Tag Archives: Insurance Recovery
War exclusion: changing battlefields and coverage implications
In early February of this year, we wrote about a New Jersey court’s recent decision in Merck & Co., Inc. et al. v. Ace American Ins. Co. et al., Case No. UNN-L-2682-18 (N.J. Sup. Ct.) regarding the applicability of a “war exclusion” for acts of cyberwarfare. Shortly thereafter, the Russian invasion of Ukraine once again … Continue Reading
Are your crypto risks insured? Look at D&O and cyber policies first
Evidenced by its $1.29 trillion market cap, (CoinMarketCap, May 17, 2022) interest in cryptocurrency has skyrocketed in recent years (Haar, 2022). Indeed, as of April 2, 2022, the cryptocurrency market was larger than Italy’s GDP, the eighth largest in the world (Adams and Walker, 2022). Of course, with more interest and value comes more risk, … Continue Reading
Reading insurance policies: context is key
A fundamental canon of construction used to interpret statutes and contracts is noscitur a sociis, which translates to “it is known by the company it keeps.” In Virginia v. Tennessee, 148 U.S. 503, 519 (1893), the United States Supreme Court explained that “the meaning of a term may be enlarged or restrained by reference to … Continue Reading
Florida: the time to move for attorney’s fees post-appraisal
Most residential property policies provide for an “appraisal” as an alternative dispute resolution mechanism when the insurer concedes coverage for a loss in whole or part, but the amount of the loss is disputed. The resulting appraisal award is binding on the parties absent certain limited grounds for challenging the award or the insurer’s obligation … Continue Reading
Policyholders grapple with strategies for responding to New York’s new insurance disclosure law
Insurance disclosure requirements have just become far more complex and onerous for parties that face litigation in New York state courts. In our January article (updated in February), we discussed the particulars of New York’s new Comprehensive Insurance Disclosure Act as it stood when the legislation was signed into law in late December 2021 and as … Continue Reading
Recent opinions provide support for insureds seeking coverage for BIPA claims
Since the Illinois Supreme Court’s ruling that class actions alleging violations of the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (“BIPA”) trigger general liability coverage, the focus of BIPA coverage litigation has shifted to the applicability of three exclusions often found in general liability policies: (1) the Employment Related Practices exclusion, (2) the Violation of Statutes exclusion, … Continue Reading
Guaranteed Rate v. Ace American Insurance – a victory for policyholders seeking coverage for government investigations
Government investigations by SEC, DOJ, and state attorney generals are a significant source of exposure for companies and their directors and officers. Companies can spend millions of dollars responding to a government subpoena or investigative demand. The broadly worded demands for information or testimony typically require extensive searches through mountains of paper documents and electronically … Continue Reading
D&O insurance to counter ESG litigation – new issues for insurers and policyholders
Strong environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) business policies are critical to address the fluctuating, unprecedented risks in this changing climate. Any company planning to expand and thrive in the next few decades must evaluate its collective conscientiousness for social and environmental factors, including preparing for the social and market upheavals resulting from greenhouse gas … Continue Reading
“Illinois’ ‘targeted tender’ rule – a powerful strategy for insureds to select and deselect triggered policies to maximize coverage
Businesses with liability insurance coverage governed by Illinois law should be mindful to take advantage of Illinois’ “targeted tender” rule, which provides insureds a unique strategy for maximizing insurance recoveries for claims triggering multiple different policies. This rule recognizes an insured’s right to “target tender” one or more concurrent insurance policies from a group of … Continue Reading
Responding to a cyber-related business interruption: best practices
One of the top issues facing business today is the risk of business interruption resulting from a cyber-related attack. Regardless of the form of attack – ransomware, denial of service, data theft, or other form of malware – any resulting failure of an organization’s network systems can have severe consequences, financial and otherwise. These may … Continue Reading
“Mind the gap”: Guarding against unintended gaps in coverages
As a recent decision from the Eleventh Circuit highlights, when purchasing insurance for workplace bodily injuries, policyholders need to be mindful of how all of their policies fit together, keeping an eye out for policy language that insurers may exploit to manufacture unexpected and unintended gaps in coverage. Covering the workplace Typically, employers seek three … Continue Reading
D&O insurance for the cannabis industry
Cannabis and the D&O market in 2022 In the early days of 2022, cannabis companies and investors have cause for guarded optimism. The once very real specter of federal intervention in the burgeoning industry seems to have faded into the background as successive presidential administrations have declined to push the issue, and now, all but … Continue Reading
NY’s new comprehensive insurance disclosure law is in flux
On December 31, New York’s Governor Kathy Hochul signed into law a change to the insurance disclosure requirements that applies to all civil cases filed in New York state’s courts. CPLR section 3101(f). The new statute by its terms applies to both pending cases and new filings, with continuing disclosure obligations through appeals, and places … Continue Reading
New York’s exception allowing attorney’s fees for policyholders
An often-overlooked 2020 New York federal court decision allows policyholders to potentially recover attorneys’ fees when they bring a declaratory judgment action against an insurance company that has made litigation inevitable by resisting its duty to defend. In Houston Casualty Company v. Prosight Specialty Insurance Company, 462 F. Supp. 3d 443, 444 (S.D.N.Y. 2020), the … Continue Reading
Music to my ears: Coverage considerations for musical instrument insurance (Part II of II)
Part II: exclusions, considerations, filing a claim, and tips This is the second part of a two-part blog series titled, “Music to my ears: Insurance coverage for musical instruments”. Part I covers policy options. Professional and amateur musicians alike can purchase insurance to cover their instruments. Musical instrument policies are subject to exclusions and requirements, … Continue Reading
Music to my ears: Coverage considerations for musical instrument insurance (Part I of II)
Part I: Policy options This is the first part of a two-part blog series titled, “Music to my ears: Insurance coverage for musical instruments”. Part II covers exclusions, considerations, filing a claim, and tips. Musical instruments can cost significant sums running from a few hundred or thousand dollars to a million dollars or more. And … Continue Reading
