a commercial general liability insurer’s motion to dismiss a subcontractor’s claims against it, finding that a policy exclusion preempted the insurer’s duty to defend a cross-claim in an underlying dispute over property damage during a construction project.

  • September 29, 2025

    Judge Rules For Final Insurer In Bad Faith Suit Arising From Construction Defects

    DENVER — A federal judge in Colorado granted the last remaining defendant insurer’s motion for summary judgment in a  plaintiff insurer’s breach of contract and bad faith lawsuit seeking recovery of the defense and settlement costs that it paid on behalf of its general contractor insured in an underlying construction defects lawsuit but denied the defendant insurer’s request for attorney fees because the lawsuit was not frivolous.

  • September 26, 2025

    Builder Appeals Judge’s Finding Of No Policy Coverage Of Arbitration Award

    HOUSTON — A homebuilder filed a notice in federal court in Texas on Sept. 25 that it was appealing to the Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals a judge’s order ruling granting summary judgment in favor of the builder’s commercial liability insurer in its suit seeking indemnification for a $213,000 arbitration award for damages caused by construction defects in a home it built; the judge had found that no coverage existed under the policy.

  • September 18, 2025

    Fla. Company’s Bad Faith Claim Dismissed, Breach Of Contract Claim Continues

    TAMPA, Fla. — A federal judge in Florida granted in part and denied in part a commercial general liability insurer’s motion to dismiss a concrete paver company’s complaint against it for not defending it in an arbitration regarding defective pavers, finding that the concrete paver’s breach of contract claim was not premature but that its bad faith claim was premature because a determination of coverage in the underlying action has not been made.

  • September 18, 2025

    Settlement Requires Contractor To Dismiss Cross-Claims In Coverage Dispute

    LOUISVILLE, Ky. — A federal judge in Kentucky granted an insurer’s motion for summary judgment on a subcontractor’s cross-claims against it, finding that the subcontractor was to release its counterclaims as part of a global settlement entered into by the insurer, subcontractor and others involved in this and other legal disputes regarding work done during the construction of an off-campus student housing project. 

  • September 18, 2025

    Weather Exclusion Precludes Complaint To Enforce Coblentz Agreement With Insurer

    FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — A federal judge in Florida granted an insurer’s motion to dismiss a homeowner’s complaint to enforce a Coblentz agreement the homeowner entered into with a roofing company to resolve claims that arose after rain damaged the homeowner’s house while the company was replacing part of her roof, finding that a weather-related exclusion precluded coverage under the roofing company’s policy.