Expert Analysis

4th Circ. D&O Ruling Shows Why Textual Policy Args Are Best

The Fourth Circuit's recent decision in favor of the insurer in Navigators Insurance v. Under Armour highlights ho... (more story)

Clarifying A Persistent Misconception About Settlement Talks

An Indiana federal court’s recent Cloudbusters v. Tinsley ruling underscores the often-misunderstood principle tha... (more story)

Tick, Tock: Maximizing The Clock, Regardless Of Trial Length

Whether a judge grants more or less time for trial than an attorney hoped for, understanding how to strategically ... (more story)

Property More

Contractor, Insurer Must Defend Rubber Co. In Burn Suit

An industrial services contractor and its insurer must defend a synthetic rubber manufacturer in an underlying personal injury suit accusing the company of negligently maintaining a pipe that broke and severel... (more story)

Insurance Litigation Week In Review

The Texas Supreme Court on “windstorms,” the Fourth Circuit on a construction company settlement, and a split Fifth Circuit backs State Farm in a sewage damage dispute. Law360 looks at the past week's top insurance news.

Senior Community Says Insurer Owes Millions In Coverage

A Kansas-based senior living community claimed in Colorado federal court that its insurance company failed to pay out what it owed as part of the community's policy after a sprinkler system in the facility bur... (more story)

Jury Clears Insurer In $4M Apartment Shooting Suit

AMCO Insurance Co. doesn't owe an Atlanta apartment complex coverage in an underlying dispute brought by a resident who was shot while sleeping, a jury ruled Wednesday, finding that the complex's delay in noti... (more story)

Liberty Unit Seeks Coverage Repayment For Bio-Lab Fire

A Liberty Mutual unit told a Georgia federal court that chemical manufacturer Bio-Lab Inc. and its parent companies owed it for payments it made to a textile business for property damage from a 2024 chemical plant fire.

Notable Q4 Updates In Insurance Class Actions

Last quarter featured a novel class action theory about car rental reimbursement coverage, another win for insurers in total loss valuations, a potentially broad-reaching Idaho Supreme Court ruling about illus... (more story)

Texas Justices Say Tornadoes Are Windstorms Under Policy

The Texas Supreme Court on Friday held that the ordinary meaning of the term "windstorm" in a homeowners policy unambiguously encompasses a tornado, confirming that a higher windstorm deductible applied to a D... (more story)

Split 5th Circ. Backs State Farm After 'Fecal Catastrophe'

A split Fifth Circuit on Thursday agreed with a lower court's finding for State Farm that the source of sewage that flooded a Mississippi family's home absolved the insurer of coverage, while one circuit judge... (more story)

Calif. Insurance Chief Backs Smoke Standards Bill

California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara announced his support Wednesday for a bill that would establish the nation's first public health and insurance claims standard for homes damaged by smoke contamination.

Insurance Litigation Week In Review

A California court expands policy disclosure requirements for auto insurers, an opioid insurer decision in Pennsylvania, and a New York decision on litigation coverage for an herb supplier. Law360 looks at the... (more story)

General Liability More

Investment Firm Loses Bid For CNA Defense From Competitor

A CNA Financial Corp. unit has no duty to defend an investment firm from suits alleging it stole a competitor's employees and solicited its investors, a Connecticut federal judge said Thursday, ruling any clai... (more story)

Ga. Panel Seeks Clarity On Rationale For Surgeon's $12M Win

Attorneys for an insurer and a vascular surgeon who alleged the company's subpar defense in a malpractice case destroyed his career fielded tough questions from a Georgia appeals court Thursday, as the judges ... (more story)

Insurer Must Cover $5.5M Crash Settlement, 4th Circ. Says

A highway construction company is entitled to coverage under a subcontractor's policy for a $5.5 million settlement over two motorcycle crashes, the Fourth Circuit held Wednesday, finding that the company's li... (more story)

Insurer Demands $1.5M Over Hotel's AI-Based Legal Filings

A South Dakota hotel and its owner are pressuring defense counsel provided by an insurance carrier in an underlying racial discrimination lawsuit to submit filings relying on artificial intelligence that could... (more story)

Ga. Property Manager Not Covered For Apartment Fire Claims

An insurer has no duty to defend or indemnify a property management company against any claim stemming from a 2021 fire at a Peach State apartment complex, a Georgia federal court ruled, saying the company fai... (more story)

Injury Damages Capped For Ex-Yale Law Assistant Dean​​​​​​​

A Connecticut federal judge has capped an insurer's potential liability in an injury suit filed by a former Yale Law dean of students who was struck by a driver, saying she cannot pursue damages exceeding poli... (more story)

Insurer Seeks To Cap Coverage In $3M Medical Transport Row

An insurer for a medical transport company asked a Virginia federal court to find that its liability is limited to a small fraction of the $3 million in damages sought by a woman alleging she was permanently i... (more story)

Judge Limits Insurers' Exposure in Opioid Coverage Fight

Insurers garnered several wins Tuesday in a dispute over coverage for thousands of opioid suits against bankrupt pharmaceutical company Endo International, with a Pennsylvania federal court ruling favorably fo... (more story)

NC Ruling Shows Mallory's Evolving Effects For Policyholders

A recent North Carolina decision, PDII v. Sky Aircraft, demonstrates how the U.S. Supreme Court's consequential jurisdiction decision in Mallory v. Norfolk Southern may permit suits against insurers anywhere t... (more story)

Insurer Owes No Coverage For Contamination Suit Threat

An insurer for an herb supplier owes no coverage for a threat from a customer seeking over $1 million in reimbursements for alleged losses tied to salmonella contamination, a New York federal court ruled, sayi... (more story)

Specialty Lines More

Alcoa Fights Retirees' Win In Life Insurance Dispute At 7th Circ.

Alcoa USA Corp. is looking to erase its retirees' win in a class action that claimed the aluminum manufacturer illegally cut off their life insurance benefits, telling the Seventh Circuit that the retirees owe... (more story)

Doc Fight Delays Trial In $22M McCarter & English Loan Suit

The delayed disclosure of thousands of documents has created "a lot of prejudice" against McCarter & English as it fights a $22.5 million professional malpractice lawsuit, and the impending trial must be pushe... (more story)

Travelers Must Defend Ag Co.'s Herbicide Suit, With Limits

A Delaware state judge has found that Travelers Casualty and Surety Co. must fund the defense of an agricultural chemical company in six suits alleging that a chemical made by its predecessors gave users Parki... (more story)

4th Circ. Rejects Under Armour's Coverage Rehearing Request

The Fourth Circuit on Wednesday rejected Under Armour's request to reconsider a recent ruling that capped its coverage for a securities class action, government investigations and derivative matters at $100 million.

McCarter & English Seeks Delay, Toss Of $22M Ethics Case

McCarter & English LLP doubled down on its bid to sink a $22.3 million professional negligence lawsuit by two insurance companies, arguing document production delays warrant nonsuit and that the court should, ... (more story)

NC City Not Covered In Wrongful Conviction Suit, Insurer Says

An insurer claimed it has no duty to defend or indemnify a city government or one of its police detectives against a civil suit brought by a man who was wrongfully convicted of the 2008 murder of a University ... (more story)

Blackbaud To Face Revived Data Breach Subrogation Suits

Delaware's highest court has revived a bid by a group of insurers to recover expenses incurred for clients of Blackbaud Inc. following a major ransomware attack on the software developer's systems, saying the ... (more story)

How Policy Differences Affect Recovery From Cyberattacks

Careful attention to policy language and real-world operational realities can mean the difference between a partial and a full recovery after a cyberincident — particularly, how long the insurance policy will ... (more story)

McCarter & English Can't Tank $22M Suit, Insurer Says

Two insurance companies have urged a Connecticut Superior Court judge to maintain a $22.3 million professional negligence lawsuit against McCarter & English LLP, saying document production delays don't warrant... (more story)

Insurer Must Defend Real Estate Firm Against Copyright Suit

An insurer must defend a real estate company against claims that it infringed an architect's copyright in marketing materials for a newly-built home, a Massachusetts federal court ruled, finding that an exclus... (more story)