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

Mealey's Emerging Insurance Disputes

October 09, 2023
5th Circuit Grants Panel Rehearing, Remands To Stay Indemnification Issue

NEW ORLEANS — Granting insureds and underlying claimants’ joint petition for panel rehearing, the Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on Oct. 6 held that determination of a commercial property insurer’s duty to indemnify under one policy should be deferred pending final resolution of an underlying Texas action alleging that the strip club insureds used 16 professional models’ likeness for advertising campaigns without their consent.
October 06, 2023
IP Exclusion Bars Coverage For Misappropriation Of Likeness Claim, Panel Affirms

LOS ANGELES — A California appeals panel on Oct. 5 affirmed a lower court’s summary judgment ruling in favor of a commercial general liability insurer in its declaratory judgment lawsuit disputing coverage for a lawsuit brought against its insured, finding that the policy’s intellectual property exclusion bars coverage for the underlying misappropriation of likeness claim.
October 06, 2023
Hotel Seeks Dismissal Of Insurer’s Suit Disputing Coverage For Trafficking Claims

ATLANTA — Moving to dismiss an insurer’s complaint, an insured hotel operator argues in Georgia federal court that a commercial general liability insurance policy’s “Abuse or Molestation” and “Assault or Battery” endorsements are inapplicable to an underlying lawsuit alleging that it 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.
October 06, 2023
5th Circuit Remands Coverage Suit Over $1M Settlement Of Canceled Music Festival

NEW ORLEANS — The Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on Oct. 5 remanded an insured’s lawsuit seeking coverage for an underlying $1 million class action settlement arising from its refusal to refund ticket sales for the South by Southwest festival that was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic, finding that it cannot reach the merits of the appeal because the parties have not established diversity of citizenship.
October 05, 2023
Waiver Provision Bars Insurer’s Equitable Subrogation Claim, California Panel Says

LOS ANGELES — A California appeals panel affirmed a lower court’s summary judgment ruling in favor of Southern California Edison Co. (SCE) in an insurer’s equitable subrogation lawsuit alleging that a wildfire that resulted in $25 million in paid claims was the sole result of SCE’s negligence, finding that the subcontract’s waiver provision barred the insurer’s claims.
October 04, 2023
Insurer Asks 8th Circuit To Reconsider Remand Of Coronavirus Coverage Suit

ST. LOUIS — An insurer seeks rehearing or rehearing en banc of the Eighth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals ruling that reversed and remanded a coronavirus coverage lawsuit for an Iowa federal court to determine whether federal diversity jurisdiction exists, arguing that the panel “expressly rejected the principle of federal law that parties are bound by their concessions of jurisdictional facts.”
October 04, 2023
Renewed Emergency Motions To Stay Denied In Dispute Over Boy Scouts’ Plan

WILMINGTON, Del. — A federal judge in Delaware on Oct. 3 again denied certain insurers’ and two sets of abuse claimants’ emergency motions for a stay pending appeal of a March 27 ruling affirming a bankruptcy judge’s confirmation of the Boy Scouts of America’s third modified, fifth amended Chapter 11 reorganization plan, which contemplates the creation of a settlement trust to “assume liability for all Abuse Claims.”
October 04, 2023
Panel: Fact Issues Warrant Reversal Of Summary Judgment In Insurer’s Favor

CHICAGO — An Illinois appeals panel reversed and remanded a lower court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of a homeowners insurer in a coverage dispute arising from an underlying negligence lawsuit, finding that there are genuine issues of material fact as to whether the insurer has a duty to defend.
October 04, 2023
7th Circuit: Court Erred In Refusing To Remand Class Action Against Insurer

CHICAGO — The Seventh Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals held that a class action challenging an insurer’s practices fits within the internal-affairs and home-state controversy exceptions to the Class Action Fairness Act (CAFA), reversing a lower federal court’s denial of the insured’s motion to remand.
October 03, 2023
California Panel Reverses Ruling In Insurers’ Favor In Coronavirus Coverage Suit

LOS ANGELES — A California appeals panel on Oct. 2 reversed and remanded a lower court’s order granting a group of insurers’ motion for judgment on the pleadings in a real estate investment firm’s coronavirus coverage dispute, rejecting the insurers’ argument that the pollution exclusion barred coverage.
October 03, 2023
Parties Reach Settlement In Coverage Dispute Over Fraudulent Wire Transfer

BURLINGTON, Vt. — A federal judge in Vermont granted a professional liability insurer and a law firm insured’s joint report of settlement and joint motion for extension of time to file a joint discovery plan in a dispute over coverage for an underlying state court lawsuit seeking $459,411.77 from the insured for losses arising from a fraudulent wire transfer.
October 02, 2023
COMMENTARY: Illusory Insurance Policy Coverage

By Robert M. Hall
October 02, 2023
Federal Judge Rules For Insurer In Landlord’s Coronavirus Coverage Suit

NEW YORK — A federal judge in New York on Sept. 29 granted a commercial property insurer’s motion for summary judgment in a coronavirus coverage suit, noting that the Second Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals has held in 11012 Holdings, Inc. v. Sentinel Ins. Co. that, pursuant to New York law, the unambiguous words “physical loss or damage” “require actual physical loss of or damage to the insured's property.”
October 02, 2023
Panel: Evidence Supports Jury Verdict That Insured Not Owed Additional Benefits

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A California appeals panel held that “substantial evidence” supports a jury verdict that an insured is not entitled to additional compensation for her loss of personal property, affirming a lower court’s denial of the insured’s four post-verdict motions in a homeowners coverage dispute arising from alleged theft and property damage.
September 29, 2023
Panel: Hotel Owed Coverage For Negligence Suit Prompted By Secret Recording Of Guest

ATLANTA — The 11th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on Sept. 28 affirmed a federal court’s “well-reasoned” ruling that insurers have a duty to defend their hotel insured against an underlying negligence, premises and vicarious liability lawsuit alleging that the insured’s employee secretly recorded a hotel guest while she was showering, finding that the insurers failed to establish that the underlying lawsuit falls outside their policy coverage or that an exclusion barred coverage.
September 29, 2023
Medical Records Request Exclusion Bars Coverage For Malpractice Suit, Judge Rules

GREENBELT, Md. — A federal judge in Maryland granted a professional liability insurer’s motion for judgment on the pleadings in its lawsuit seeking a declaration that it has no duty to defend or indemnify its doctor insured for an underlying medical malpractice lawsuit after finding that the policy’s medical records request exclusion barred coverage but denied a third-party defendant professional liability insurer’s motion to dismiss the insured’s coverage claims.
September 28, 2023
Panel: Record Evidence Insufficient To Allow Punitive Damages Against Insurer

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — A Florida appeals panel on Sept. 27 held that a lower court erred in granting residential community residents’ motions to amend their counterclaims to seek punitive damages against a fellow resident, his insurer and the insurer’s in-house counsel, reversing and remanding for the lower court to vacate its nonfinal orders granting amendment in a lawsuit arising from “hate mail” letters.
September 28, 2023
Panel: Insured Fails To Satisfy Delaware’s Long-Arm Statute In COVID-19 Dispute

PHILADELPHIA — The Third Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on Sept. 27 affirmed a lower federal court’s dismissal of a regional sports television network insured’s breach of contract and declaratory judgment lawsuit seeking coverage for its losses arising from the coronavirus pandemic, rejecting the insured’s argument that Delaware’s long-arm statute subsection (c)(1) confers personal jurisdiction over the insurer.
September 26, 2023
Insurer: Ruling ‘Sharply Conflicts’ With Dupree, Warrants High Court Review

WASHINGTON, D.C. — An insurer asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review the 11th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals’ finding that there is enough evidence for a jury to reasonably conclude that it acted in bad faith because it delayed acting on its duty to investigate and settle the underlying worker injury claim, asserting that the appeals court’s holding “sharply conflicts” with the high court’s recent ruling in Dupree v. Younger and warrants grant of its petition for writ of certiorari, vacatur of the lower court’s judgment and remand for further consideration.
September 26, 2023
Panel Affirms Demurrer In Entertainment Conglomerate’s Coronavirus Coverage Suit

LOS ANGELES — A California appeals panel affirmed a lower court’s ruling that sustained commercial property insurers’ demurer to an entertainment conglomerate insured’s complaint seeking coverage for its economic losses arising from the coronavirus, finding that, until the U.S. Supreme Court provides guidance in pending cases, it sides with the vast majority of courts that have ruled that direct physical loss or damage to property is a prerequisite for coverage.
September 25, 2023
Illinois Panel Affirms Ruling In Insurers’ Favor In Coronavirus Coverage Suit

CHICAGO — An Illinois panel on Sept. 22 affirmed a lower court’s grant of commercial property insurers’ motion to dismiss an insured’s lawsuit seeking coverage for its business income losses and extra expenses arising from the coronavirus, finding that no coverage was triggered because the insured failed to demonstrate that it incurred damage of a physical nature.
September 25, 2023
Default Judgments Against Insurer In Contamination Suit Must Be Reinstated

SEATTLE — A trial court erred in reversing default judgments entered for homeowners who sought damages from their homeowners insurer for the contamination of their home with methamphetamine residue because the homeowners insurer was properly served under Washington law, the Division I Washington Court of Appeals said.
September 25, 2023
Delaware Judge: Fact Issues Preclude Summary Judgment As To Premium Exclusion

WILMINGTON, Del. — A Delaware judge granted an insured’s motion for summary judgment as to claim reserves and underwriting exclusions in a professional liability coverage dispute but found that genuine issues of material fact preclude summary judgment as to the premium exclusion.
September 25, 2023
Judge: Harmful Acts Alleged Against Insureds’ Son Are Not ‘Occurrence’ Under Policy

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — A federal judge in New York held that the alleged intentionally harmful acts of insureds’ infant son fail to constitute an “occurrence” to trigger coverage under an insurance policy, granting the homeowners insurer’s motions for summary judgment and for a default judgment.
September 22, 2023
11th Circuit Affirms No Coverage Ruling In Dispute Over $54M Arbitration Award

ATLANTA — The 11th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals affirmed a lower federal court’s summary judgment ruling in favor of primary and excess insurers in a coverage dispute over a $54 million arbitration award entered against their additional insureds in a lawsuit brought by residents of an apartment complex that provided Section 8 housing for disabled and elderly individuals, finding that the additional insureds failed to comply with their duties under the policies.