Property
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July 11, 2024
Climate Suit Report Highlights Carrier Greenwashing Risk
A recent report highlighting global trends in climate change litigation points to a potentially significant source of exposure for insurers in the form of what are known as greenwashing suits against their insureds, and more direct risks against carriers themselves, experts say.
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July 11, 2024
Insurer Can Tap Trust Fund For Old Claims, Mass. Court Says
A Massachusetts intermediate appellate court concluded Thursday that workers' compensation insurers who are no longer selling policies in the state but still paying benefits on older claims are entitled to seek partial reimbursement from an employer-funded state trust fund, reversing its own prior holding on the question.
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July 11, 2024
Connell Foley Attys Part Of NJ Insurance Trio At Kennedys
Global law firm Kennedys CMK has brought on two former Connell Foley LLP attorneys and a former senior litigation counsel for an insurer to bolster its insurance coverage team in New Jersey, the firm announced Thursday.
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July 11, 2024
Mich. Asks Appeals Court To Rethink Nationwide's Tax Win
Michigan insurance companies that are part of Nationwide are required to file taxes as individual entities and not as a unitary group, Michigan's tax department said, asking the state Court of Appeals to reconsider its opinion in the case.
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July 10, 2024
7th Circ. Says Foreclosure Limits Man's Fire Coverage Claim
A homeowner did not have an insurable interest in the full value of a home that burned down while in foreclosure, the Seventh Circuit ruled, affirming that recovery was limited to the value of his temporary right to possess the property until 30 days after its judicial sale was confirmed.
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July 10, 2024
Insurer, Property Cos. Settle Lead Poisoning Coverage Suit
An insurer for a Detroit property owner and manager told a Michigan federal court they have settled their coverage dispute over a woman's claims that her 2-year-old girl suffered lead poisoning at the property, which she said was left in a state of disrepair.
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July 10, 2024
Wash. Condo Assoc. Wants Allstate To Cover $9.7M In Repairs
A Washington condominium association is suing Allstate Insurance Co. in federal court, saying it broke their coverage agreement by refusing to cover $9.7 million in repairs for "hidden damage" to the buildings' exteriors.
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July 09, 2024
Insurer Seeks $1.7M For Damaged Concert Gear
An insurer is seeking to recoup over $1.7 million in damages it incurred after concert gear was damaged en route to New York from Belgium, telling a New York federal court Tuesday that a shipping company owed a duty to the cargo's owner to deliver its products safely.
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July 05, 2024
Insurers Allegedly Evaded Kiwanis Foster Home Abuse Claims
Insurers owned by Travelers, AIG and other big-name insurance groups have been accused of dodging their duty to pay a multimillion-dollar judgment resolving child sex abuse survivors' claims against a foster boys home that was run by Kiwanis International, according to a new lawsuit in Washington federal court.
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July 05, 2024
11th Circ. Won't Touch $9.7M College Hurricane Coverage Win
The Eleventh Circuit ruled Friday that a district court unlawfully certified a partial judgment in favor of The Baptist College of Florida for review in a $13 million insurance coverage dispute for hurricane damage costs.
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July 05, 2024
How Reshaped Circuit Courts Are Faring At The High Court
Seminal rulings from the U.S. Supreme Court's latest term will reshape many facets of American society in the coming years. Already, however, the rulings offer glimpses of how the justices view specific circuit courts, which have themselves been reshaped by an abundance of new judges.
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July 05, 2024
Breaking Down The Vote: The High Court Term In Review
The U.S. Supreme Court's lethargic pace of decision-making this term left the justices to issue a slew of highly anticipated and controversial rulings during the term's final week — rulings that put the court's ideological divisions on vivid display. Here, Law360 takes a data dive into the numbers behind this court term.
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July 05, 2024
High Court Flexes Muscle To Limit Administrative State
The U.S. Supreme Court's dismantling of a 40-year-old judicial deference doctrine, coupled with rulings stripping federal agencies of certain enforcement powers and exposing them to additional litigation, has established the October 2023 term as likely the most consequential in administrative law history.
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July 05, 2024
The Sharpest Dissents From The Supreme Court Term
The U.S. Supreme Court's session ended with a series of blockbuster cases that granted the president broad immunity, changed federal gun policy and kneecapped administrative agencies. And many of the biggest decisions fell along partisan lines.
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July 05, 2024
5 Moments That Shaped The Supreme Court's Jan. 6 Decision
When the high court limited the scope of a federal obstruction statute used to charge hundreds of rioters who stormed the Capitol, the justices did not vote along ideological lines. In a year marked by 6-3 splits, what accounts for the departure? Here are some moments from oral arguments that may have swayed the justices.
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July 05, 2024
The Funniest Moments Of The Supreme Court's Term
In a U.S. Supreme Court term teeming with serious showdowns, the august air at oral arguments filled with laughter after an attorney mentioned her plastic surgeon and a justice seemed to diss his colleagues, to cite just two of the term's mirthful moments. Here, we look at the funniest moments of the term.
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July 05, 2024
Real Estate Co. Hits Security Deposit Insurer With $5M Suit
A Texas property management company is suing its insurer for allegedly withholding claim payments partly meant to cover unpaid rent, saying the carrier improperly conditioned the payments on the property manager starting eviction proceedings.
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July 05, 2024
Judge Rips High-Rise's 'Remarkable' $8.5M Coverage Pursuit
An Illinois federal judge smacked down an $8.5 million coverage bid from the former owners of Chicago's historic Pittsfield building after finding they "boldly and repeatedly" misrepresented the extent of repair costs, instead ordering them to repay Travelers.
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July 05, 2024
The Firms That Won Big At The Supreme Court
This U.S. Supreme Court term featured high-stakes oral arguments on issues including gerrymandering, abortion and federal agency authority, and a hot bench ever more willing to engage in a lengthy back-and-forth with advocates. Here's a look at the law firms that argued the most cases and how they fared.
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July 03, 2024
Coffey Modica Promotes 2 Partners, 1 Counsel In NY
New York litigation boutique Coffey Modica LLP announced the promotion of two attorneys to partner, including the firm's first hire in 2021, as well as the elevation of another lawyer to counsel.
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July 03, 2024
Curtains Fall Rapidly For COVID-19 Loss Coverage
Just as Metallica's bid for COVID-19 cancellation coverage failed, the bell has tolled for policyholder coverage suits across the nation, as businesses seeking payback from insurers for the havoc wreaked by the global pandemic have run out of options for coverage in many states. Here, Law360 takes a look at what the future holds for pandemic-related coverage.
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July 03, 2024
Top General Liability Rulings From The First Half of 2024
The first six months of 2024 brought big wins for carriers involved in an opioid-related coverage dispute at the federal level, while state justices offered clarity for policyholders in claims-made commercial general liability policy interpretation and for a claimant's ability to pursue action against insurers. Here, Law360 breaks down the top commercial general liability rulings from the first half of the year.
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July 03, 2024
High Court's Regulatory Rulings Unsettle Coverage Risks
The U.S. Supreme Court's decisions that empower the courts at the expense of federal regulators' enforcement powers have unsettled the regulatory risks companies are used to, raising uncertainty for how professional and specialty line insurance coverage will adapt.
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July 03, 2024
After Chevron Deference: What Lawyers Need To Know
This term, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Chevron deference, a precedent established 40 years ago that said when judges could defer to federal agencies' interpretations of law in rulemaking. Here, catch up with Law360's coverage of what is likely to happen next.
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July 03, 2024
Insurance Litigation Week In Review
An insurer won a coverage dispute over a $3.2 million injury verdict stemming from a bar fight, Texas' largest nonprofit health system failed to differentiate its pandemic business loss claims from other cases, and a petroleum company was denied coverage for multidistrict litigation over gas additives.
Expert Analysis
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A Look At Florida's Aggressively Pro-Insurer Tort Reform
Florida's new tort reform law is an unwarranted gift to insurance companies that seeks to strip policyholders of key rights while doing little to curb excessive litigation, say Garrett Nemeroff and Hugh Lumpkin at Reed Smith.
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Navigating High Court's Options In Insurer Choice Of Law
Depending on how the U.S. Supreme Court approaches the question of when insurers may invoke choice-of-law clauses in maritime contracts to dodge state-specific liability, the Great Lakes v. Raiders Retreat Realty decision may mean significant changes not only for admiralty law disputes, but for the insurance industry more broadly, say Lara Cassidy and Adriana Perez at Hunton.
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How Cannabis Cos. Can Comply With NJ Industrial Site Law
As New Jersey’s recreational cannabis market flourishes, manufacturers that may be subject to a state environmental law must take extra precautions to mitigate potential liabilities and costs, including for historical contamination, says Matthew Karmel at Offit Kurman.
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As EVs Surge, Regs For Charger Warranties Remain Murky
Even as electric vehicles move rapidly into the mainstream, extended warranties for EV chargers do not always fit clearly into existing regulatory categories — but how such contracts are classified can have serious implications for the companies that issue and sell them, say attorneys at Locke Lord.
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Tips For Plaintiffs Attorneys Ahead Of Expanded Fire Season
With the expansion of fire season — both in length of time and geography — plaintiffs lawyers can expect fire-related litigation to increase this coming year and need to prepare themselves and their clients for claims that are complex, time-consuming and costly, says Gerald Singleton at Singleton Schreiber.
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Establishing A Record Of Good Faith In Mediation
Viacom v. U.S. Specialty Insurance, and other recent cases, highlight the developing criteria for determining good faith participation in mediation, as well as several practical tips to establish such a record, says Richard Mason at MasonADR.
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Using ChatGPT To Handle Insurance Claims Is A Risky Move
ChatGPT gets some insurance law questions surprisingly wrong, and while it handles broader coverage concepts significantly better, using it to assist with coverage questions will likely lead to erroneous results and could leave insurers liable for bad faith, says Randy Maniloff at White and Williams.
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Insureds Must Prep For Drought-Related Service Interruptions
Amid the ongoing U.S. water crisis, corporate policyholders must prepare for the emerging risk of service interruption property damage and time element loss, including through careful examination of their current and renewal property policies, says Micah Skidmore at Haynes Boone.
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Fla. Bill Would Rein In Personal Injury Litigation Excesses
A recently proposed bill in the Florida House that would change bad-faith laws and the admissibility of medical bills for services performed under a letter of protection would provide reasonable checks on practices that are far too common in personal injury cases in the Sunshine State, say attorneys at Baker Donelson.
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A Missing Issue In 'Blank Space' Insurance Ruling
As Norwegian Hull Club v. North Star heads to trial in Florida federal court, the most interesting part of the court opinion denying summary judgment is the argument it doesn't address — contra proferentem, which could have been used to resolve the case's blank space ambiguity in the policyholder's favor, say Jeffrey Mikoni and Scott Greenspan at Pillsbury.
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High Court Ax Of Atty-Client Privilege Case Deepens Split
The U.S. Supreme Court's recent dismissal of In re: Grand Jury as improvidently granted maintains a three-way circuit split on the application of attorney-client privilege to multipurpose communications, although the justices have at least shown a desire to address it, say Trey Bourn and Thomas DiStanislao at Butler Snow.
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Wis. High Court Ruling May Open Door To Coverage Exception
The Wisconsin Supreme Court’s recent decision in Dostal v. Strand finding that an insurer had to defend a civil action following the defendant's criminal conviction on the same facts nonetheless may suggest an exception to the complaint test for determining an insurance company's defense obligation, say David Hollander and Clementine Uwabera at Stafford Rosenbaum.
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Trial Lawyers Rejoice: Justices May Clarify Issue Preservation
The U.S. Supreme Court's recent grant of certiorari in Dupree v. Younger should be a boon to trial and appellate lawyers as the decision will likely standardize a rule for appellate issue preservation, bringing much-needed clarity to an area critical to general litigation success, says Jeremy Christiansen at Gibson Dunn.