General Liability

  • 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.

  • March 28, 2024

    Flood Risk Disclosure Law Uptick Offers Insurance Upsides

    A growing trend of states adopting and implementing flood risk disclosure laws must continue, experts say, touting such laws as protecting consumers and informing efforts to mitigate climate change costs through insurance and other risk management efforts.

  • March 28, 2024

    5th Circ. Limits Broad Contract Liability Exclusions In SXSW

    The Fifth Circuit awarded policyholders a major victory over a thorny issue when it ruled that Texas music festival South by Southwest's insurer owed defense coverage for a ticket holder class action over unpaid refunds from the canceled 2020 festival.

  • March 28, 2024

    NC Justices' Split Leaves Willful Violation Question Unsolved

    A dispute over coverage for a law firm accused of violating the Driver's Privacy Protection Act provided an opportunity for the North Carolina Supreme Court to interpret a policy exclusion for the willful violation of a statute, but experts say a deadlocked decision will leave the issue for another day.

  • March 28, 2024

    Insurer Ordered To Defend Legionnaires' Suits

    The insurer of a nonprofit providing housing to at-risk individuals in New York City must defend it in three underlying lawsuits alleging that numerous residents contracted Legionnaires' disease at two properties in the Bronx, a New York federal court ruled, finding a communicable disease exclusion inapplicable.

  • March 27, 2024

    Insurer Can't Escape Strip Club, Models' $2M Ad Settlement

    An insurer can't evade covering a nearly $2 million settlement between a Rhode Island strip club and a group of models who sued the club for misusing their images in advertisements, a federal judge ruled, holding that the club did not breach its contract when entering into the agreement. 

  • March 27, 2024

    NC Commissioner Says Insurance Mogul's Argument 'Mistaken'

    The North Carolina insurance commissioner asked the state's Supreme Court on Tuesday to allow him to give his take on a group of insurers' lawsuit against embattled mogul Greg Lindberg that alleges he pilfered the insurance companies as owner, saying if the court lets him submit an amicus brief he'll explain how Lindberg's main argument is "mistaken."

  • March 27, 2024

    Insurer Settles $900K Chinese Dehumidifier Fire Suit

    A Chinese appliance manufacturer and a U.S. distributor known for selling fire-prone dehumidifiers settled an insurer's $900,000 suit over a policyholder's house fire, the insurer told a North Carolina federal court.

  • March 27, 2024

    2nd Circ. Weighs Broadening 'Claim' In Shareholder Dispute

    The Second Circuit questioned Wednesday whether it should use a New York state appeals court ruling to broaden the meaning of "claim" in a propane company's directors and officers policy with a Liberty Mutual unit, including not just an entire underlying lawsuit but the individual causes of action within.

Expert Analysis

  • 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.

  • Potential Relief For Nevada Insureds Is On The Horizon

    Author Photo

    A proposed regulation recently issued by the Nevada Division of Insurance would severely restrict the state's new law prohibiting burning-limits policies, enacting welcome changes to address businesses' concerns that the law will make it harder to obtain cost-effective liability insurance, says Sheri Thome at Wilson Elser.