Property

  • January 24, 2024

    NY Developer Says Court Lacks Jurisdiction In $1.7M Fire Suit

    A real estate CEO accused of lying on his insurance application asked a New York federal judge to dismiss an insurer's case disclaiming $1.7 million in fire damage coverage for a 19th century estate his business owned in Albany, saying the court lacks jurisdiction.

  • January 24, 2024

    Samsung, Best Buy Owe Insurer In Microwave Fire, Court Told

    Samsung and Best Buy should reimburse State Farm for a $231,000 payment covering damage to a home in a fire that State Farm claims was caused by a defective microwave, the insurer alleged in a complaint removed to Pennsylvania federal court.

  • January 24, 2024

    Accused Fraudster Hurting Policyholders, NC Justices Told

    Four insurers told the North Carolina Supreme Court that a former insurance mogul facing criminal fraud charges is still running his businesses, contrary to a contract and lower court order, renewing their request for clarity on what parts of an appellate court's opinion the high court will review.

  • January 23, 2024

    Insurer Tells Wash. High Court No Coverage For Faulty Roof

    Farmers Insurance Exchange told the Washington Supreme Court on Tuesday that a "resulting loss exception" to a defective work exclusion in a condominium complex policy should not allow it to recover for condensation damage to its roof resulting from inadequate ventilation.

  • January 23, 2024

    NC Poultry Plant Sanctioned For Last-Minute Document Dump

    The North Carolina Business Court has sanctioned a chicken plant for disclosing key evidence on the eve of an insurance fraud trial stemming from a 2017 fire, finding the late document dump was caused by "extreme negligence."

  • January 23, 2024

    Insurer Says No Coverage Of $1M Suit By NYC Four Seasons

    A construction company working on a Four Seasons Hotel in midtown Manhattan told a New York federal court that insurers should pay to defend it in a $1 million suit brought by the hotel alleging damages to its guest rooms, while its insurer said Tuesday that it wants the case dismissed.

  • January 23, 2024

    Progressive Customers Fire Back At Proposed Dismissal

    Progressive customers in a consolidated proposed class action surrounding the exposure of nearly 350,000 users' personal data to unauthorized actors urged an Ohio federal judge to reject the insurer's dismissal bid, arguing in part that the motion couldn't get around Progressive's own admission to the leak of information.

  • January 23, 2024

    Condo Assoc. Says Insurer Played Favorites In Fee Dispute

    A Virgin Islands condominium association told an Illinois federal court that an AIG unit played favorites in a fee payment dispute between its insureds, refusing to cover more than $500,000 in legal fees for the association while fully funding its opponent.

  • January 23, 2024

    Condo Assoc. Says Insurer Can't Limit Bombing Coverage

    A Nashville, Tennessee, condominium owners association said it's entitled to $10.7 million from its insurer to repair property that was damaged in a bombing in December 2020, telling a federal court that an exclusion for buildings designated as historic structures does not apply to limit recovery.

  • January 22, 2024

    La. Landlord Says Insurer Must Face Hurricane Damage Suit

    A suburban New Orleans commercial property owner asked a Louisiana federal judge to allow its case over more than $220,000 in damage from Hurricane Ida in 2021 to continue, poking holes in its insurer's request to toss the case.

  • January 22, 2024

    Insurer Says No Coverage For $2.5M In Car Wash Break-Ins

    An insurer and a car wash owner filed competing motions for full or partial summary judgment in a $2.5 million California federal court suit over insurance coverage for a series of thefts and break-ins at the car wash in 2018 and 2019.

  • January 22, 2024

    Colo. Contractor Seeks Defense For $2M Defects Arbitration

    A Colorado general contractor is suing five insurers over their refusal to defend the company in arbitration proceedings over construction defects at a senior living community, telling a Colorado federal court they owe coverage under policies issued to its subcontractors.

  • January 22, 2024

    Insurer Settles $10M Coverage Fight With Contractor, Condo

    A Tokio Marine unit reached a settlement with a contractor and a West Hollywood condominium association, ending the parties' California federal court dispute over coverage for an estimated $10 million in replacement costs for defective plumbing and mechanical work.

  • January 22, 2024

    Condo To Tell 6th Circ. Insurer Must Cover Resident Suits

    A Detroit condominium association said it will urge the Sixth Circuit to reverse a Michigan federal court's ruling that its insurer does not owe it coverage for underlying suits over damaged fences, defamation and legal fees.

  • January 19, 2024

    Law360 Names Firms Of The Year

    Eight law firms have earned spots as Law360's Firms of the Year, with 55 Practice Group of the Year awards among them, steering some of the largest deals of 2023 and securing high-profile litigation wins, including at the U.S. Supreme Court.

  • January 19, 2024

    Law360 Names Practice Groups Of The Year

    Law360 would like to congratulate the winners of its Practice Groups of the Year awards for 2023, which honor the attorney teams behind litigation wins and major deals that resonated throughout the legal industry this past year.

  • January 19, 2024

    Nev. Justices Dismiss Hilton Insurers' Appeal In Virus Suit

    The Nevada Supreme Court said it can't review a rejected bid to dismiss Hilton's state court suit seeking more than $1.7 billion from its insurers for COVID-19 losses, granting Hilton's request to toss the appeal for lack of jurisdiction.

  • January 19, 2024

    4th Circ. Lets Insurer Fly The Coop In Vulture Infestation Row

    A Maryland strip mall that was pecked by turkey vultures did suffer an "infestation," a Fourth Circuit panel found Friday, affirming a lower court's judgment in favor of an insurer, finding the bird damage constituted an excluded event.

  • January 19, 2024

    State Farm Denied New Coverage Trial Over Atty's Remarks

    State Farm cannot get a new trial after a jury found one of its policyholders suffered permanent injuries from an auto accident, a Florida appeals court ruled Friday, rejecting the insurer's claim that the policyholder's counsel "obliterated" State Farm's witness credibility arguments in a handful of sentences.

  • January 19, 2024

    Appraisal Needed In Restaurant Fire Dispute, Mich. Court Says

    A dispute over a restaurant's coverage claims for more than $44,000 in damages following a 2021 kitchen fire must go to an appraiser, a Michigan appellate panel affirmed.

  • January 19, 2024

    Insurer Says Wash. Judge Must Alter COVID Coverage Ruling

    A Liberty Mutual unit asked a Washington state judge to alter his ruling of this month that the University of Washington established a plausible claim to recover losses from the COVID-19 pandemic, arguing that the decision ignores key differences among the university's policies. 

  • January 19, 2024

    Proposed $350B Federal Reinsurance Program Draws Scrutiny

    A proposed national reinsurance program lacks important details for legislation that would dramatically change the federal government's role in insurance markets, experts said, while offering competing ideas about whether such a program is needed at all.

  • January 19, 2024

    Insurer Resolves Damaged Goods Coverage Row Out Of Court

    An insurer abandoned its request in New York federal court for a second shot at freeing itself from defending a warehouse over a stored merchandise dispute, instead resolving the issue outside of court and stipulating the case's dismissal after months of delays.

  • January 18, 2024

    Biz, Insurer Settle $10.5M Military School Construction Dispute

    A contractor and its insurer have settled a $10.5 million lawsuit seeking coverage for shoddy construction work on a school on a military base, according to a joint statement Thursday in Maryland federal court.

  • January 18, 2024

    Split Wash. Justices Say Colleges' COVID Suit Can Proceed

    A 6-3 Washington Supreme Court affirmed Thursday a ruling refusing to dismiss a coverage action lodged by 60 higher learning institutions against 16 insurers for losses caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, finding their policies provide a choice of forum clause that allowed them to file suit in any competent court.

Expert Analysis

  • Embracing ESG

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    In this Expert Analysis series, in-house counsel share how they are adapting to the growing importance of environmental, social and corporate governance factors.

  • The Right Condo Governance Provisions Can Enhance Safety

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    Though condominium and community governance documents cannot prevent a structural failure, such as the Champlain Towers tragedy, developers and their lawyers can draft these documents to better educate board members and remove obstacles to preserving community assets, says Bob Burton at Winstead.

  • Risks To Consider For Commercial Real Estate Gap Closings

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    The use of the gap closing mechanism in commercial real estate transactions — when there is a delay between a purchase and the recording of documents — has been increasing amid the pandemic, but certain complications can arise for buyers when an intervening matter influences a title's quality, says Jennifer Ioli at Sherin and Lodgen.

  • Avoiding Unauthorized Practice Of Law In Remote Work

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    The COVID-19 pandemic has forced many lawyers to telecommute, potentially from home jurisdictions where they are not admitted, raising questions about compliance with states’ unauthorized practice of law mandates — but attorneys can look to rules, advisory opinions and case law for clarity, say Lauren Snyder and Amy Richardson at Harris Wiltshire.

  • NY Ruling Should Make Counsel More Cautious In Emails

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    A recent New York Appellate Division decision, Philadelphia Insurance v. Kendall, makes it much more likely that a settlement could be effectuated by simple email exchanges without more formal written documentation memorializing all the terms of the settlement, says Christopher Gorman at Abrams Fensterman.

  • Where Insurance Coverage For Condo Collapse Gets Murky

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    Property and casualty coverage for the Champlain Towers tragedy may be complicated, since different versions of collapse coverage are found in different policies, both for the individual condo owners and the condominium association, say Glenn Jacobson and Mark Binsky at Abrams Gorelick.

  • Courts Should Heed Contract Law In COVID-19 Physical Loss

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    While a recent Law360 guest article urged courts to adopt the particle theory of coverage in deciding COVID-19-related property loss and damage claims, this approach ignores the intent, function and language of commercial insurance policies — not to mention the science itself, say Adam Fleischer and Elisabeth Ross at BatesCarey.

  • Insurance Brokers Should Expect Wave Of E&O Claims

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    Policyholders' unsuccessful COVID-19 business interruption suits and the pandemic-related move to remote work will likely result in a plethora of errors and omissions claims brought against insurance agents and brokers, as evidenced by recently filed cases, says Peter Biging at Goldberg Segalla.

  • COVID Insurance Rulings Are Misinterpreting 'Physical Loss'

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    Recent court decisions interpreting "direct physical loss" clauses to deny COVID-19 business interruption recovery where the subject property has not been structurally altered contradict the purpose of all-risks insurance, the ordinary meaning of the operative policy language and pre-pandemic case law, says ​​​​​​​Lee Epstein at Flaster Greenberg.

  • Revamping Law Firm Marketing Lists — With Partner Buy-In

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    Jackson Lewis’ Paige Bowser shares lessons from the firm's recent overhaul of an outdated email marketing database, including tips for getting partners on board, ensuring compliance with privacy laws and augmenting outreach strategies.

  • Courts Should Defer To Science On COVID-19 Physical Loss

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    As litigation of pandemic-related business interruption claims continues nationwide, the insurance carriers and courts adopting the most conservative interpretation of "physical loss or damage" — the basic trigger for business interruption coverage — are making erroneous assumptions about a complex physical phenomenon, says Micah Skidmore at Haynes and Boone.

  • The Murky World Of Legal Rankings Gets Some Clarity In NJ

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    New Jersey's new, stringent approach to legal rankings will make accolade advertising more transparent, benefiting both attorneys and clients and offering legal marketers a new set of best practices amid evolving standards, say Penny Paul at Lowenstein Sandler and Susan Peters at Greybridge.

  • Embracing ESG: Cigna Counsel Talks Employee Wellness

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    Building employee well-being into corporate environmental, social and governance priorities required our legal team to focus more closely on cross-functional collaboration within the company and increased communication with our board of directors and shareholders, says Julia Brncic at Cigna.

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