You know the rule of evidence. Mentioning the availability of insurance, during a personal injury trial, is a big N-O. The rule is designed to prevent prejudice in the verdict, which might result if the jury is aware that an insurance company, and not... 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

Tapas: Small Dishes of Insurance Coverage News & Notes The Supreme Court of Hawaii held that “an excess liability insurer can bring a cause of action, under the doctrine of equitable subrogation, against a primary liability insurer who... 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

Tapas: Small Dishes of Insurance Coverage News & Notes Back in the heyday of asbestos and environmental coverage litigation it was not uncommon to see decisions addressing whether alleged lost policies were sufficiently proven to possibly owe... Read More

By Michael R. Kelley Many liability policies are triggered when an event giving rise to a covered claim occurs , rather than when the claim is asserted or filed with the court. This is often true of the most common type of liability coverage - the... Read More

Welcome to the 14th annual look back at the year’s ten most significant insurance coverage decisions. As I always do at the outset, here is my description of the selection process (repeated from past years’ editions). The process is highly... Read More