I have long been a student of the “what’s an accident?” question for purposes of a liability policy. As I am fond of mentioning, the question has been before courts for a very, very, let’s add one more very, long time. There are... Read More
Last Second Decisions Change the Score for Duty to Defend and the "Occurrence" Issue By Randy Maniloff, Partner, White and Williams LLP On September 30 I stood at the podium at the White and Williams Coverage College [where, by the way... Read More
Barks v. Castlepoint Nat’l Ins. Co. , 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 43447 (C.D. Cal. Mar. 26, 2014), [ enhanced version available to lexis.com subscribers ] In Barks , the district court found that there was an issue of material fact as to whether the... Read More
By Anne Matthews, Associate, McCarter & English, LLP Robert Mericle and Mericle Construction Company (collectively, "Mericle") along with Robert Powell and Mid-Atlantic Youth Services Corporation (collectively, "MAYS") were... Read More
By Barry Zalma, Attorney and Consultant An insurance policy must be interpreted to provide the protection the parties intended. It is not a device to protect against every possible incident and, by definition, can only insure against fortuitous events... Read More
Other cases decided in 2013 addressed certain issues that were typical of environmental coverage actions past, present and future. These issues include choice of law, what constitutes an "occurrence," the number of occurrences, and what constitutes... Read More
Tapas: Small Dishes of Insurance Coverage News & Notes In what can hardly be viewed as a surprising decision, the Colorado Supreme Court held in Craft v. Philadelphia Indemnity, No. 14SA43 (Colo. Feb. 17, 2015), [ enhanced version available... Read More
In reading the title to this post, you are likely thinking "Duh, of course you do, if nothing "occurs" then there is nothing to cover!" (or something to that effect). While this seems an obvious conclusion, we're talking the world... Read More
Look, it’s not pleasant, but when you are involved in liability claims you will be forced to confront scenarios involving death. It’s simply the nature of the beast. Liability insurance claims are, by their nature, all about when things go... Read More
The number of decisions addressing the availability of coverage for a sexual assault are legion. They often, but not always, arise under the liability section of a homeowner’s policy. I have never undertaken a formal count, but, anecdotally, I can... Read More
Regular readers of CO know that I constantly discuss how challenging “what is an accident” cases can be. The question whether an event qualifies as an “accident,” to trigger liability coverage, is the oldest and one of the most... Read More
David v. Allstate Ins. Co. , 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 119473 (C.D. Cal. Aug. 25, 2014), [ enhanced version available to lexis.com subscribers ] In David, the Central District of California ruled that intentionally hitting and biting another person... Read More
After State Farm intervened in a wrongful death action the trial court granted the insurer summary judgment and found State Farm owed neither defense nor indemnity to a person who was convicted of negligently killing two people by firing three shots at... Read More
Cynthia S. Betz, Associate, McCarter & English LLP In Memorial Properties, LLC v. Zurich American Insurance Co., 2012 N.J. LEXIS 682 (N.J. June 28, 2012) , the New Jersey Supreme Court affirmed the Appellate Division's decision that a cemetery... Read More
Tapas: Small Dishes of Insurance Coverage News & Notes In Lawellin v. Kemper Independence Ins. Co., No. 14-315, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 164293 (C.D. Cal. Nov. 21, 2014), [ enhanced version available to lexis.com subscribers ], the California federal... Read More