In the last issue of Coverage Opinions I wrote about a recent opinion , from Judge Jonathan Goodman, of the Southern District of Florida, quoting lyrics from Bruce Springsteen’s song, “No Surrender,” to make the point that, while not... Read More
There is nothing out of the ordinary about suits by excess insurers, against an underlying primary insurer, alleging that the primary had an opportunity to settle a claim within its limit, did not do so, and, as a consequence, there was later a verdict... Read More
Sometimes a coverage case, especially from a trial court, is selected as one of the year’s ten most significant -- but it is not really so. Rather, it is chosen as a representative of a series of similar cases decided that year. In other words,... Read More
By Julius F. "Rick" Parker III As an attorney for more than sixteen years, and a practitioner of insurance bad faith for nearly eleven years, I have seen virtually every kind of bad faith set-up one could imagine. I have shared my observations... Read More
By Scott G. Ball, Linda M. Dedman, and Pamela Dunlop Gates The Right and Duty to Settle Third-Party Liability Claims: A 50-State Survey This commentary offers a multi-state survey of an insurer’s duty to settle third-party claims. Insurers... Read More
By Michael R. Kelley Back in May, 2014, parts of Berks and Lancaster counties were hit with a freak hail storm. With hail as large as tennis balls reported, homes and cars suffered significant damage. Hail damage is generally covered under auto... Read More
In the last issue of Coverage Opinions I discussed the Louisiana Supreme Court’s recent decision in Kelly v. State Farm Fire & Casualty Co., No. 2014-CQ-1921 (May 5, 2015), [subscribers can access an enhanced version of this opinion: lexis.com... Read More
RENO, Nev. — (Mealey’s) A jury in the Washoe County, Nevada, Second Judicial District Court on Feb. 13 awarded $4.5 million in compensatory damages for a commercial general liability insurer’s breach of its duty of good faith and fair... Read More
Graciano v. Mercury General Corp., 231 Cal. App. 4th 414 (2014), [ enhanced version available to lexis.com subscribers ]. In Graciano , the California Court of Appeal reversed a jury verdict finding the insured’s automobile carrier liable... Read More
By Lloyd Bernstein Well another (full – every two years) Oregon legislative session is in full-throttle, and once again policyholder advocates have failed to advance any meaningful insurance "bad faith" legislation. As you are probably... Read More
The Third Circuit’s decision in Wolfe v. Allstate Property & Casualty Company, No. 12-4450 (3d Cir. June 12, 2015), [subscribers can access an enhanced version of this opinion: lexis.com | Lexis Advance ], addresses a very interesting and important... Read More
Insurance companies seldom deny a claim without a reasonable basis for the denial. Regardless, when a claim is denied, the insured feels a need to sue the insurer for both contract and tort of bad faith damages plus punitive damages. New York is not as... Read More
So-called “reverse bad faith” is a double-edged sword for Coverage Opinions. On one hand, it is an issue that does not arise too often. And CO seeks to focus on cases that could have wide impact. On the other hand, because reverse bad faith... Read More
It is unquestionably one of the most challenging issues to confront an insurer – the demand to settle a claim within the insured’s limits of liability. We all know the drill. An insurer has been defending its insured for a while. The case... Read More