Wider Window: Federal District Court Holds that Defense Obligation has a Broader Trigger Period than Indemnity Obligation
on January 29, 2018
If there were a catechism for insurance coverage law, one of the first couplets of call and response would drill the aspiring coverage lawyer on the distinction between the duties to defend and indemnify: What is the difference between an insurers' defense and indemnity obligations?...
Sixth Circuit Holds that Number of "Occurrences" is Based on Number of "Causes"
on October 17, 2017
Recently, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, interpreting Kentucky law, held that the number of "occurrences" under a commercial liability insurance policy is determined by looking at the cause of the injury, not its effects. Evanston Ins. Co. v. Hous. Auth. of Somerset, 867 F.3d 653 (6th Cir. 2017). In the underlying dispute, a tree on the housing authority's property fell on two cousins, killing one and severely injuring the other. The cousin that died was pregnant and doctors delivered her baby, but he died shortly thereafter. In 2013, a state court jury found the housing authority liable and awarded the plaintiffs $3.7 million....
Insurance Coverage for Construction Defect Claims
on September 22, 2017
Good news for businesses in the construction industry: South Dakota has become the latest jurisdiction to hold that construction defect claims are covered by commercial general liability (CGL) policies. In Owners Insurance Company v. Tibke Construction, Inc., et al., the South Dakota Supreme Court held that an alleged failure to conduct soil testing was an occurrence that triggered coverage under the insured's CGL policies. In Tibke, the policyholder, Tibke Construction ("Tibke"), was hired as a general contractor to build a house. Tibke, in turn, hired Jerry's Excavating, Inc. as a subcontractor to prepare the soil and perform excavation work. Several years after Tibke completed the house, the homeowners sued Tibke because of cracking and structural unsoundness in the home that they allege resulted from a failure to conduct soil compaction testing before construction....
Cybercrime Coverage: Similar Facts, Different Results in Two Recent Decisions
on September 13, 2017
Decisions by two federal district courts, issued less than two weeks apart, underscore the continued unpredictability faced by policyholders victimized by social engineering fraud. These decisions also demonstrate the effect minor differences in underlying state law may have on the availability of coverage for social engineering losses....
Washington Supreme Court Decision is a Boon for Policyholders
on August 22, 2017
Today, most, if not all, commercial general liability (CGL) policies contain absolute pollution exclusions....
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