Understanding Life Insurance – Chapter 34 of the New Appleman Insurance Law Practice Guide

The LexisNexis Insurance Center staff has posted a free download containing a portion of the “Understanding Life Insurance” chapter from the New Appleman Insurance Law Practice Guide. The Guide provides not only analysis, but strategic pointers in dealing with some of the most contentious life insurance coverage issues, including:

• Under what circumstances is a misrepresentation in a life insurance application “material”;
• Must an insurer prove that there was intent to deceive in the application;
• Must an applicant volunteer non-apparent prior medical conditions on the application or thereafter;
• How to provide proof of death (or contest that proof) when the death has occurred in a foreign country;
• Distinguishing the terms “accidental death “ and “accidental means” in life insurance policies;
• Whether there is coverage in cases involving death resulting from the combination of an accident and a preexisting condition;
• Whether and when a death resulting from medical malpractice or a medical procedure is an accident;
• Whether death resulting from alcohol poisoning constitutes an accidental death;
• Distinguishing between a “status” and a “causation” intoxication exclusion in accidental death policies;
• Distinguishing between “taken as prescribed by a physician” and “administered on the advice of a physician” in interpreting an exception to an exclusion for death from a misuse of medication;
• Whether death by autoerotic asphyxiation is an accident and if so, whether an exclusion for self-inflicted injuries applies;
• Whether death resulting from violent behavior is accidental;
• Distinguishing between an exclusion for “suicide” and an exclusion for “self-destruction, while sane or insane”; and
• When an insured dies during an alleged reinstatement period, whether the terms of reinstatement have been satisfied.

The New Appleman Insurance Law Practice Guide is a step-by-step practice tool that guides you through each phase of a coverage case—and shows you how to win. It packs an unprecedented wealth of procedural guidance, analysis, and strategic insights in three super-convenient volumes. Focusing on the day-to-day needs of practitioners, this one-of-a-kind resource:

• Helps you determine the merits of a case, and then whether to arbitrate, mediate, settle, sue, or defend;
• Proceeds chronologically through the coverage dispute process, making it easy to track down answers at any step;
• Provides both policyholder and insurer perspectives, arming you with insight into your opponent’s position while strengthening your own;
• Features incisive practice tips, warnings, and insights from over 60 top plaintiff and defense attorneys, in-house counsel, and consultants;
• Includes checklists, forms, and examples—all the tools needed to complete each phase of a coverage dispute; and
• Reflects the latest developments and thinking on the most important insurance law topics today.

The free download of the excerpt in PDF format is available by clicking on the link below.