9th Circuit Certifies Burden Of Proof Question For Defects Insurance Coverage Case

Mealey's (July 6, 2020, 3:52 PM EDT) -- SAN FRANCISCO — In a construction defects insurance coverage dispute, the Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on July 2 asked the Nevada Supreme Court for guidance on whether an insurer or an insured has the burden of proving the applicability of an exception to a policy exclusion and whether that party can rely on extrinsic evidence, and if so, whether only extrinsic evidence available at the time the insured tendered the defense of the lawsuit to the insurer is relevant for proving the exception (Zurich American Insurance Co., et al. v. Ironshore Specialty Insurance Company, No. 18-16937, 9th Cir., 2020 U.S. App. LEXIS 20815)....