On March 7, 2025, the California Department of Insurance issued Bulletin 2025-7, which provides crucial guidance on the handling of smoke damage claims for properties affected by the Los Angeles wildfires. This bulletin clarifies the Department’s position on insurance coverage for smoke damage and outlines the expectations for insurers in processing these claims. The bulletin
Introduction
Judge Corley’s (N.D. Cal.) January 10, 2025 decision in Bottega, LLC v. National Surety Corporation provides guidance for commercial policyholders who have closed down their businesses due to wildfires, smoke, ash and soot that is especially timely given the ongoing wildfires in Southern California. The decision highlights the complexities of business interruption insurance claims, distinguishes
Reed Smith represented Tyson International Company Limited in obtaining a permanent anti-suit injunction against London market reinsurer, GIC Re, and successfully resisting the reinsurer’s application for a stay under section 9 of the Arbitration Act 1996. The judgment was handed down on 21 January 2025, and you can read it in full here: Tyson International
In the midst of the devastating and ongoing Los Angeles wildfires, on January 9, 2025, Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara issued the 2025 Annual Notice on behalf of the California Department of Insurance (DOI). The 2025 Annual Notice highlights what Commissioner Lara describes as “the most significant California laws pertaining to property insurance policies, including those
The wildfires in Los Angeles, including the Palisades, Eaton, Hurst, and Runyon Canyon fires, are fast-moving, destructive, and scary. As of the evening of January 8, 2025, they have caused extensive damage and led to the evacuation of more than 100,000 residents. The Palisades Fire has burned 18 square miles, the Eaton Fire 16.5 square
Earlier this year, in Gregory v. Safeco Insurance Co., the Supreme Court of Colorado addressed the question whether, under Colorado law, the notice-prejudice rule should apply to first-party property insurance claims under occurrence-based, homeowners’ insurance policies. 545 P.3d 942 (Colo. 2024). In a thoughtful and lengthy opinion, the Supreme Court adopted the rule by