General Liability

  • March 20, 2025

    Meet The Attys In Meta's Fight For Social Media MDL Coverage

    Meta has assembled a team of seasoned insurance recovery and technology lawyers led by Covington & Burling LLP to fight its insurers' bid to deny coverage for thousands of suits alleging harm from social media platforms, including Facebook and Instagram. Here, Law360 takes a look at the attorneys helping Meta in its coverage disputes.

  • March 20, 2025

    Mich. Judge Warns No-Fault Rulings Rely On 'Slick' Ground

    A Michigan appellate judge on Wednesday flagged potentially flawed reasoning behind recent appellate decisions regarding minimum bodily injury no-fault coverage under state law, but joined a majority panel in finding an insurer must pay the statutory minimums for a fatal crash because the policyholder did not select a lower option.  

  • March 20, 2025

    Progressive Wins $25M Appeal In Fla. Vehicle Injury Suit

    A Florida state appellate panel reversed a $25 million judgment against Progressive American Insurance Co. in a lawsuit brought by a pedestrian who was struck by a car, finding that the insurer wasn't given the required 60-day notice to address any bad faith dispute before a complaint was filed.

  • March 20, 2025

    Liberty Mutual Needn't Defend Texas Pileup Suits, Court Says

    A Liberty Mutual unit has no duty to defend contractors for a Texas interstate construction project in lawsuits over a fatal 130-vehicle pileup caused by a historic winter storm, a federal court ruled, saying the underlying claims relate to road maintenance rather than covered project-related work.

  • March 20, 2025

    Bottler's Wine Contamination Coverage Bid Tossed For Good

    A Nationwide unit prevailed again in getting a wine bottling company's coverage action thrown out, successfully arguing to a California federal court that a faulty work exclusion barred coverage for a since-settled lawsuit seeking $1.2 million in damages for wine contamination.

  • March 20, 2025

    Insurance Litigation Week In Review

    The California Department of Insurance provisionally approved State Farm's request for an emergency rate hike, a North Carolina federal court found a convicted insurance mogul's company liable for $57 million in misappropriated client funds, and the Fifth Circuit reversed an insurer's win in a bar assault coverage dispute. Here, Law360 takes a look at the past week's top insurance news.

  • March 19, 2025

    Insurers End Dispute Over Pizza Chain Salmonella Coverage

    Two insurers for a "take 'n' bake" pizza chain have settled a dispute over their contributions to a deal reached by their mutual insured in an underlying case over salmonella-tainted cookie dough, with a Washington federal court tossing the suit.

  • March 19, 2025

    NC Captive Insurer's Owner Can't Shirk Self-Dealing Claims

    North Carolina's business court has largely rejected a majority shareholder's efforts to curtail claims he seized control of a captive insurance company only to run it into the ground, finding the suit sufficiently ties him to unpaid premiums that dried up the insurer's sole source of revenue.

  • March 19, 2025

    Law360 Announces The Members Of Its 2025 Editorial Boards

    Law360 is pleased to announce the formation of its 2025 Editorial Advisory Boards.

  • March 18, 2025

    BetterHelp Demands Insurer Assist In $7.8M FTC Payment

    Online counseling company BetterHelp told a California federal court that its insurer must cover a $7.8 million Federal Trade Commission payment and must defend it in underlying litigation brought by consumers who claim the company violated laws via its collection, use and disclosure of private health information.

  • March 17, 2025

    Insurer Stands Alone Before $8.5M Condo Defect Judgment

    The insurer for a contractor can't get help from third-party insurers to pay an $8.5 million judgment for alleged shoddy workmanship on a 2005 condo project because a settlement agreement released them from all claims, a Florida federal judge said Monday.

  • March 14, 2025

    Williams Kastner Accused Of Malpractice After $128M Payout

    An insurer wouldn't have been forced to pay 64 times its policy limit after a deadly crane collapse in Seattle were it not for its attorneys at Williams Kastner, the carrier told a Washington state court, accusing its counsel of malpractice that caused it to pay $128 million.

  • March 14, 2025

    Calif. Insurance Chief OKs State Farm Rates Pending Hearing

    The California Department of Insurance on Friday provisionally approved State Farm's request for an emergency rate hike following the Los Angeles fires, including a nearly 22% increase for homeowners, saying final approval will be contingent on the insurer justifying its request at a hearing.

  • March 14, 2025

    5th Circ. Reverses Insurer's Bar Assault Coverage Win

    The Fifth Circuit reversed on Friday a decision finding a bar's insurer had to pay only $1 million of a $3.2 million judgment because a settlement demand letter was too vague, saying the lower court should have declined to hear the case and must toss it on remand.

  • March 13, 2025

    Canada's New PM Seen As Leader Conscious Of Climate Risk

    As the former central banker Mark Carney assumes leadership over Canada's government, experts are pointing to his comments on climate change risks to insurers as a watershed moment in appreciating the financial risks of a warming planet.

  • March 13, 2025

    Coverage Bars Fla. Worker Who Died In Fall, Insurer Says

    A Michigan-based insurance company has asked a Florida federal court to declare that it doesn't owe coverage in a claim stemming from a condominium worker's death after falling five stories, asserting that its policy doesn't cover the death if it occurred during the scope of the employer's business.

  • March 13, 2025

    Ohio Co. Can't Get New Trial After Scrapped $18M Award

    An Ohio startup on Thursday lost its latest bid to revive an $18.3 million jury verdict it won against TransUnion for allegedly holding its source code hostage after ending a business deal.

  • March 13, 2025

    Meet The State Rep. Working To Bring Firearm Insurance To Ill.

    As state and local governments consider the ways in which insurance can be used to regulate firearm use, Rep. Bob Morgan is leading the charge in Illinois, creating a task force to bring insurance experts and other related leaders together to formulate liability insurance for firearm owners. Here, Law360 speaks with Morgan as he works to discover whether a stand-alone policy or special endorsement can be used by individuals to promote safer firearm practices within the state.

  • March 13, 2025

    Chubb Units Say Insurer Must Share $15M Explosion Costs

    Another insurer must help cover the nearly $15 million two Chubb units spent settling injury claims against the owner and operator of a gas-processing plant that faced 15 underlying lawsuits stemming from a fatal explosion, the units told a Louisiana federal court.

  • March 13, 2025

    Insurance Litigation Week In Review

    Progressive's $48 million settlement for underpaying New York drivers was finalized, insurers escaped covering opioid litigation and claims, Viacom and National Amusements Inc. got to continue their quests for coverage of shareholder litigation, and California state legislators discussed insurance rates after the wildfires.

  • March 12, 2025

    Mo. Court Finds Exclusion Bars Mallinckrodt Opioid Coverage

    A group of insurers have no coverage obligations under certain policies issued to drugmaker Mallinckrodt as a trust created from the company's first bankruptcy seeks to resolve underlying opioid claims with the help of insurance benefits, a Missouri state court ruled, finding a "your products" exclusion applicable.

  • March 12, 2025

    Mich. Justices Fret About Insurer Fallout In Benefits Case

    The Michigan Supreme Court on Wednesday seemed receptive to an insurance pool's argument that it does not owe coverage to a municipality for canceling a retirement benefit, asking about the potential for a major impact on the industry were it to affirm an adverse ruling.

  • March 12, 2025

    Publix Policies Don't Cover Opioid Claims, Court Says

    Insurers for Publix have no duty to defend or indemnify the supermarket chain in dozens of public nuisance lawsuits related to the opioid crisis, a Florida federal court said Wednesday, following Publix's renewed request that the court enter a final judgment so it could proceed with appeal.

  • March 12, 2025

    Chipwich Maker Blames Broker For $4.5M Recall Loss

    The maker of Chipwich ice cream sandwiches told a Connecticut state court that its broker negligently failed to secure product recall insurance, causing a preventable loss of $4.5 million to the company, after desserts were destroyed because of potential listeria contamination.

  • March 11, 2025

    Captive Insurer Shareholders Can't Target Owner, Court Told

    The majority owner of a now-defunct North Carolina captive insurer wasn't personally obligated to pay premiums for nursing homes reportedly under his control, his counsel told a state court judge in seeking to pare down a self-dealing suit lobbed by the minority shareholders.

Expert Analysis

  • NC COVID Ruling May Have Greater Coverage Implications

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    While the North Carolina Supreme Court's recent finding in favor of policyholders in a suit for business interruption coverage due to COVID-19 comes too late for most insureds to benefit, it should nonetheless have coverage implications far beyond COVID-19 claims, say attorneys at Robinson Bradshaw.

  • 5 Argument Techniques For Policyholder Advocates

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    Winning insurance coverage disputes often comes down to who has articulated the more compelling interpretation of the relevant policy language, which is why the best policyholder advocates come back to certain tried and true argument approaches, says Greg Van Houten at Haynes Boone.

  • Improving Comms Between Trial Attys And Tech Witnesses

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    In major litigation involving complex technology, attorneys should employ certain strategies to collaborate with companies' technical personnel more effectively to enhance both the attorney's understanding of the subject matter and the expert's ability to provide effective testimony in court, say attorneys at Buchalter.

  • Ch. 11 Ruling Confirms Insurer Standing Requirements

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    A New York bankruptcy court's recent decision in the Syracuse Diocese's Chapter 11 case indicates that insurers have misread the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2024 ruling in Truck Insurance Exchange v. Kaiser Gypsum and that federal standing requirements remain unaltered, say attorneys at Lowenstein Sandler.

  • A View Of The Shifting Insurance Regulatory Landscape

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    Attorneys at Eversheds Sutherland explore how the Federal Insurance Office's climate report, the new presidential administration and the California wildfires might affect the insurance regulatory landscape.

  • Courts Should Nix Conferencing Rule In 1 Discovery Scenario

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    Parties are generally required to meet and confer to resolve a discovery dispute before bringing a related motion, but courts should dispense with this conferencing requirement when a party fails to specify a time by which it will complete its production, says Tristan Ellis at Shanies Law.

  • Top Considerations For Insurance Companies In 2025

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    As insurance industry participants look to plan for the year, regulatory changes, climate-related challenges, the ongoing effects of social inflation and the potential for significant mergers and acquisitions will be among the key items for insurer boards and management to have on their radar, say attorneys at Debevoise.

  • What Public View Of CEO's Killing Means For Corporate Trials

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    Given the proliferation of anti-corporate sentiments following recent charges against Luigi Mangione in connection with the killing of UnitedHealthcare's CEO, attorneys who represent corporate clients and executives will need to adapt their trial strategy to account for juror anger, says Clint Townson at Townson Litigation Consulting.

  • The 7th Circ.'s Top 10 Civil Opinions Of 2024

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    Attorneys at Jenner & Block examine the most significant decisions issued by the Seventh Circuit in 2024, and explain how they may affect issues related to mass arbitration, consumer fraud, class certification and more.

  • Insurance Considerations For LA Wildfire Recovery

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    Businesses and homeowners affected by the destructive Southern California wildfires must act swiftly and strategically to navigate the complexities of the insurance recovery process, including by identifying all applicable policies, documenting damage thoroughly and keeping abreast of relevant state law, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • Artfully Conceding Liability Can Offer Defendants 3 Benefits

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    In the rare case that a company makes the strategic decision to admit liability, it’s important to do so clearly and consistently in order to benefit from the various forms of armor that come from an honest acknowledgment, says Ken Broda-Bahm at Persuasion Strategies.

  • What Insurers Should Know About AI Use In Litigation

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    As the use of artificial intelligence in litigation evolves, insurers should note standing court orders, instances of judges utilizing AI to determine policy definitions and the application of evidentiary standards to expert evidence that incorporates AI, says Sarah Abrams at Baleen Specialty.

  • 5 Litigation Funding Trends To Note In 2025

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    Lawyers and their clients must be prepared to navigate an evolving litigation funding market in 2025, made more complicated by a new administration and the increasing overall cost of litigation, says Jeffery Lula at GLS Capital.