This post was also written by Michael N. DiCanio.

In a recent decision Magistrate Judge David A. Baker rejected insurance company Daubert motion to exclude the expert testimony of an architect, a structural engineer, and an accountant designated in an insurance coverage case. Bray & Gillespie v. Hartford et al, Case No. 6:07-cv-00326 –DAB (M.D. Fla. April 20, 2009).

The defendants’ had moved to exclude the testimony of B&G’s accountant and his conclusions regarding the amount of business interruption loss suffered. They did not challenge the methodology of his calculations, but rather took issue with the fact that he allegedly used the wrong numbers and did not provide a period of restoration. Denying the motion, Judge Baker held that this was not a proper ground for excluding the testimony under Daubert, see Quiet Technology, 326 F.3d at 1345-46 (using incorrect numbers in a reliable formula is not grounds for exclusion), and held that the particular issue of limiting the damage calculation with respect to a period of restoration is a matter of factual and legal dispute in this case.Continue Reading Insurers Denied De Facto Win After Losing Daubert Motion

On April 22 , 2009, the Appellate Division of the New Jersey Superior Court published its March 9, 2009 opinion holding that the massive Aug. 13, 2003 electrical blackout of the eastern United States and portions of Canada inflicted “property damage” sufficient to support a property insurance claim. The court held that the loss of functionality that resulted when protective safety equipment shut down the power grid and caused the blackout of August 2003 qualified as “physical damage” for property insurance purposes. See Wakefern Food Corporation v. Liberty Mutual Fire Insurance Company, No. A-2010-07T3 slip op (March 9, 2009). As a result, insurers were not entitled to summary judgment in their favor on Wakefern’s claims for food spoilage and business interruption at their supermarkets resulting from the blackout.
Continue Reading 2003 Blackout Held to Involve ‘Property Damage’ Sufficient to Support Claim Under Property Policy