By Franklin D. Cordell, P artner, Gordon Tilden Thomas & Cordell LLP All insurance policies impose certain duties on the insured. In some instances, state law - the common law, state statutes and regulations, or both - supplement those duties. In order to perfect the claim and obtain insurance...

By Barry Zalma, Attorney and Consultant Christopher Roinestad and Gerald Fitz-Gerald, and Tim Kirkpatrick, D/B/A Hog's Breath Saloon & Restaurant ("respondents") were overcome by poisonous hydrogen sulfide gas while cleaning a large grease clog in a sewer near the Hog's Breath...

By Robert A. Scott Title insurance companies can enforce exculpatory provisions in title insurance policies that exclude liability for tort claims based on a negligent title search performed by an agent, Maryland's highest court has ruled. In 100 Investment LP v. Columbia Town Title , decided...

Brian Margolies, Partner, Traub Lieberman Straus & Shrewsberry LLP In its recent decision in BCS Ins. Co. v. Big Thyme Enters ., 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 20051 (D.S.C. Feb. 14, 2013), the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina had occasion to consider whether an alleged violation...

by Andrew May In West Bend Mutual Insurance Co. v. Arbor Homes LLC , No. 12-2274 (7th Cir. Jan 8, 2013), ( lexis.com enhanced version of decision available ), the Seventh Circuit reaffirmed the critical importance of obtaining an insurer's consent before settling a case. The coverage action...

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 of law, construction and insurance coverage where...

By Daniel R. Bentson and Matthew J. Sekits In Washington bad faith actions, first-party insurers now face a presumption that the attorney-client privilege does not apply. In Cedell v. Farmers Ins. Co. of Wash., 2013 Wash. LEXIS 149 (Wash. Feb. 21, 2013) [ enhanced version available to lexis.com subscribers...

By Amanda Hairston, Senior Associate, Farella Braun + Martel LLP Many insurers are now offering "cyber liability" or "cyber risk" policies designed to protect policyholders against electronic injuries that policyholders may either suffer themselves or cause to others. Most of these...

California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones has applauded Ceres for releasing its report, Insurer Climate Risk Disclosure Survey: 2012 Findings & Recommendations, which analyzes responses to the Climate Risk Disclosure Survey administered by California, New York, and Washington. "Ceres'...

By Brian J. Osias and Michael Collins Smith, Attorneys, McCarter & English, LLP In Travelers Indemnity Co. v. MTS Transport , No. 11-cv-01567, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 127847 (W.D. Pa. Sep. 7, 2012), the federal court for the Western District of Pennsylvania demonstrated again the importance of a...

On March 1, 2013 the Federal District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania ruled that Jerry Sandusky is NOT entitled to insurance coverage under the Second Mile's Employment Practices Liability insurance policy for defense costs and attorneys' fees for both the criminal case and the...

By Stephen M. Feldman and Nicholas P. Gellert, Attorneys, Perkins Coie LLP Although the case arose within the unique framework of Louisiana's Direct Action Statute and was said to be an issue undecided by the Louisiana Supreme Court requiring an " Erie guess," the Fifth Circuit's...

By William T. Barker & Ronald D. Kent, Partners, SNR Denton In Cedell v. Farmers Insurance Co., the Washington Supreme Court held that, in a first-party bad faith claim (other than regarding a uninsured or underinsured motorist claim), the insurer's quasi-fiduciary duty of good faith and fair...

By James G. Bernald, Associate, Perkins Coie LLP Many different civil suits arose out of the April 2010 explosion of the Deepwater Horizon , a semi-submersible, mobile offshore drilling unit, and the resulting oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. This commentary analyzes an important decision in one of...

A recent Ninth Circuit decision limited the ability of an insurer to seek CERCLA contribution and/or cost recovery from potentially responsible parties ("PRPs"). In Chubb Custom Insurance Company v. Space Systems/Loral et al. , [ enhanced version available to lexis.com subscribers ], Chubb...

By Randy J. Maniloff, White and Williams, LLP New York Federal Court Holds That September 11th Was An "Act Of War" In the immediate aftermath of the September 11, 2001 attacks, there was intense political pressure on the insurance industry not to invoke the "war risk" exclusion...

By the Ballard Spahr LLP Mortgage Banking Group The federal banking agencies, together with the Farm Credit Administration, have issued joint guidance on amendments to the Flood Disaster Protection Act of 1973 (FDPA). The amendments were part of the Biggert-Waters Flood Insurance Reform Act of 2012...

By Barry Zalma, Attorney and Consultant In Seneca Insurance Company, Inc., Plaintiff-Appellant-Respondent v. Cimran Co., Inc., et al., Defendants-Respondents-Appellants. , No. 9226 (N.Y.App.Div. 04/09/2013), [ enhanced version available to lexis.com subscribers ], the parties brought an appeal that...

By Matthew E. Hedberg , Bullivant Houser Bailey PC In an opinion issued April 3, 2013, the Idaho federal district court held that when an attorney participates in the investigation of a claim and provides coverage advice, the facts gathered by the attorney may be discoverable in a bad faith lawsuit...

Welcome to Insurance Review April 2013 , DLA Piper's publication dedicated to the insurance industry. In this edition we report on developments across the insurance industry, including the long-awaited amendments to the Insurance Contracts Act 1984 (Cth), the proposal to introduce unfair contract...

In the aftermath of the September 11th attacks, the insurance industry and federal government took a hard look at insurance coverage and put many provisions in place to address any future attacks. Thankfully, all of that work collected dust for over a decade. But the tragic Boston Marathon bombings changed...

By Kevin M. LaCroix, Esq., Executive Vice President, OakBridge Insurance Services Smaller companies increasingly are the subject of data breaches and those smaller companies "are the number-one target of cyber-espionage attackers," according to a recent study detailed in a April 24, 2013...

By Richard D. Vetstein, ESQ One little mistake in drafting and recording legal documents during a refinance can result in a huge problem for a lender - such as the lender having no legal ability to enforce the mortgage! (A slight problem..) GMAC Mortgage learned this the hard way at the Supreme Judicial...

by Seth Lamden , Partner, Neal, Gerber & Eisenberg LLP The court in Doe Run Resources Corporation v. Certain Underwriters at Lloyd's London , No. ED98086, 2013 Mo. App. LEXIS 468 (April 16, 2013) [ enhanced version available to lexis.com subscribers ], held that excess liability insurers were...

Brian Margolies, Partner, Traub Lieberman Straus & Shrewsberry LLP In its recent decision in Colony Insurance Company v. Bear Products, Inc ., 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 43716 (E.D. Okl. Mar. 26, 2013) [ enhanced version available to lexis.com subscribers ], the United States District Court for the...