General Liability
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August 28, 2025
Insurer Says No Coverage For Parking Garage Death Suit
An insurer said it has no duty to defend or indemnify a parking garage designer accused of improperly designing a facility at a New Jersey university after a man jumped from an upper level and died, telling a New York federal court that another carrier owes coverage instead.
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August 28, 2025
Insurance Litigation Week In Review
The Fourth Circuit erased class certification in a lawsuit challenging Progressive's coverage of totaled vehicles, the First Circuit said an insurer had no defense obligations over an eviction scheme alleged at a senior living facility and the Ninth Circuit assessed the "unconscionability" of liability language in an aircraft service agreement. Here, Law360 takes a look at the past week's top insurance news.
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August 27, 2025
No Coverage For Voluntary Phishing Payments, Insurer Says
A Pittsburgh seating company is not entitled to coverage for more than $530,000 it lost in a computer phishing scheme, an insurer told a Pennsylvania state court, saying the payments made by the company's co-owner were voluntary and thus excluded by its policy.
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August 27, 2025
Crash Victim Hits Progressive With Claims Over 'Regular Use'
Progressive Insurance systematically denied auto insurance coverage under an exclusion relating to vehicles not directly insured but still regularly used, two Pennsylvania residents told a Pennsylvania state court in a proposed class action, saying that the insurer had no reasonable basis to do so.
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August 26, 2025
4th Circ. Revokes Class Cert. In Progressive Car Valuation Suit
The Fourth Circuit reversed a Progressive Insurance policyholder's class certification win over certain adjustments the insurer makes when calculating the actual cash value of a totaled vehicle, saying that determining whether Progressive breached each insured's policy is a "highly individualized assessment."
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August 26, 2025
Clause Not Unconscionable In Jet Damage Row, 9th Circ. Says
A "limitation of liability" provision that an aircraft services company used in a "landing card" agreement for arriving aircraft wasn't unconscionable under Nevada law, the Ninth Circuit ruled, siding against an insurer demanding that the company reimburse it for damage to a private jet stored at a Las Vegas airport.
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August 26, 2025
1st Circ. Says Insurer Owes No Defense In Eviction Suits
A Liberty Mutual unit has no duty to defend a commercial real estate loan provider in underlying suits over the eviction of residents from a Massachusetts senior care facility, the First Circuit ruled, finding the insurer's denial of coverage to be reasonable.
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August 25, 2025
Chubb Units Say No To Test Cases In Archdiocese Ch. 11
Insurance carriers for the Archdiocese of San Francisco urged a California bankruptcy court to reject a deal between the archdiocese and sexual abuse claimants to allow five lawsuits to proceed despite a Chapter 11 automatic stay.
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August 25, 2025
Co. Not Covered For $7.5M Crash Judgment, Insurer Says
A food service distributor isn't entitled to coverage of a nearly $7.5 million judgment entered against it in a suit over a collision involving one of its trucks and another driver, an insurer told a Connecticut federal court Monday, saying the company breached the policy's notice conditions.
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August 25, 2025
11th Circ. Won't Rehear Lodge Shooting Coverage Dispute
The Eleventh Circuit refused Monday to review its April finding that a jury should decide whether an insurer acted in bad faith by not settling an estate's claim over a fatal shooting that occurred at a Florida lodge.
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August 25, 2025
Care Facility Not Covered In Chase Crash Suit, Insurer Says
An insurer has no duty to defend or indemnify a residential care facility or its owner in an underlying suit over a car chase that resulted in a crash and injured two women, the company told an Oregon federal court, saying the claims do not trigger the insuring agreement.
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August 21, 2025
Kanner & Pintaluga Seeks Sanctions Over Accident Data Suit
Kanner & Pintaluga PA asked a Texas federal court to sanction a Houston couple and their counsel in a proposed class action accusing the firm and since-dismissed Progressive Casualty Insurance Co. of conspiring to share auto crash victims' private information, saying the claims are based on unverified and inadmissible hearsay.
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August 21, 2025
AI Tools Spark Debate Over Insurance Policy Interpretation
An artificial intelligence tool drafts an insurance policy and makes a note of potential inconsistencies in language.
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August 21, 2025
Pa. Biz Groups, Providers, Uber Want Fault Loophole Closed
Uber and a coalition of organizations often targeted by injury lawsuits urged a Pennsylvania appeals court to close a legal loophole that they claim largely undermines the purpose of the Fair Share Act, which limits a defendant's liability to their portion of fault.
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August 21, 2025
Abuse Claim Influx Raises Insurance Woes For Calif. Schools
Legislation in California eliminated a number of claim prerequisites and the statute of limitations for childhood sexual assault survivors pursing litigation against public entities, but five years later insurance experts are sounding the alarm as to how this legislation has impacted public schools' ability to procure adequate liability coverage at a reasonable cost.
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August 21, 2025
Q&A: Lawmaker Takes Aim At High Property Insurance Costs
Finding ways to make property insurance more affordable in New York is the intended outcome of a New York State Senate investigation into a crisis that's threatening to price people out of their communities, said the chair of the senate's insurance committee.
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August 21, 2025
Bankruptcy Trustee Axes RICO Claims Against BakerHostetler
The trustee for the Alliance Health Liquidating Trust has agreed to drop two remaining civil racketeering claims against BakerHostetler in an adversary case stemming from the law firm's representation of a bankrupt pharmacy company in 2017.
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August 21, 2025
Why Del. Policyholders Should Heed CVS Opioid Claim Loss
The Delaware Supreme Court's refusal to reverse a lower court's ruling that CVS Corp. isn't owed coverage for government, hospital and third-party payer claims for economic losses related to the company's opioid dispensing practices marks a concerning turn for policyholders incorporated in the state, a policyholder attorney told Law360.
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August 21, 2025
Pa. Firm Lacked Standing To Sue Legal Malpractice Insurer
A Philadelphia law firm that dropped its bad faith lawsuit against its insurer was not a true legal entity and never had standing to sue for coverage of a legal malpractice case that ended in a $600,000 judgment, a Pennsylvania federal judge ruled Thursday.
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August 21, 2025
Insurance Litigation Week In Review
Units of Chubb and AIG don't owe coverage to CVS in suits over the opioid epidemic, BP and Chevron needn't reimburse a surety $11 million, a reinsurer must face investors' misrepresentation claims, and an Allianz insurer must pay $23 million in damages and interest in an asbestos coverage suit.
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August 21, 2025
Canadian Insurer Manulife Taps Ex-JPMorgan Atty As GC
Manulife, a global insurance and investment firm based in Toronto, announced Thursday it found a replacement for its outgoing general counsel, naming to the post an attorney who previously served a leadership role in JPMorgan's legal department and was general counsel for the New York-based arm of Japan's largest bank.
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August 21, 2025
Aegon Boosts Buyback To €400M, Weighs Moving Base To US
Aegon NV said Thursday it is doubling its current €200 million ($233 million) share repurchase program to €400 million as the pensions and insurance specialist begins a review of plans to shift its head office to the U.S.
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August 20, 2025
Driver Can Sue Progressive After PIP Claim Rights Restored
A Michigan appellate court panel ruled on Tuesday that an injured driver can proceed with her personal injury protection claims against Progressive, relying on a recent state Supreme Court decision that found those who transfer legal claims to third parties can pursue the claims if they are later transferred back.
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August 19, 2025
Manufacturing Cos. Score $23M Win In Lengthy Asbestos Suit
Two manufacturing companies involved in a long-running dispute over coverage for asbestos bodily injury claims have won $23 million from an Allianz unit for damages and interest, with a New York trial court finding the manufacturers properly determined claim liabilities.
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August 19, 2025
Insurers Avoid Coverage For Alleged $8.5M Judgment Scheme
Two insurers owed no coverage to companies facing abuse of process claims, a Minnesota federal court ruled in two separate cases decided on the same issues, finding that commercial general liability policies' coverage for malicious prosecution did not apply.
Expert Analysis
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Strategies To Help Witnesses Manage Deposition Anxiety
During and leading up to deposition, witnesses may experience anxiety stemming from numerous sources and manifesting in a variety of ways, but attorneys can help them mitigate their stress using a few key methods, say consultants at Courtroom Sciences.
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5 Insurance Types For Mitigating Tariff-Related Trade Losses
The potential for significant trade-related losses as a result of increased tariffs may cause companies to consider which of their insurance policies, including marine, builders risk, trade credit, and directors and officers, could provide coverage to alleviate the financial impact, say attorneys at Pillsbury.
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Home Depot Ruling Tolls Death Knell For 'Silent Cyber'
The Sixth Circuit's recent ruling that Home Depot's insurers did not have to cover costs from a data breach hammered one more nail in the coffin of silent cyber, where coverage is sought under standard property or commercial general liability policies that were not intended to insure cyberattack claims, say attorneys at Zelle.
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Texas Case Shows Why Juries Are Well-Suited To COVID Suits
The original jury verdict in Baylor College of Medicine v. Lloyd's, currently on appeal to the Texas Supreme Court after being overturned by an appellate panel, illustrates why COVID-19 business interruption claims with their case-specific facts need to be decided by juries, not by judges using a one-size-fits-all approach, says Jeremy Lawrence at Farella Braun.
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Filial Consortium Claims' Future After Conn. High Court Ruling
While the Connecticut Supreme Court recently ruled for defendants in rejecting parents’ attempt to recover loss of companionship damages in a severe child injury case, there is still potential for the plaintiffs bar to lobby for a law that would allow filial consortium claims, Glenn Coffin at Gordon Rees.
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In-House Expert Testimony Is Tricky, But Worth Considering
Litigation counsel often reject the notion of designating in-house personnel to provide expert opinion testimony at trial, but dismissing them outright can result in a significant missed opportunity, say David Ben-Meir at Ben-Meir Law and Martin Pitha at Lillis Pitha.
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Tracking Changes To AI Evidence Under Federal Rules
As the first quarter of 2025 draws to a close, important changes to the Federal Rules of Evidence regarding the use of artificial intelligence in the courtroom are on the horizon, including how to handle evidence that is a product of machine learning, say attorneys at Debevoise.
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Key Insurance Issues Likely To Arise From NY Superfund Law
The recently enacted New York Climate Change Superfund Act imposes a massive $75 billion in liabilities on energy companies in the fossil fuel industry, which can be expected to look to their insurers for coverage, raising a slew of coverage issues both old and new, say attorneys at Wiley.
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What To Know About NAIC's Risk-Based Capital Task Force
Attorneys at Debevoise outline key details of the Risk-Based Capital Model Governance Task Force, which was recently launched by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, including the task force's objectives, and potential implications for insurers and their investment strategies.
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How To Create A Unique Jury Profile For Every Case
Instead of striking potential jurors based on broad stereotypes or gut feelings, trial attorneys should create case-specific risk profiles that address the political climate, the specific facts of the case and the venue in order to more precisely identify higher-risk jurors, says Ken Broda-Bahm at Persuasion Strategies.
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AG Watch: Texas Is Entering New Privacy Enforcement Era
The state of Texas' recent suit against Allstate is the culmination of a long-standing commitment to vigorously enforcing privacy laws in the state, and while still in the early stages, it offers several important insights for companies and privacy practitioners, says Paul Singer at Kelley Drye.
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What To Know About Insurance Coverage For Greenwashing
As the number of public and private lawsuits relating to greenwashing dramatically grows, risk managers of companies making environmental claims should look to several types of insurance for coverage in the event of a suit, say attorneys at Hunton.
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Managing Anti-Corporate Juror Views Revealed By CEO Killing
After the shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson laid bare deep-seated anti-corporate sentiments among the public, companies in numerous industries will have to navigate the influence of related juror biases on litigation dynamics, say Jorge Monroy and Keith Pounds at IMS Legal Strategies.