General Liability

  • February 28, 2025

    Insurer Gets Partial Early Win In Oil Pollution Coverage Suit

    Because of a late notice, an insurer shouldn't have to defend an oil and gas company against litigation claiming it damaged neighboring land after it discharged wastewater, a U.S. magistrate judge recommended to a Texas federal court Friday, but indemnification might still be on table.

  • February 28, 2025

    Coverage Claims Trimmed For Faulty Non-GMO Grain Silos

    A grain storage company's insurer has no duty to cover some damages a grain seller is seeking over its leaky grain bin claims, an Indiana federal judge ruled, though finding the insurer can't yet avoid covering damages directly related to the allegedly faulty harvest itself and certain lost profits.

  • February 28, 2025

    Insurer Says No Coverage For Lil Baby Video Shooting Suit

    An insurer said it has no duty to defend or indemnify a security contractor accused of failing to provide adequate services after a shooting broke out during the filming of a music video for rapper Lil Baby, telling a Georgia federal court a number of exclusions bar coverage.

  • February 27, 2025

    Calif. State Farm Meeting Raises Solvency Concerns

    State Farm's emergency request for a 22% premium increase in California has raised questions about the insurer's financial health, but a prominent consumer group says the carrier hasn't justified that request and several others that would raise premium costs.

  • February 27, 2025

    Insurer For Mass. Gaming Board Off Hook For Land Dispute

    A Massachusetts state court judge said Landmark American Insurance's duty to defend the state's Gaming Commission in a long-running lawsuit over the site of the Encore Boston Harbor Casino ended nearly three years ago.

  • February 27, 2025

    Q&A: Minnesota Law Prof On Hard-To-Read Insurance Policies

    How hard is it to understand a homeowners insurance policy? For many, reading a policy will often raise more confusion about what's covered than if they hadn't read a policy at all, according to a new paper from experts in insurance and consumer law. Here, Law360 discusses the subject with Daniel Schwarcz, a University of Minnesota Law School professor who has built a career in studying the transparency of insurance markets.

  • February 27, 2025

    Insurance Litigation Week In Review

    New York's insurance regulator imposed over $20 million in fines against auto insurers, the Eighth Circuit found that a Missouri law barred an insurer's $60 million asbestos coverage suit and the Tenth Circuit affirmed that AIG doesn't owe coverage to a Colorado ski resort's homeowners association.

  • February 26, 2025

    Auto Insurer Freed From Covering Gunshot Injury Litigation

    An auto insurer doesn't have to cover a driver whose passenger was shot, court papers allege, by a neighbor who was incensed by what he perceived to be reckless driving, a Florida federal judge ruled.

  • February 26, 2025

    Insurer Gets Early Win In Oil Well Explosion Coverage Suit

    An insurer has no duty to cover two oil drilling companies and others in a worker's injury suit over a June 2022 oil well explosion, a Kentucky federal court ruled Wednesday, declaring the at-issue policy void due to material misrepresentations in the insurance application process.

  • February 26, 2025

    Lloyds Seeks To Trim Oil Cos.' Suit Over Water Pollution Claim

    Certain underwriters at Lloyd's of London urged a New Mexico federal court to toss bad faith claims that two oil and gas companies lodged in a coverage action over the release of a waste byproduct that triggered state-supervised remediation efforts, arguing they haven't even formally denied coverage yet.

  • February 26, 2025

    Driver Accuses Geico Of Lying About Accident Forgiveness

    Geico unlawfully disguises rate increases as surcharges, a driver alleged in a suit filed in Texas federal court, saying his premium nearly doubled after an accident despite being enrolled in an accident forgiveness program.

  • February 25, 2025

    Fla. Bill Targets Last-Resort Coverage For Unsafe Condos

    A bill introduced ahead of Florida's 2025 legislative session looks to bar the state's Citizens Property Insurance Corp. from providing or renewing coverage policies for condominiums that fall short of inspection requirements.

  • February 25, 2025

    Ga. County Collected Too Late On Theft Claim, Panel Says

    The Georgia Court of Appeals has stripped a state county of a nearly $350,000 judgment it won from insurer Old Republic Surety Co. to cover a court employee's theft of hundreds of thousands of dollars from the public coffers, ruling the county filed its claim well after the statute of limitations had run.

  • February 25, 2025

    Insurers Owe Chubb $3.3M For Safelite Defense Costs

    Two insurers must contribute $1.65 million each toward costs a Chubb unit incurred defending windshield repair company Safelite against a competitor's suit, an Ohio federal court ruled, finding the pair were not prejudiced by breaches of their policies' notice and voluntary payment provisions.

  • February 25, 2025

    10th Circ. Affirms Falsity Claims Bar Coverage Of HOA Fight

    The Tenth Circuit affirmed that two AIG units need not cover a ski resort's homeowners association and other insureds found liable for trying to induce the owner of resort condo units to pay $15.5 million in fees it didn't owe, pointing to what are known as knowledge-of-falsity exclusions.

  • February 24, 2025

    NY Regulator Imposes $20.4M In Fines Against Auto Insurers

    New York's insurance regulator announced Monday the agency has concluded a multiyear investigation into auto insurers' failure to report vehicle information to the state Department of Motor Vehicles in a timely manner, resulting in $20.4 million in fines across 37 separate consent orders.

  • February 21, 2025

    Mich. Car Insurance Caps Aren't Retroactive, Judge Rules

    Healthcare cost controls enacted as part of a 2019 overhaul of Michigan's auto insurance laws cannot be applied to crash victims injured before the passage of the reforms, a state judge determined on Friday, ruling against the state's insurance regulator.

  • February 21, 2025

    Morgan Lewis Adds Partner To Insurance Recovery Practice

    Morgan Lewis & Bockius LLP announced that it has added a new partner and insurance expert in its Chicago office, in a move to bolster the firm's insurance recovery and dispute resolution capabilities for corporate policyholder clients.

  • February 20, 2025

    Calif. Subrogation Bill Sets Insurers Against Oil Cos.

    A California bill that would incentivize insurers to recoup disaster losses from oil and gas companies is being hailed by supporters as a novel way to hold large polluters accountable for climate change, but carrier attorneys say the bill is full of cost-drivers.

  • February 20, 2025

    Del. Judge Nixes Two Insurers In Cheer Abuse Coverage Row

    A Delaware state court dismissed two insurers in a coverage dispute over underlying sexual abuse claims against a clothing retailer that also sponsors and organizes national cheerleading competitions, finding while the state's "long-arm statute" supports exercising jurisdiction over the insurers, doing so would violate their due process rights.

  • February 20, 2025

    NFIP Flood Claim Borrowing Raises Viability Concerns

    FEMA's recent announcement that it was borrowing $2 billion from the U.S. Treasury to pay National Flood Insurance Program claims related to Hurricanes Helene and Milton emphasizes the insurance program's need for reform amidst threats of agency cuts under the Trump administration, experts say.

  • February 20, 2025

    Excess Insurer Needn't Cover Ga. Shooting Suit, Judge Rules

    An excess insurer has no duty to defend or indemnify a property owner and manager in a suit over a fatal shooting at an apartment complex, a Georgia federal court ruled, finding that the insureds did not provide timely notice of the incident or lawsuit.

  • February 20, 2025

    Insurance Litigation Week In Review

    State Farm was asked to justify desired rate hikes in California after recent fires, Zurich said the LA fires would cost it over $200 million, an insurer got out of covering a blaze because of a policyholder blunder and a hydrofracking exclusion can't prevent an insurer from covering a fatal fire. Here, Law360 takes a look at the past week's top insurance news.

  • February 20, 2025

    Liberty Owes Travelers $2.1M For Hotel Defect Defense Costs

    A Liberty Mutual unit owes Travelers over $2.1 million for costs it incurred defending a construction company in a 2011 lawsuit over defects at San Diego's Hard Rock Hotel, a California federal court ruled, saying Travelers never had a duty to defend the company.

  • February 19, 2025

    No Coverage For Seller In NY Ghost Gun Suits, Insurer Says

    The insurer for a company suspected of selling components used to make illegal "ghost guns" told a New York federal court that it owed no coverage for three underlying government suits alleging that the company contributed to the sale of weapons that are harder for law enforcement to trace.

Expert Analysis

  • 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.

  • Rethinking Litigation Risk And What It Really Means To Win

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    Attorneys have a tendency to overestimate litigation risk before summary judgment and underestimate risk after it, but an eight-stage litigation framework can clarify risk at different points and help litigators reassess what true success looks like in any particular case, says Joshua Libling at Arcadia Finance.

  • A Federal Insurance Mandate For Private Aviation Is Overdue

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    A recent private plane crash in California that killed two people and injured 19 others spotlights the dangers of such occurrences — and serves as a reminder that because there is no federal requirement for general aviation pilots to carry insurance, the victims of these accidents are often unable to obtain fair compensation, says Timothy Loranger at Wisner Baum.

  • 6 Predictions For Cyber Risk And Insurance In 2025

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    This year is likely to bring with it some thorny and expensive cyber challenges, including increased ransomware activity, more data breach class actions and continued efforts to define business interruption loss calculations, say attorneys at Wiley.

  • Defense Strategies For Addressing Conspiracy-Minded Jurors

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    As conspiracy theories continue to proliferate and gain traction in the U.S., defense attorneys will need to consider ways to keep conspiracy-minded jurors from sitting on the jury, and to persuade them when this isn’t possible, say consultants at IMS Legal Strategies.