Mealey's Construction Defects Insurance
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May 01, 2024
Subcontractor Appeals Summary Judgment Rulings In Worker Injury Coverage Dispute
NEW YORK — A subcontractor on April 30 filed a notice in a New York federal court indicating it is asking the Second Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals to review the federal court’s orders that denied its motion for partial summary judgment and granted insurers’ motion for summary judgment in its lawsuit arising from personal injury actions brought by two of its workers.
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April 30, 2024
Federal Judge: Insurer Not Entitled To Attorney Fees In Row Over Faulty Pool
MISSOULA, Mont. — A federal judge in Montana largely denied an insurer’s request for attorney fees and costs after a March finding that the insurer owed no coverage to a couple whose property was damaged by water draining from an improperly designed “disappearing floor” pool, finding the insurer does not illustrate the extreme circumstances required in declaratory judgment cases under Montana law.
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April 30, 2024
Split 7th Circuit Upholds Finding Of No Coverage To Contractor Under Policies
CHICAGO — A split panel of the Seventh Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on April 29 upheld a district court’s ruling that insurers do not owe a general contractor a defense or indemnification as an additional insured in a coverage dispute stemming from a subcontractor’s defective welding work at O’Hare International Airport, finding that defects in welding and columns do not constitute “property damage” under the relevant insurance policy.
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April 29, 2024
Federal Judge Dismisses Worker Injury Coverage Suit Following Refiled Stipulation
NEW YORK — Following a stipulation of dismissal refiled by a subcontractor, a property owner and a construction manager, a New York federal judge on April 26 dismissed all remaining claims between them in the subcontractor’s lawsuit arising from personal injury actions brought by two of its workers.
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April 25, 2024
11th Circuit Won’t Rehear Case After Finding No Coverage For Construction Manager
ATLANTA — A panel of the 11th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on April 24 denied an apartment project owner’s petition for panel rehearing, filed after a February opinion in which the panel affirmed a Florida federal judge’s finding that an insurance policy’s professional services exclusion bars an insurer’s duty to defend an insured construction management company that was sued for construction defects at the apartment project where it served as a construction manager.
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April 24, 2024
More Claims Settled In Dispute Over Subcontractors’ Insurers’ Duty To Reimburse
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — A clerk’s order in an Arkansas federal court dismissed claims between two insurers in a dispute over whether the insurers of subcontractors were obliged to reimburse a construction company’s insurer for its defense of claims of faulty work in an arbitration, becoming the latest of multiple similar orders in the dispute.
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April 24, 2024
Judge: Exclusion On Number Of Homes Built Means No Defense To Subcontractor
TACOMA, Wash. — Adopting a federal magistrate judge’s report and recommendation, a federal judge dismissed a subcontractor’s insurer from a construction insurance complaint, finding that the insurer owed no defense or indemnification to the contractor in an underlying complaint brought by a group of homeowners due to a policy exclusion related to the construction of a development with more than five units.
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April 24, 2024
Insurer Appeals Dismissal Of Other Insurer In Mold Damage Coverage Dispute
LAS VEGAS — An insurance broker’s professional liability insurer appealed to the Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals a Nevada federal judge’s ruling in a mold and moisture damage coverage dispute finding that a contractor violated the terms of an insurance policy by incurring more than $1 million in repair costs without first seeking consent from an insurer.
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April 23, 2024
Federal Judge: Factual Disputes Preclude Summary Judgment For Insurer, HOA
WILMINGTON, Del. — A federal judge in Delaware on April 22 denied motions for summary judgment from an insurer and a homeowners’ association, finding that there are genuine questions of material fact in the case over whether the insurer owes coverage for more than $8 million in damages awarded to the association in its underlying case against an insured contractor for excessive water infiltration and other issues.
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April 22, 2024
Insurer Appeals To 5th Circuit Finding Of No Equitable Contribution
BEAMONT, Texas — A subcontractor’s insurer appealed to the Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals a Texas federal judge’s finding that the insurer is not entitled to equitable contribution from another insurer because of policy exclusions related to suits seeking contribution.
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April 17, 2024
Subcontractor’s Insurer Splits Defense, Indemnification Claims After Judge’s Stay
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — A day after a federal judge in Florida granted a subcontractor and contractor’s motion to stay a construction insurance dispute insofar as an insurer’s duty to indemnify the subcontractor, the insurer filed a second amended complaint separating its claims related to the duty to indemnify from its claims related to the duty to defend.
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April 16, 2024
11th Circuit Affirms That Policy Exclusions Don’t Bar Defense For Contractor
ATLANTA — For the third time, the 11th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals found that a contractor’s commercial general liability insurer owed the contractor a defense from claims that the contractor improperly constructed a couple’s home, finding that there was uncertainty at the time the underlying suit was filed whether two policy exclusions would apply.
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April 16, 2024
Parties In Mold, Construction Defects Suit File Supplemental Authorities In 11th Circuit
ATLANTA — An insurer and insureds involved in a dispute over coverage for mold damage discovered in an insured hotel filed supplemental authorities on April 15 in the 11th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals, citing cases that each side claims are relevant to the issue of whether the policy at issue provides coverage for losses caused by a construction defect even if the cost to fix the defect is not covered.
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April 11, 2024
11th Circuit Upholds Denial Of New Trial In Insurance Dispute Over Damage
ATLANTA — In an unpublished April 10 opinion, a panel of the 11th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals upheld a federal judge’s denial of an insurer’s request for judgment as a matter of law or a new trial, finding that there was sufficient evidence to support the jury’s nearly $170,000 verdict that established damage to a church’s buildings was caused by a hurricane and not faulty work.
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April 11, 2024
HOA Seeks Reconsideration Of Lack Of Standing In Construction Insurance Dispute
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A homeowners’ association asks a federal judge in Florida to reconsider a finding that it lacked standing to seek a declaratory judgment in a construction insurance dispute where an insurer seeks a declaration that it owes no indemnification to a subcontractor that worked on homes operated by the HOA.
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April 05, 2024
Connecticut Appeals Court: No Allegation Of ‘Property Damage’ In Insurance Dispute
HARTFORD, Conn. — A Connecticut appeals panel affirmed a lower court’s ruling that an insurer had no duty to defend a modular home developer for allegedly improperly installed windows, finding that the underlying counterclaims brought by the homeowners against the developer in an action to foreclose on a mechanic’s lien do not allege “property damage” caused by an “occurrence” under the terms of the insurer’s policy.
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April 05, 2024
Some Third-Party Claims In Construction Insurance Suit Dismissed After Settlements
BATON ROUGE, La. — A federal judge in Louisiana dismissed with prejudice claims between multiple third parties in a construction insurance dispute stemming from damages from a sprinkler leak after the parties filed joint motions indicating that the claims had been resolved.
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April 05, 2024
9th Circuit Dismisses Water Damage Insurance Appeal After Parties Settle
SEATTLE — The Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals dismissed an appeal of an insurance dispute between insurers and a condominium owners association insured over water damage after the parties stipulated to a voluntary dismissal.
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April 05, 2024
Condo Developer Tells 10th Circuit It Should Affirm Insurance Dispute Ruling
DENVER — A condominium developer tells the 10th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals that an insurer uses “semantic shell games” to argue that it does not owe the developer damages in its appeal of a jury’s $2.54 million award in the developer’s favor, saying the insurance policy at issue covered all costs associated with repair.
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April 05, 2024
Insurer Tells 11th Circuit Coverage Barred For Contractor By Policy Exclusion
ATLANTA — A contractor’s insurer tells the 11th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals that it should uphold a Florida federal judge’s ruling that it owed no duty to defend the contractor or a subcontractor due to a policy exclusion in a suit stemming from the subcontractor’s alleged faulty installation of cladding and glazing systems in a construction project in its answer to the contractor’s appeal.
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April 04, 2024
Judge: No Contribution To Subcontractor’s Former Insurer Due To Policy Exclusions
BEAUMONT, Texas — A federal judge in Texas dismissed with prejudice a subcontractor’s insurer’s complaint seeking equitable contribution from another insurer in an arbitration proceeding, adopting a pair of reports and recommendations from a federal magistrate judge who found that no coverage is owed because of policy exclusions related to suits seeking contribution.
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April 04, 2024
Coverage Owed For Mold Damages, Insureds Reiterate In Corrected Reply Brief
ATLANTA — In a corrected reply brief, filed with the permission of the 11th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals, insureds reiterate their argument that a district court erred in finding that no coverage is owed for mold damage discovered in an insured hotel because the policy at issue provides coverage for losses caused by a construction defect even if the cost to fix the defect is not covered.
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April 02, 2024
Federal Judge Rules Subcontractor Stated No Claims Against Insurer In Suit
ATLANTA — A federal judge in Georgia dismissed one of two insurers from a complaint brought by a subcontractor claiming that it was owed coverage for the collapse of structural steel during the construction of a building, finding that the subcontractor raised no claims against the insurer; the judge also said the subcontractor’s failure to respond to multiple motions in the case raises a question regarding whether it has abandoned prosecution.
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April 02, 2024
Parties Refile Stipulation Of Dismissal In Worker Injury Coverage Dispute
NEW YORK — Per a New York federal judge’s order, a subcontractor, a property owner and a construction manager on April 1 refiled their stipulation of dismissal of the claims between them in the subcontractor’s lawsuit arising from personal injury actions brought by two of its workers.
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April 02, 2024
Federal Judge Dismisses Insurance Dispute Over Windows Due To Pending Garnishment
LINCOLN, Neb. — A federal judge in Nebraska dismissed a complaint brought by an insurance company seeking a declaration it owed no indemnification to a company accused of faulty work in its installation of windows in a home, finding that it would be inappropriate to enter judgment while garnishment proceedings are pending elsewhere.