Coverage & Claims

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In JPM and ors v. Nugent Care Society; GR v. Wirral Metropolitan Borough Council [2009] EWCA Civ 827, the Court of Appeal explained, for the first time, the significance of the landmark decisions in A v. Hoare and Lister v. Hesley Hall (see our Guidance Note on Hoare (also discussing Lister) by clicking here) in revolutionising the landscape for abuse claims in the UK. 

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Read More UK: Historic Abuse Claims

In Tim Knight v AXA Assurance [2009] EWHC 1900 (QB) the court was asked to determine two preliminary issues of law: whether the assessment of damages, where liability is admitted, should be governed by English law; and to what extent the award of pre-judgment interest should be governed by English law and/or French law. …
Read More UK: Damages and Pre-Judgment Interest Where the Damage Occurs in a Foreign Jurisdiction

The First Circuit recently upheld a trial court’s ruling that an insurer need not defend or indemnify the defendants in a wrongful conviction claim where the wrongful acts occurred prior to the policy period. …
Read More First Circuit: No Coverage for False Arrest Suit Where Arrest and Conviction Occurred Prior to the Policy Period

The West Virginia Supreme Court recently answered  the following question certified from the U.S. District Court in that state: Does the insured bear the burden of showing that a jury awarded damages for covered, as opposed to non-covered, claims when the answer is not clear from the award itself? 

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Read More West Virginia: Insured Bears Burden of Proving Allocation of Jury Award between Covered and Non-covered Claims Unless Insurer Controls Defense

The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court recently held that where an insured “incurs covered costs as a result of ongoing environmental contamination occurring over more than one year and the insurer provided coverage for less than the full period of years in which contamination occurred,” the loss should be pro rated among all the insurers on the risk during the relevant period. …
Read More Massachusetts Highest State Court: Pro-Rata “Time-On-The-Risk” Allocation Method Applies to Ongoing Environmental Pollution Occurring Over Multiple Policy Periods

In Markel International Insurance Company v Timothy Higgins, QBE Insurance (Europe) and another v Timothy Higgins [2009] EWCA Civ 790, the Court of Appeal held that the High Court Judge was correct in his finding that the defendant, Mr Higgins, an underwriting agent who suffered from Alzheimer’s disease, had either conspired with others to defraud Markel and QBE (his principals) or that he had given dishonest assistance to others in breach of his fiduciary duty to Markel/QBE. 

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Read More UK: Court of Appeal Finds that Alzheimer’s Disease Was No Excuse For Insurance Fraud

The New York Insurance Department’s (“NYID”) Office of General Counsel (“OGC”) recently issued an OGC Opinion (No. 09-06-08) representing the position of the NYID in respect of four distinct queries regarding the recent amendment to Insurance Law § 3420, which we have closely followed and written about in this blog. 

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Read More OGC Opinion: Third Party May Not Bring Direct Action Against Insurer in Foreign Jurisdiction Pursuant to New Insurance Law § 3420

The New York Insurance Department’s (“NYID”) Office of General Counsel (“OGC”) recently issued an OGC Opinion (No. 09-06-08) representing the position of the NYID in respect of four distinct queries regarding the recent amendment to Insurance Law § 3420, which we have closely followed and written about in this blog. 

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Read More OGC Opinion: Insurance Law § 3420 Also Applies to Claims-Made Policies

The New York Insurance Department’s (“NYID”) Office of General Counsel (“OGC”) recently issued an OGC Opinion (No. 09-06-08) representing the position of the NYID in respect of four distinct queries regarding the recent amendment to Insurance Law § 3420, which we have closely followed and written about in this blog. …
Read More OGC Opinion: New Prejudice Rule Set Forth in Insurance Law § 3420 May Also Be Incorporated in Non-Liability Policies at Insurer’s Option

The New York Insurance Department’s (“NYID”) Office of General Counsel (“OGC”) recently issued an OGC Opinion (No. 09-06-08) representing the position of the NYID in respect of four distinct queries regarding the recent amendment to Insurance Law § 3420, which we have closely followed and written about in this blog. …
Read More OGC Opinion: Insurance Law § 3420 Also Applies to Policies Issued in NY But Delivered Out of State