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Mealey's Insurance Pleadings

  • October 03, 2024

    Insurer Calls Motion ‘Self-Serving’ In $2M Life Policies Misrepresentation Row

    MACON, Ga. —  Pacific Life Insurance Co. filed a response brief in a Georgia federal court asking the court to deny a motion in limine filed by the beneficiary of two $1 million life insurance policies who is seeking to exclude evidence that the insurer would have issued the policies at a different premium had it known of the policy application misrepresentations.

  • October 02, 2024

    Professional Insurer, Contractor Settle Cross-Claims In Mold Damage Coverage Suit

    LAS VEGAS — A professional liability insurer and a contractor filed a notice in a Nevada federal court indicating that they have settled their cross-claims in a mold and moisture damage coverage dispute.

  • October 01, 2024

    Insurer Seeks High Court’s Review Of 4th Circuit’s Ruling In Chemical Exposure Suit

    WASHINGTON D.C. — Review of a Fourth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals’ ruling that an insurer has a duty to defend an insured for an underlying chemical exposure suit is warranted because the Fourth Circuit incorrectly determined that a duty to defend exists even though the underlying complaint fails to assert any covered claims, an insurer says in a petition for a writ of certiorari filed in the U.S. Supreme Court.

  • October 01, 2024

    Insurer Can Pursue Subrogation Against Engineering Firm, Illinois High Court Rules

    SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — The Illinois Supreme Court affirmed an appeal court’s reversal of a lower court’s grant of summary judgment to an engineering firm in a builders risk insurer’s suit seeking subrogation damages for the flooding of a Chicago college building under construction, agreeing with the appeals court that the trial court erred in finding that the insurer does not meet the prerequisites for equitable subrogation and concluding that none of the facts or provisions barred the insurer’s subrogation action against the engineer.

  • September 30, 2024

    Contractor Says Coverage Is Owed For Damages To Entirety Of Building

    CINCINNATI — A federal district court erred in refusing to find that coverage is owed for damages to the entirety of a building as a result of the collapse of some of the bricks from one of the building’s walls, the contractor says in an appellant reply brief filed in the Sixth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals.

  • September 27, 2024

    Farmers, USDA Spar Over Decision Regulators Made On Remand Of Crop Insurance Row

    BAY CITY, Mich. — Farmers and federal regulators are again sparring in a Michigan federal court over a crop insurance dispute involving a dry-bean revenue endorsement (DBRE), with issues of contention now including whether the court retains jurisdiction after having awarded attorney fees under the Equal Access to Justice Act (EAJA) and whether regulators followed the court’s directions on remand.

  • September 25, 2024

    Insurers File Claims In Ship Owner’s Suit Seeking Exoneration For Bridge Collapse

    BALTIMORE — New York Marine and General Insurance Co. and Certain Underwriters at Lloyd’s of London, Axis Syndicate 1686, on Sept. 24 became the fifth and sixth insurers to file a claim and answer to a petition for exoneration from or limitation of liability filed by the owner and technical manager of the ship that allided with and destroyed the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore on March 26.

  • September 25, 2024

    Couple Urges 5th Circuit To Say Ross Remains Its Standard For Insurance Cases

    NEW ORLEANS — Asking the Fifth Circuit U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to reverse a U.S. Tax Court ruling concerning what they unsuccessfully argued were microcaptive insurance arrangements entitled to tax benefits, appellants contend in their opening brief that the Internal Revenue Service and Tax Court “restricted the meaning of the term ‘insurance’ contrary to Fifth Circuit and Supreme Court precedent.”

  • September 20, 2024

    Insured’s Assignees Ask 11th Circuit To Vacate No Coverage Ruling

    ATLANTA — Assignees of an accounting services provider insured asked the 11th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals to vacate its ruling that affirmed a lower federal court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of a professional liability insurer in their breach of contract lawsuit, asking the circuit court to reaffirm “the principle that only the New Jersey Supreme Court has the right to define the grammatical constructions that create the official natural readings of contracts and statutes in its state.”

  • September 20, 2024

    Judge: CGL Insurer Owes Defense For Sex Trafficking Claims Against Hotel Insured

    ATLANTA — A federal judge in Atlanta granted a hotel operator insured’s motion to dismiss a commercial general liability insurer’s complaint to the extent that the insurer seeks a declaration that it has no duty to defend against an underlying lawsuit alleging that the insured did not uphold its duty of care concerning the safety of its hotel and hotel guests by failing to prevent and respond to evidence of sex trafficking, rejecting the insurer’s argument that the policy’s “Abuse or Molestation” and “Assault or Battery” endorsements bar coverage.

  • September 19, 2024

    Interpretation Of ‘Direct Physical Loss’ Phrase Was Erroneous, Building Owner Says

    CINCINNATI — A district court erred in relying on a definition of the term “direct physical loss” as used in a prior opinion issued by the Sixth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals when it determined that the collapse of some bricks from a wall within a building did not cause any damage to the wall or building as a whole, the building owner maintains in a Sept. 18 appellant reply brief filed in the Sixth Circuit.

  • September 19, 2024

    U.S. Refutes Exoneration Petition Of Owner Of Ship That Destroyed Baltimore Bridge

    BALTIMORE — The United States of America on Sept. 18 filed a claim and answer to a petition for exoneration from or limitation of liability filed by the owner and technical manager of the ship that allided with and destroyed the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore on March 26, arguing that the petitioners “cut corners in ways that risked lives and infrastructure” and “must be held fully accountable for the catastrophic harm they caused, and punitive damages should be imposed to deter such misconduct.”

  • September 18, 2024

    Status Conference Sought In Arbitration Awards Row In Reinsurance Dispute

    NEW YORK — Months after briefing concluded on pending cross-petitions in an arbitration awards dispute involving attorney fees and whether there was a probability or a possibility of an excess judgment in the underlying case, a reinsurer on Sept. 17 asked a New York federal court for “a status conference to determine whether the parties may supply the Court with any additional materials to resolve this cross-petition.”

  • September 18, 2024

    No Coverage Afforded For Asbestos Suits Under Exposure Trigger Theory, Insurers Say

    FORT WORTH, Texas — Two insurers maintain in reply briefs filed in Texas federal court that summary judgment in their favor in an asbestos coverage suit is warranted because coverage under their policies is barred under an exposure trigger of coverage theory, which they say applies pursuant to a Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals’ decision on the trigger of coverage issue.

  • September 18, 2024

    Class Action Alleges Insurance Provider Negligently Failed To Prevent Data Breach

    NEW YORK —A class action complaint was filed in a New York federal court against a financial organization that offers insurance, retirement and investment services primarily to teachers, alleging that the defendant failed to prevent a May 2023 data breach that resulted in the theft of the personally identifiable information (PII) of its current and former clients.

  • September 17, 2024

    Parties, 10 Amici Weigh In On Economic Substance Doctrine In Microcaptive Case

    WASHINGTON, D.C. — Ten amicus curiae briefs regarding the “economic substance doctrine” have been filed at the invitation of a U.S. Tax Court judge who is presiding over consolidated cases involving purported microcaptive insurance companies and considering the remaining issue of accuracy-related penalties.

  • September 17, 2024

    Insured Says District Court Erred In Interpreting Radioactive Materials Exclusion

    CHICAGO — A district court erred in finding that no coverage is owed by insurers pursuant to the policies’ radioactive materials exclusion for an underlying suit seeking damages for bodily injuries caused by exposure to electromagnetic (EMF) radiation from the insured’s electric transformers because a reasonable insured would interpret the exclusion as providing coverage for the EMF exposure claims, the insured maintains in an appellant brief filed in the Seventh Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals.

  • September 17, 2024

    Review Of Ruling In Benzene Suit Not Warranted, Insured Says In Response Brief

    AUSTIN, Texas — Review of a Texas appellate court’s finding that a policy’s arbitration provision applies only to disputes arising under the insurance policy and not to disputes arising under a settlement pertaining to benzene-related claims filed against the insured is not warranted because the appellate court properly found that the settlement agreement’s forum-selection clause requires disputes over the settlement agreement to be resolved in court, the insured says in response to the insurer’s petition for review filed in the Texas Supreme Court.

  • September 16, 2024

    Bump-Up Exclusion Unambiguously Bars Coverage, Insurers Argue To 4th Circuit

    RICHMOND, Va. — Asserting that an appellant insured “has it backward,” insurers asked the Fourth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals to affirm a lower federal court’s holding that a “bump-up” exclusion unambiguously precludes directors and officers liability insurance coverage for the $90 million settlement of two underlying lawsuits arising from a 2015 merger.

  • September 11, 2024

    Judge Dismisses $1M Crime Coverage Suit Following Stipulation By Law Firm, Insurer

    FLINT, Mich. — Following a stipulation of dismissal by the parties, a federal judge in Michigan dismissed with prejudice a law firm insured’s breach of contract and bad faith lawsuit alleging that its insurer owed $1 million in crime coverage for its $1,602,107.98 in total losses stemming from a fraudulent funds transfer.

  • September 11, 2024

    Insurer Dismisses Suit To Void Policy, Deny Coverage For Code Violation Fraud

    LOS ANGELES — A commercial insurer, without explanation, dismissed without prejudice its suit against its insured limited liability company in a California federal court seeking rescission of the insured’s policy and a declaration that the insurer is not obligated to pay for fire damage to the property due to the insured’s alleged material misrepresentations in the policy application regarding the absence of safety code violations and liens on the property when an investigation revealed otherwise.

  • September 10, 2024

    Insurer Says Potential For Coverage Of Asbestos Suits Exists Under Other Policies

    FORT WORTH, Texas — In response to motions for summary judgment in Texas federal court, an insurer claims that policies issued by two other insurers should be found to afford coverage for underlying asbestos bodily injury suits filed against a mutual insured because some of the underlying claims potentially allege exposure during the insurers’ policy periods.

  • September 05, 2024

    Reinsurer Files Suit Over TPA’s Alleged Mishandling Of Insurance Claims

    BILLINGS, Mont. — Seeking declaratory judgment and damages for claims that it alleges were mishandled and misallocated, a Bermuda-based reinsurer sued an insurer and third-party administrator (TPA) in Montana federal court.

  • September 05, 2024

    Citing FAA, Insurer Raises Third-Party Subpoena Prehearing Issue In Federal Court

    DETROIT — An insurer has petitioned a Michigan federal court to compel compliance with third-party subpoenas for prehearing discovery depositions in a $950,742.64 dispute over a medical excess reinsurance agreement that has gone to arbitration.

  • September 04, 2024

    Settlement Reached With 2nd Insurer In Faulty Construction Coverage Dispute

    DENVER — One month after a plaintiff insurer and one of the defendant insurers filed a joint notice of settlement in a Colorado federal court in a dispute over coverage for a construction company accused of causing damages to homes through faulty construction, the plaintiff insurer filed another notice indicating that it has reached a settlement with the last remaining insurer defendant.