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Specialty Lines

  • March 28, 2025

    AIG Unit Wins No-Defense Ruling For NY Ghost Gun Suits

    An AIG unit has no duty to defend a Washington-state-based firearms retailer in three underlying lawsuits accusing the retailer of knowingly selling unfinished components that could be used to assemble what are commonly known as ghost guns, a New York federal court ruled, finding the complaints do not allege accidental conduct.

  • March 28, 2025

    LA Zoo Org. Not Covered In City Contract Row, Insurer Says

    An insurer has no duty to defend or indemnify the Los Angeles Zoo's nonprofit arm in a contractual dispute brought by the city, the carrier told a California federal court, saying claims arising out of a breach of contract or related to the association's professional services are excluded.

  • March 28, 2025

    Insurer Denied Early Win In $6.1M Cargo Loss Coverage Suit

    A New York federal judge said there was too much controversy to hand an early win to a stone company in its case seeking coverage of a more than $6.1 million loss over marble destroyed by a snail infestation. 

  • March 27, 2025

    P&C Insurers Return To Profits Amid Economic Uncertainty

    Property and casualty insurers collected record-setting profits in 2024, but macroeconomic conditions and other factors threaten to stymie their growth, says a broker and author of a recent report. Here, °µÍø½ûÇø speaks to Vince Gaffigan about what drove growth, the looming risks ranging from inflation to catastrophic weather events, and what brokers and insureds should do to ready themselves against an array of uncertainties.

  • March 27, 2025

    PNC's $106M Coverage Loss Cautionary Tale For Acquisitions

    A recent Third Circuit ruling rejecting PNC Bank's more than $100 million coverage bid for an underlying judgment against a subsidiary highlights a small but potentially impactful provision precluding coverage for wrongful acts that occur prior to an acquisition.

  • March 27, 2025

    Amid New Political Reality, NAIC Says No Fed Insurance Office

    State insurance regulators made a significant push to limit perceived federal intrusion into their authority last week when their primary deliberative body called for the abolition of a U.S. Treasury office tasked with identifying and reporting on risks to the industry.

  • March 27, 2025

    Insurer Can't Escape Auto Co.'s $50M COVID Coverage Suit

    An insurer can't escape an auto parts manufacturer's suit seeking $50 million in coverage for COVID-19-related losses, a North Carolina federal court ruled, saying the manufacturer sufficiently alleged that its losses are covered under the policy's communicable disease endorsement.

  • March 27, 2025

    Coverage Row Over OpenText Merger Now Moot, Judge Says

    A Michigan federal court tossed on Thursday an insurer's lawsuit seeking a declaration that it had no duty to indemnify a shareholder class action stemming from Covisint's 2017 merger with software company OpenText, finding the dispute is now moot because the insurer's coverage limit has already been exhausted.

  • March 27, 2025

    Insurance Litigation Week In Review

    An insurer will pay nearly $1 million to resolve claims it failed to protect drivers' data, Michigan's top court will take up two car insurance appeals, the Fifth Circuit was asked to set precedent with an assault coverage ruling and PNC Bank NA can't get coverage for a more than $106 million judgment. Here, °µÍø½ûÇø takes a look at the past week's top insurance news.

  • March 27, 2025

    NC Biz Court Limits Testimony In Smithfield Coverage Trial

    A North Carolina business court judge refused to exclude expert witnesses from either side of an insurance coverage dispute between Smithfield Foods Inc. and a Chubb subsidiary, but did limit their testimony for the firms' upcoming April trial on how much the insurer owes for breaching its duty to defend.

  • March 27, 2025

    $6.3M Default Against Cannabis Co. Not Covered, Insurer Says

    An insurer said it doesn't owe coverage for a $6.3 million default judgment entered against a medical cannabis testing company related to its fraudulent operations, telling a Mississippi federal court that the company failed to provide notice of various developments in an underlying government investigation and the subsequent lawsuit.

  • March 26, 2025

    Sotomayor Urges Caution On Nondelegation Doctrine Revamp

    U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor cautioned her colleagues during oral arguments Wednesday against using a challenge to the Federal Communications Commission's administration of a broadband subsidy program as a way to resurrect the long-dormant nondelegation doctrine. Several conservative justices, however, seemed willing to disregard that admonition.

  • March 26, 2025

    Illinois Supreme Court Denies Co.'s BIPA Coverage Appeal

    The Illinois Supreme Court left intact an intermediate appellate panel's decision relieving two Liberty Mutual units of covering a home decor company in its underlying dispute with employees who said its timekeeping practices are in violation of the state's biometric data privacy law.

  • March 25, 2025

    Baltimore Bridge Collapse: One Year Later

    Federal accident investigators' recent determination that Maryland could've done more to protect Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge from a devastating collapse may complicate the sprawling legal battle over liability and damages in the year since a cargo ship struck the bridge and crippled a major East Coast transportation hub.

  • March 25, 2025

    Insurers Claim 4th Circ. Must Revisit Ruling For Aluminum Co.

    Insurers in a coverage cap dispute with an aluminum company have asked the Fourth Circuit to reconsider an opinion holding that an ambiguous policy provision must be construed in the company's favor, calling it contrary to South Carolina law.

  • March 25, 2025

    Insurance Mogul Seeks To Overturn $122M Contempt Order

    A convicted billionaire embroiled in lawsuits over the demise of his insurance empire wants out of a nine-figure contempt order, telling the North Carolina Court of Appeals that neither he nor his company has the ability to pay more than $122 million to purge the contempt.

  • March 24, 2025

    Justices Won't Hear Insurance Dispute Over Claim Timeliness

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday rejected a California woman's bid to certify questions to Massachusetts' top court about when exactly an insurer must show it was prejudiced by an insured's late claim notice, letting stand a First Circuit decision that also refused to certify such questions.

  • March 24, 2025

    Final OK Sought For $3M In Bail Bond Antitrust Deals

    A proposed class alleging they overpaid for bail bonds thanks to a price-fixing conspiracy is asking a California federal court to approve $3 million in settlements inked with two of the entities.

  • March 24, 2025

    9th Circ. Won't Revive Talent Agency's Litigation Coverage Bid

    United Talent Agency isn't entitled to coverage from Markel American Insurance Co. in an underlying lawsuit alleging the talent company poached a rival's clients, the Ninth Circuit has said, finding the underlying claims involved "willful acts" by United Talent that block coverage under the California Insurance Code.

  • March 24, 2025

    3rd Circ. Upholds No-Coverage Ruling For PNC's $106M Loss

    PNC Bank NA can't get coverage for a more than $106 million judgment it paid over underlying claims that a bank PNC acquired had mismanaged certain trust accounts, the Third Circuit ruled, finding a provision that barred coverage for wrongful acts occurring before an acquisition was applicable.

  • March 24, 2025

    Justices Won't Review Missing Comma Coverage Ruling

    The U.S. Supreme Court won't review an Eleventh Circuit decision that a missing comma in a Chubb unit's professional services policy did not alter its clear and unambiguous meaning excluding coverage for a food service company's audit, according to an order list Monday.

  • March 20, 2025

    Mining Pollution Suit Paused Amid Appeal In Another Case

    A federal judge in West Virginia didn't issue an injunction but instead stayed one case alleging coal mining pollution brought by county entities against energy companies and their insurers after the numerous carriers argued the litigation was redundant.

  • March 20, 2025

    State Farm's Calif. Rate Request Exemplifies Long Negotiation

    California regulators' provisional approval of State Farm's premium increase request following the Los Angeles fires is another step forward in an insurance reform process that insurance pros view as a negotiation that has been protracted to the detriment of consumers.

  • March 20, 2025

    Opioid Orders Weigh Insurers' Role In Fighting Societal Harm

    Rulings barring supermarket chain Publix and drugmaker Mallinckrodt from obtaining coverage for underlying opioid claims have contributed to insurers' continued success in defining their obligations to these claims while raising the question of whether insurance is intended to help protect against widespread societal harm.

  • March 20, 2025

    Bottler's Wine Contamination Coverage Bid Tossed For Good

    A Nationwide unit prevailed again in getting a wine bottling company's coverage action thrown out, successfully arguing to a California federal court that a faulty work exclusion barred coverage for a since-settled lawsuit seeking $1.2 million in damages for wine contamination.

Expert Analysis

  • Why Diversity Jurisdiction Poses Investment Fund Hurdles

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    Federal courts' continued application of the exacting rules of diversity jurisdiction presents particular challenges for investment funds, and in the absence of any near-term reform, those who manage such funds should take action to avoid diversity jurisdiction pitfalls, say attorneys at Sher Tremonte.

  • 7 Tips To Help Your Witness Be A Cross-Exam Heavyweight

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    Because jurors tend to pay a little more attention to cross-examination, attorneys should train their witnesses to strike a balance — making it tough for opposing counsel to make their side’s case, without coming across as difficult to the jury, says Ken Broda-Bahm at Persuasion Strategies.

  • Insurance Considerations For Cos. That May Face Strikes

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    The recent surge in major work stoppages in the U.S. highlights the growing importance of strike preparedness for businesses, which includes understanding strike insurance coverage options, say Chris D’Amour and Brooke Duncan at Adams and Reese.

  • Challenges Of Insuring An NIL Collective

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    Sarah Abrams at Baleen Specialty examines the emergence of name, image and likeness collectives for student-athletes, the current litigation landscape that has created a favorable environment for these organizations, and considerations for director and officer insurers looking to underwrite NIL collectives.

  • An Update On Legal Issues In The Drone Market

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    Marialuisa Gallozzi and Alex Slawson at Covington examine recent developments in the legal issues surrounding the growing drone market, including possible First Amendment protections, Fourth Amendment surveillance, and litigation involving criminal and civil penalties, evidentiary pursuits, and insurance.

  • Key Insurance Implications Of Hawaii's Historic GHG Ruling

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    In Aloha Petroleum v. National Union Fire Insurance, the Hawaii Supreme Court became the first state court to classify greenhouse gasses as pollutants barred from insurance coverage, a ruling likely to be afforded great weight by courts across the country, say Scott Seaman and Gar Lauerman at Hinshaw & Culbertson.

  • Use The Right Kind Of Feedback To Help Gen Z Attorneys

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    Generation Z associates bring unique perspectives and expectations to the workplace, so it’s imperative that supervising attorneys adapt their feedback approach in order to help young lawyers learn and grow — which is good for law firms, too, says Rachael Bosch at Fringe Professional Development.

  • Congress Can And Must Enact A Supreme Court Ethics Code

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    As public confidence in the U.S. Supreme Court dips to historic lows following reports raising conflict of interest concerns, Congress must exercise its constitutional power to enact a mandatory and enforceable code of ethics for the high court, says Muhammad Faridi, president of the New York City Bar Association.

  • State Of The States' AI Legal Ethics Landscape

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    Over the past year, several state bar associations, as well as the American Bar Association, have released guidance on the ethical use of artificial intelligence in legal practice, all of which share overarching themes and some nuanced differences, say Eric Pacifici and Kevin Henderson at SMB Law Group.

  • Insurance Likely Kept Swift Out Of The Woods After Vienna

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    Financial losses Taylor Swift incurred from the cancellation of three concerts in Vienna in August will likely be covered by insurance policies, considering how the facts of the situation differ from those of the Foo Fighters' 2015 insurance dispute over event cancellation and terrorism coverage, say attorneys at Anderson Kill.

  • Class Actions At The Circuit Courts: September Lessons

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    In this month's review of class action appeals, Mitchell Engel at Shook Hardy identifies practice tips from four recent class certification rulings involving denial of Medicare reimbursements, automobile insurance disputes, veterans' rights and automobile defects.

  • 3 Coverage Tips As 2nd Circ. 'Swipes Left' On Tinder Claim

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    The Second Circuit's recent opinion in Match Group v. Beazley Underwriting, overturning Tinder's victory on its insurer's motion to dismiss a coverage action, reinforces three best practices policyholders purchasing claims-made coverage should adhere to in order to avoid late-notice defenses, say Lynda Bennett and Alexander Corson at Lowenstein Sandler.

  • What To Know About Insurance Coverage For Antitrust Risks

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    With all the regulatory activity surrounding antitrust and unfair competition claims, as highlighted by last month's D.C. federal court decision that Google is a monopolist, businesses must not only ensure compliance, but also understand their potential insurance coverage when such claims arise, says Micah Skidmore at Haynes Boone.