Property
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August 19, 2024
Gould & Ratner Rehires Construction Atty For Chicago Office
Gould & Ratner LLP rehired Ellen M. Chapelle, who previously worked there as a partner on the construction team, for another stint as a construction partner and a new role as the chair of the insurance counseling and recovery team, the firm announced.
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August 19, 2024
Insurer Blames Panda Express Grease For $176K Water Leak
An insurer demanded Chinese fast food chain Panda Express Inc. repay it more than $176,000 for damages allegedly caused when the restaurant's grease-filled pipes backed up, leaking water into a clothing store covered by the insurer, in a case the eatery moved to Washington federal court.
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August 16, 2024
Stay Lifted On $110M Coal Co. Suit As Arbitration Drags On
A Missouri federal judge has grudgingly lifted a pause on litigation between several insurance companies and a St. Louis coal producer after its mines sustained more than $115 million in fire damage, saying it can pursue claims against domestic insurers separately from insurers seeking arbitration.
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August 16, 2024
Insurer Seeks Early Win In Faulty Home Construction Dispute
A construction company's insurer echoed its stance that its insured is not owed coverage for an underlying faulty workmanship lawsuit, telling a Georgia federal court that the defects alleged do not equate to property damage outside the contractor's own work, thus falling outside the policy's scope of coverage.
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August 16, 2024
Kentucky Couple Sue Progressive Over Coal Mine Subsidence
A couple told a Kentucky federal court that Progressive denied coverage for coal mine subsidence damage to their home in bad faith, saying the insurer did so despite having access to records showing that the state authorized a $1.8 million project to help fix that very subsidence.
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August 16, 2024
Liberty Mutual Insurer Says Policy Doesn't Cover STD Suit
A Liberty Mutual unit said it has no duty to defend or indemnify a policyholder accused in an underlying suit of lying about having a sexually transmitted disease and infecting a woman, telling a Washington federal court that the man's policy bars coverage for expected or intended bodily injury.
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August 15, 2024
Harvard Late In Suing Broker For Tardy Admission Suit Notice
Harvard University was 13 months late in bringing breach of contract claims against its insurance broker for its belated notification to Zurich American Insurance Co. about an ultimately successful legal challenge that upended affirmative action in higher education, a Boston federal judge said Thursday.
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August 15, 2024
'Rise Of The Insurance Beast': Cases Take Over Colo. Courts
Colorado's chief U.S. magistrate judge told a room full of attorneys Thursday that insurance cases have started to dominate the court's dockets, comprising almost half the district's civil jury trials last year.
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August 15, 2024
Insurance Litigation Week In Review
The First and Third circuits asked state high courts to answer coverage questions, a Massachusetts state appeals court ruled on coverage for construction defects for the first time, the Second Circuit considered whether a letter constituted a claim and the Texas attorney general accused General Motors of misusing driver data.
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August 15, 2024
Calif. Virus Ruling Gives Clarity On Illusory Coverage
California policyholders were disappointed while the state's high court continued to rule in insurers' favor on pandemic coverage, but experts say the emphasized standard of proof as to when coverage is actually rendered illusory could be a beacon of clarity for insureds.
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August 15, 2024
No Coverage For Las Vegas Apartment Fire Suits, Judge Says
An excess insurer needn't cover the owners of a Las Vegas apartment building in underlying suits over a 2019 fire that left six people dead, a Nevada federal court ruled, saying the property was not a designated location under the policy.
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August 15, 2024
Texas Windstorm Insurer Strikes Balance With Rate Hike
A recent rate hike approved by Texas' windstorm insurer of last resort underscores the urgency of balancing the financial needs of both insurers and policyholders following damaging storms like Hurricane Beryl in an already strained property insurance market, experts say.
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August 15, 2024
Insurtechs Face Fewer Reg Roadblocks, Attorney Says
Tech innovators in the insurance industry are facing a more understanding and cooperative regulatory environment than they once dealt with, said an insurance attorney who helped steer an early mover in the arena of insurtech.
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August 15, 2024
Ex-Lewis Brisbois Litigator Jumps To Kaufman Dolowich In SF
Kaufman Dolowich announced this week that an attorney with more than 15 years of experience working on civil litigation and general liability matters, most recently at Lewis Brisbois, has joined its San Francisco office as a partner.
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August 14, 2024
Insurer Off Hook For Jury Award In Construction Dispute
A commercial insurer does not have to indemnify a contractor found liable for multiple structural and other problems in a home he built, a Massachusetts intermediate appellate court concluded Wednesday in a case of first impression involving what is considered "property damage" in a construction dispute.
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August 14, 2024
Mich. Court Stands By Unitary Biz Ruling For Nationwide
A Michigan state appeals court will not reconsider its decision that insurance companies that are part of Nationwide should file their taxes as a unitary group, and denied the state Treasury Department's request for reconsideration.
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August 13, 2024
Insurers Look To Appoint Umpire In Hurricane Damage Fight
A group of foreign and domestic insurers has asked a New York federal court to resolve an impasse over the appointment of an arbitrator to adjudicate a dispute related to Hurricane Ida damage in the Lafourche Parish of Louisiana, urging the court to appoint an umpire.
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August 13, 2024
Texas AG Targets General Motors Over Unlawful Data Sales
Texas' attorney general has escalated his probe into data privacy practices at connected car manufacturers, hitting General Motors with a lawsuit in state court Tuesday accusing the automaker of unlawfully gathering and selling drivers' private data — which would then be resold to insurance companies — without permission.
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August 13, 2024
1st Circ. Kicks UIM Coverage Battle To RI Justices
The First Circuit asked the Rhode Island Supreme Court to consider the extent an individual who is injured in an auto accident during the scope of their employment is entitled to underinsured motorist coverage under their employer's policy, saying "insurance law is notoriously complex and today's appeal proves that point."
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August 13, 2024
Contractors Owe $7M For Iron Plant Fire, Insurer Says
An insurer for one of the world's largest steel producers told a Texas federal court that five companies it said were responsible for the design, manufacture, sale and installation of a failed component at an iron plant must foot the bill for a fire that cost the producer nearly $7 million.
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August 12, 2024
Insurer Says No Coverage For Hotel In Sex Trafficking Case
An insurer told a Virginia federal judge it didn't owe coverage to a hotel owner accused of participating in sex trafficking at its Super 8 Motel turned Quality Inn, because criminal acts were not covered under state rules or by the policy.
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August 09, 2024
Cos. Say Insurer Owes Coverage For Penn. Building Collapse
A Philadelphia residential building owner and its affiliate accused Trisura Specialty Insurance Co. on Friday of wrongfully denying coverage after part of the property collapsed in September 2022.
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August 09, 2024
Contractor Can't Get Insurer's $36M Water Loss Suit Tossed
A subcontractor that installed a Cleveland skyscraper's fire suppression system cannot yet avoid an insurer's $36 million water damage subrogation claim, an Ohio federal court ruled Friday, finding a genuine factual dispute over whether the insurer had coverage obligations to its two insureds in the first place.
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August 09, 2024
Insurer Says Contractor's Bad Wires Caused $1.8M Yacht Fire
The insurer of a yacht that caught fire while plugged into a dock told a Florida federal court Friday that the electrical company that rewired the hookup owed more than $1.8 million to cover a payout, alleging that the company failed to ground the system, causing the blaze.
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August 08, 2024
Calif. Justices Side With Hartford Unit In Virus Coverage Fight
The California Supreme Court on Thursday reversed an appellate court's finding that a virus endorsement rendered a restaurant's policy illusory in a coverage dispute with a Hartford entity over pandemic-related losses, instead ruling that the endorsement clearly provides coverage "only if the virus results from certain specified causes of loss."
Expert Analysis
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Conn. Insurers Should Note Stricter Market Exit Oversight
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.
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Extreme Weather And Renewable Project Insurance Coverage
Excerpt from Practical Guidance
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.
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Potential Relief For Nevada Insureds Is On The Horizon
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.
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NY Co-Ops Must Avoid Pitfalls When Navigating Insurance
In light of skyrocketing premiums, tricky exclusions and dwindling options, New York cooperative corporations must carefully review potential contractors' insurance policies in order to secure full protection, as even seemingly minor contractor jobs can carry significant risk due to New York labor laws, says Eliot Zuckerman at Smith Gambrell.
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Insurance Rulings Continue Expansion Of Appraisal's Ambit
Two recent Illinois insurance cases allowing property damage appraisers to determine causation — Wysoczan v. Cambridge in federal court and Shelter v. Morrow in state appellate court — perpetuate a judicial trend that will result in a slower, more expensive and cumbersome appraisal process that resembles litigation, says Matthew Fortin at BatesCarey.
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Suits Likely Over Nevada Law Limiting Claimant Injury Exams
A new Nevada law placing barriers on the mental or physical examinations that defendants use to evaluate claimants' injuries will likely spur waves of litigation to reconcile it with existing rules and practice, says Michael Lowry at Wilson Elser.
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Mass. Ruling Shows Value Of Additional Insured Specifics
A Massachusetts court’s recent D.F. Pray v. Wesco Insurance decision demonstrates that blanket additional insured endorsements can create issues with personal jurisdiction, so those named as additional insureds should require their lower-tier contractors to use specific endorsements, say Thomas Dunn and Sheya Rivard at Pierce Atwood.
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7 Ways Telco Operators Can Approach Lead Cable Claims
A recent spotlight on the telecommunication industry shows that companies in the field have known for decades that lead-wrapped cables proliferate in their vast networks, which is likely to provoke prolonged and costly legal battles — but seven best practices can efficiently resolve claims and minimize damage, say consultants at AlixPartners.
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What Wis. High Court Ruling Means For Coverage Analysis
Overturning insurance law precedent in 5 Walworth v. Engerman Contracting, the Wisconsin Supreme Court recently rejected the use of the economic loss doctrine and integrated systems analysis in commercial general liability cases, but a strongly worded concurrence could indicate that the court's opinion may have limited persuasive reach, say Laura Lin and Pierce MacConaghy at Simpson Thacher.
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Auto Insurers Should Reassess Calif. Diminished Value Claims
Many California auto insurers currently pay third-party claims for diminished value damages after a vehicle has been in an accident; however, federal decisions interpreting California law suggest that insurers may not have to pay some of these claims, says Charles Danaher at Sheppard Mullin.
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A Festival Of Litigation Could Arise From 'Electric Zoo' Fiasco
Over Labor Day weekend, thousands of electronic dance music fans were displeased with the organization of the New York City-based Electric Zoo festival, which quickly elicited comparisons to the 2017 Fyre Festival — and three kinds of litigation could ensue from the debacle, say attorneys at Seiden Law.
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Potential Marijuana Status Change Would Shift Industry Risks
Cannabis companies and their insurers should pay close attention to how the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' move toward marijuana reclassification plays out, and the potential for a shakeup in the landscape for cannabis regulation at the state and federal levels, says Ian Stewart at Wilson Elser.
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Key Provisions In Florida's New Insurer Accountability Act
Florida's recent bipartisan Insurer Accountability Act introduces a range of new obligations for insurance companies and regulatory bodies to strengthen consumer protection, and other states may follow suit should it prove successful at ensuring a reliable insurance market, say Jan Larson and Benjamin Malings at Jenner & Block.