"It is curious that physical courage should be so common in the world and moral courage so rare." - Mark Twain * * * In the December 20, 2006 issue of Mealey's Litigation Report: Insurance Bad Faith published was our commentary entitled... Read More
Brew some coffee. Stock up on the junk food. Forget about sleep. It’s time for the New Appleman Xtreme Blog Challenge. Beginning July 30, 2009, law students and junior attorneys are invited to enter the Challenge by submitting a blog for the... Read More
Plaintiffs’ counsel are always seeking new avenues from which to recover damages. In my last article, I discussed two recent New York rulings that permitted an insured to bring a breach of contract action seeking consequential damages against an... Read More
"Eight for '08" reviews in an in-depth and readable fashion key state and federal legislative efforts on insurance topics such as catastrophic loss, suitability, bad faith civil liability, health care reform and federal regulatory efforts... Read More
Deposition is used for four purposes: A. To gather facts about the incident at issue; B. To pin the defendant/physician to a position with the hopes he will change his testimony at trial and be impeached (discredited); C. A deposition gives the... Read More
Standard Commercial General Liability ("CGL") policy forms provide coverage for advertising injury liability. Advertising injury is typically defined to comprise certain offenses, such as defamation, invasion of privacy, "misappropriation... Read More
Reinsurance is insurance that an insurer purchases to protect itself against exposure to large risks. The reinsurance process helps insurance companies spread and share risk against catastrophic loss. By spreading risk, reinsurance allows the insurance... Read More
UIM Laws Vary Most states have laws that provide underinsured motorist ("UIM") insurance, which allows the insured to recover damages if he or she is involved in an accident and the driver responsible for those injuries doesn't have... Read More
The owner of a real estate portfolio buys environmental insurance for all of the properties in the portfolio at an attractive price to protect against future environmental problems. A seller is able to close a deal by paying a one-time premium for environmental... Read More
Insurance Law has three areas of focus: insurance coverage, insurance defense litigation, and insurance compliance. Insurance coverage actions generally involve an insurer and the insured. The insured is seeking to recover under a policy of insurance... Read More
When an insurance company retains a lawyer to defend its insured in a lawsuit, a “tripartite” relationship is created between the insurer, the insured, and the attorney retained to represent the insured. North Carolina courts and state bar... Read More
HIPAA is the acronym for a federal law, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996. HIPAA addresses a wide range of subject areas impacting many aspects of health care and employment. In particular HIPAA concerns the privacy and security... Read More
The Federal Emergency Management Agency, or FEMA, is tasked with responding to, planning for, recovering from, and mitigating against disasters, both natural and man-made. When a disaster, such as Hurricane Katrina, goes beyond state or local capacity... Read More
Product manufacturers often face the challenge of responding to tort claims brought by a plaintiff for personal injury damages, and by the plaintiff’s insurer for recovery of monies paid to the insured plaintiff by the product manufacturer. In essence... Read More
As the cost of health care continues to rise, and with it the cost of major medical coverage, employers and individuals are looking for more affordable coverage alternatives. Insurers, anxious to meet market demand, have developed several products designed... Read More