Mealey's Emerging Insurance Disputes : Mealey's : Legal News & Analysis

Mealey's Emerging Insurance Disputes

December 03, 2024
Restaurant, Insurer Seek Dismissal Of Suit Over Looting Damage After Hurricane Maria

ST. CROIX, Virgin Islands — A restaurant insured and its insurer filed a stipulation in federal court in the Virgin Islands seeking dismissal with prejudice of all claims and counterclaims in their dispute over the insurer’s adjustment of the insured’s property damage claim and business interruption losses arising from looting after Hurricane Maria.
December 03, 2024
Judge Rules On Cross-Motions For Summary Judgment In BIPA Violation Coverage Suit

CHICAGO — A federal judge in Illinois granted in part and denied in part cross-motions for summary judgment filed by an excess insurer and a franchisee of the Burger King chain in its breach of contract lawsuit seeking a declaration that the insurer has a duty to defend it against an underlying putative class lawsuit alleging that it violated the Illinois Biometric Information Protection Act (BIPA).
December 03, 2024
Following John’s Grill, Panel Affirms No Coverage Ruling In COVID-19 Suit

SAN DIEGO — Reconsidering its earlier holding in favor of a diner insured in light of John's Grill, Inc. v. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc., a California appeals panel affirmed a lower court’s judgment in favor of an insurer in the diner’s lawsuit seeking coverage for its business losses arising from the COVID-19 pandemic.
December 02, 2024
Company Asks 4th Circuit To Reconsider Reversal Of Dismissal Of Insurer’s Claim

NEW ORLEANS — A marine and industrial construction company asked the Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on Nov. 29 to reconsider its reversal of a lower federal court’s dismissal of an intervening insurer’s breach of contract claim against it in a coverage dispute arising from an underlying personal injury claim, challenging the panel’s finding that it was obligated to procure a Protection and Indemnity insurance policy that provided coverage for personal injuries that were incurred by the crew/employees.
December 02, 2024
4th Circuit Refuses To Reconsider No Coverage Ruling For Cryptocurrency Loss

RICHMOND, Va. — The Fourth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals denied an insured’s petition seeking a rehearing or rehearing en banc of its affirmation of a lower court’s dismissal of his breach of contract lawsuit seeking homeowners insurance coverage for his alleged $170,000 cryptocurrency loss.
December 02, 2024
Insurers To Pay $11.3 Million To New York State Over Data Breaches

ALBANY, N.Y. — New York Attorney General Letitia James and the New York State Department of Financial Services (DFS) have reached agreements with two national auto insurance companies under which they will pay a total of $11.3 million in penalties for “having poor data security,” which the attorney general said led to data breaches that exposed the personally identifiable information (PII) of their policyholders.
November 27, 2024
Federal Judge Rules For CGL Insurer In General Contractor’s Breach Of Contract Suit

BROOKLYN, N.Y. — A federal judge in Wisconsin granted a commercial general liability insurer’s motion for summary judgment in a general contractor insured’s breach of contract and declaratory judgment lawsuit seeking reimbursement for its cost of replacing defective covers for digesters that were owned by two agricultural companies, concluding that the insured has failed to submit admissible evidence to support its claim that coverage exists under the policy for “property damage” that was caused by an “occurrence” or that coverage exists under the policy’s “products-completed operations hazards” provision.
November 25, 2024
Panel Reverses Dismissal Of Insurer’s Claim Against Marine Construction Company

NEW ORLEANS — The Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals reversed a lower federal court’s dismissal of an intervening insurer’s breach of contract claim against a marine and industrial construction company in a coverage dispute arising from an underlying personal injury claim, finding that the company was obligated to procure a Protection and Indemnity insurance policy that provided coverage for personal injuries that were incurred by the crew/employees.
November 22, 2024
COMMENTARY: 2024 Key Insurance Decisions, Trends & Developments & A Look Ahead To 2025

By Scott M. Seaman, Pedro E. Hernandez and Lisa M. Roccanova
November 22, 2024
Justice: Insurer Has Duty To Defend And Reimburse Costs Of Personal Injury Suit

BROOKLYN, N.Y. — A New York justice held that a businessowners insurer has a duty to defend plaintiffs as additional insureds against an underlying personal injury lawsuit and a duty to reimburse the plaintiff insurer for underlying defense costs.
November 22, 2024
Judge Strikes Insurer’s Counterclaim Against Burger King Franchisee As Redundant

CHICAGO — A federal judge in Illinois granted a franchisee of the Burger King chain’s motion to strike an excess insurer’s declaratory judgment counterclaim in its breach of contract lawsuit seeking a declaration that the insurer has a duty to defend it against an underlying putative class lawsuit alleging that it violated the Illinois Biometric Information Protection Act (BIPA), finding that the counterclaim is redundant and “serves no useful purpose.”
November 22, 2024
California Appeals Panel Finds Tech Firm’s Claims Over Ransomware Attack Untimely

SAN JOSE, Calif. — A trial court properly dismissed a cloud solutions firm’s amended contractual cross-claims over its client’s ransomware attack as barred by the statute of limitations, a California appeals panel ruled, finding that the company’s decision to originally name its client’s insurer and subrogee as cross-defendant was intentional and not a mistake.
November 22, 2024
Michigan Judge Rules For School District In High School Shooting Coverage Suit

PONTIAC, Mich. — A Michigan judge granted a public school district insured’s motion for partial summary disposition in its lawsuit seeking a declaratory judgment that underlying actions arising from a high school shooting seek damages for “bodily injury” that was caused by multiple “occurrences” under the policy and, therefore, the insured is not limited to $5 million in commercial general liability and excess coverage.
November 22, 2024
Texas High Court Denies Insured’s Motion To Reconsider Refusal To Review No Coverage Ruling

AUSTIN, Texas — The Texas Supreme Court denied an insured’s motion asking it to reconsider its denial of the insured’s petition seeking review of a Texas appeals court’s opinion that affirmed a lower court’s summary judgment ruling in favor of primary and excess commercial crime insurers in a coverage dispute arising from $16,423,941.78 in fraudulent invoices.
November 21, 2024
Panel: Recission Demands 1st Made Before Policy Inception, No D&O Coverage Owed

ATLANTA — The 11th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on Nov. 20 held that an insurer has no duty to provide directors and officers liability coverage for investors' rescission demands against its insured because the claims were first made before the policy’s inception, agreeing with the lower court’s ultimate judgment in favor of the insurer but vacating and remanding for the lower court to amend the judgment to rest on a theory of exclusion and not recission.
November 20, 2024
Trump Corp. Sues Employment Practices Liability Insurer For Breach Of Contract

NEW YORK — The Trump Corp. sued it employment practices liability insurer in a New York federal court for breach of contract and seeks a declaration that the insurer has a duty to defend and indemnify it against a terminated employee’s lawsuit alleging unpaid overtime, age discrimination and breach of contract.
November 20, 2024
Insured Seeks Coverage For Disparagement Suit Brought By Maker Of COVID Test

PHILADELPHIA — An insured sued its commercial umbrella insurer in a Pennsylvania federal court seeking personal and advertising coverage for an underlying disparagement lawsuit alleging that it sent 19,000 letters to Chester County residents asserting that the COVID-19 test kits they used were unreliable.
November 20, 2024
Stipulation Approved In Bishop’s Row With Insurers Over Sex Abuse Suit Coverage

SAN FRANCISCO — A California federal judge filed a docket-only order granting the parties’ stipulation seeking to reschedule a case management conference in a suit filed by the Roman Catholic Bishop of Oakland, Calif., against numerous insurers and the California Insurance Guarantee Association (CIGA), which the plaintiff believes assumed responsibilities for its now-insolvent insurer, seeking a declaratory judgment stating that the plaintiff is entitled to a defense and indemnity regarding covered claims for the more than 300 suits filed against it related to alleged clergy sexual abuse.
November 20, 2024
Insurers: Auto Makers Failed To Recall Vehicles With Potential Deadly Defects

SANTA ANA, Calif.— Automobile and property insurers filed a subrogation lawsuit on behalf of their insureds against automotive manufacturers, telling a California court that the defendants “purposefully and knowingly failed to recall millions of their defective vehicles” that contained “potentially deadly defects” and, as a result, put “countless lives at risk from 2006 to date” and caused their insureds to suffer property damage including the loss of use of their vehicles.
November 19, 2024
Federal Class Action Complaint Accuses Auto Insurer, Law Firm Of Barratry

HOUSTON — Insureds filed a class action complaint in a Texas federal court against an automobile insurer and a law firm alleging that they committed barratry, conspiracy and statutory violations by illegally sharing the personal information of car accident victims for solicitation.
November 18, 2024
Philadelphia Eagles Ask Court To Reconsider Dismissal Of COVID-19 Coverage Suit

PHILADELPHIA — The owner and operator of the Philadelphia Eagles football organization moved for a Pennsylvania federal court to reconsider the dismissal of its action seeking a declaration as to coverage for its losses arising from the COVID-19 pandemic, asserting that the present lawsuit “is unlike any other that already has been decided and warrants proceeding past a motion to dismiss.”
November 18, 2024
Ohio Panel Affirms Ruling For Intervenor Insurer In Wrongful Death Suit

AKRON, Ohio — An Ohio appeals panel on Nov. 18 affirmed a lower court’s summary judgment ruling in favor of an insurer that intervened in a wrongful death lawsuit brought against its insured, finding that the insured’s intentional shooting that resulted in a fatality did not constitute an “occurrence” or “loss” to trigger coverage under his homeowners and umbrella insurance policies.
November 18, 2024
N.J. Panel Reverses Denial Of Broker’s Summary Judgment Motion In Malpractice Suit

TRENTON, N.J.—A New Jersey appeals panel reversed a lower court’s ruling that denied an insurance broker’s motion for summary judgment in a malpractice lawsuit, finding that a women’s health clinic and a doctor assigned to the plaintiffs their rights to pursue a broker malpractice claim without providing any evidence that they incurred a loss or had actual damages due to the broker’s acts or omissions.
November 15, 2024
W.Va. High Court Affirms Anti-Suit Injunction Order In Opioid Coverage Dispute

CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Almost three years to the day that the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals remanded an opioid epidemic coverage dispute for a lower court to consider the breadth of its anti-injunction order, the high court on Nov. 14 affirmed the lower court’s grant of a pharmaceutical distributor’s motion to enjoin insurers sued in West Virginia from pursuing parallel litigation against it in California after finding that, contrary to the lower court’s previous ruling, this order is not overly broad.
November 14, 2024
Calif. Panel: Defense Costs Not Restitutionary Damages In D&O Coverage Dispute

SAN JOSE, Calif. — A California appeals panel reversed a lower court’s ruling in favor of an excess directors and officers liability insurer in a breach of contract and bad faith lawsuit brought by an insured and its former chief financial officer, rejecting the insurer’s argument that the insured’s claim for underlying defense costs is the substantial equivalent of “restitutionary damages.”