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Mealey's Insurance

  • November 19, 2024

    Compelling Arbitration, Judge Says MOU Is ‘Closely Related’ To Reinsurance Contract

    LOS ANGELES — Concluding that a 1984 memorandum of understanding (MOU) is “closely related to the reinsurance contract and not a completely separate agreement,” a California federal judge granted reinsurers’ motion to compel arbitration in a lawsuit over reinsurance billings arising from asbestos bodily injury claims.

  • November 18, 2024

    Insurer Says Pollution Exclusion Bars Coverage For Chemical Injury Suits

    RICHMOND, Va. — An insurer contends in a complaint filed in Virginia federal court that no coverage is owed to its insured for underlying suits alleging injuries caused by an influx of chlorine and muriatic acid into the insured homeowners association’s pool because the policy’s pollution exclusion bars coverage for the suits.

  • November 18, 2024

    Texas High Court Denies Insurer’s Petition For Review In Benzene Suit

    AUSTIN, Texas — The Texas Supreme Court on Nov. 15 denied an insurer’s petition for review, refusing to review a state appellate court’s finding that a policy’s arbitration provision applies only to disputes arising under the insurance policy and not to disputes arising under a settlement pertaining to benzene-related claims filed against the insured.

  • November 18, 2024

    High Court Refuses To Review Duty-To-Defend Ruling In Chemical Exposure Suit

    WASHINGTON D.C. — The U.S. Supreme Court on Nov. 18 denied an insurer’s petition for writ of certiorari seeking review of the Fourth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals’ ruling that an insurer has a duty to defend the insured for an underlying chemical exposure suit.

  • November 18, 2024

    Insured’s Snow-Damage Suit Remanded To State Court Based On Lack Of Diversity

    RIVERSIDE, Calif. — A California federal judge remanded an insured’s suit to California state court after determining that complete diversity of citizenship does not exist based on the insured’s naming of an insurance agency as a defendant in a second amended complaint, which alleges breach of contract, bad faith and negligence claims based on the property insurer’s denial of coverage for the partial collapse of an insured building’s roof.

  • November 13, 2024

    Amicus Bid Is Contested In 6th Circuit Appeal Of Collateral Estoppel Ruling

    CINCINNATI — A request for permission to file an amicus curiae brief in the Sixth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals has drawn a reinsurer’s opposition in the appeal of a ruling that collateral estoppel applies to a defense costs dispute concerning asbestos lawsuits and prior arbitration.

  • November 12, 2024

    Kentucky Panel Reverses Workers’ Comp Ruling In Asbestos Coverage Dispute

    FRANKFORT, Ky. — The Kentucky Court of Appeals reversed a decision by the Kentucky Workers’ Compensation Board and instructed the board to remand the dispute to an administrative law judge to determine which of two insurers should provide coverage to a workers’ compensation claimant who developed mesothelioma as a result of asbestos exposure while working at a Kentucky high school that contained asbestos.

  • November 12, 2024

    Pollution Liability Insurer Objects To Report, Says Suit Should Be Transferred

    LAFAYETTE, La. — An insurer contends that a Louisiana federal magistrate’s report and recommendation should not be adopted because the magistrate judge incorrectly determined that a suit filed by insureds, who seeks coverage for an underlying contamination suit, should be transferred to Oklahoma federal court where a similar suit filed by the insurer is pending.

  • November 12, 2024

    Judge Denies Insurer’s Request To Transfer Silica Coverage Suit

    LOS ANGELES — A California federal judge denied an insurer’s motion to transfer an insured’s suit seeking coverage for underlying bodily injury suits arising out of silica dust exposure to Minnesota federal court where a similar suit filed by the insurer is pending because the insured’s California federal suit was filed prior to the insurer’s Minnesota suit.

  • November 11, 2024

    Pollution Exclusion Bars Coverage For Chemical Exposure Suit, Judge Says

    PORTLAND, Ore. — A commercial general liability insurer has no duty to defend or to contribute to the defense of its insured named in an underlying chemical exposure suit because the policies’ pollution exclusion bars coverage for the underlying suit, an Oregon federal judge said.

  • November 06, 2024

    7th Circuit Hears Argument On Arbitration Preclusion Dispute In Reinsurers’ Appeal

    CHICAGO — In Nov. 5 oral argument before a Seventh Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel concerning where disputes over the preclusive effect of prior arbitration are decided, reinsurers acknowledged that the reversal they seek would create a circuit split, while an insurer cited Smith v. Spizzirri in urging the court to vacate the challenged dismissal to arbitration in favor of a stay during arbitration.

  • November 05, 2024

    Validity Of Kaiser’s Bankruptcy Plan Debated On Remand From Supreme Court

    RICHMOND, Va. — Now that the U.S. Supreme Court has determined that the primary insurer of Chapter 11 asbestos debtors Kaiser Gypsum Co. Inc. and Hanson Permanente Cement Inc. has standing to object to the debtors’ reorganization plan, the Fourth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals should uphold the insurer’s merits arguments and reverse confirmation of the plan, the insurer says in its Nov. 4 supplemental reply brief on remand from the high court.

  • November 05, 2024

    Question Of Fact Exists In Water Damage Coverage Suit, New York Panel Says

    NEW YORK — A New York appellate panel partially reversed a trial court’s summary judgment ruling in favor of an insurer after determining that a question of fact exists as to whether an insured protected a sprinkler system’s water lines from freezing as required for coverage to be afforded under a policy’s exception to a vacancy exclusion.

  • November 05, 2024

    Federal Judge Denies Insurer’s Motion On Applicability Of Pollution Exclusion

    HOUSTON — A Texas federal judge denied a commercial general liability insurer’s motion for summary judgment in a coverage suit, rejecting the insurer’s contention that coverage is barred for an underlying water contamination suit by its policies’ pollution exclusion.

  • November 05, 2024

    California Federal Judge Enters Final Judgment, Allows Appeal Of Insured’s Claim

    RIVERSIDE, Calif. — A California federal judge granted a joint motion for entry of final judgment on an insured’s declaratory judgment claim in the insured’s suit seeking coverage for groundwater contamination discovered at a local airport, providing the insured the opportunity to appeal the ruling on the claim, which seeks a determination on the insured’s entitlement to coverage for future contamination costs.

  • November 04, 2024

    Insured Waives Right To Respond To High Court Petition In Chemical Exposure Suit

    WASHINGTON D.C. — An insured waived its right to respond to an insurer’s petition for writ of certiorari seeking review from the U.S. Supreme Court of the Fourth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals’ ruling that an insurer has a duty to defend the insured for an underlying chemical exposure suit.

  • November 04, 2024

    Pollution Exclusion Bars Coverage For Suits Stemming From Explosion, Insurers Say

    HOUSTON — No coverage is owed for underlying suits arising out of an explosion caused by a chemical release at a chemical plant because coverage is barred by the pollution exclusion included in the insurers’ excess liability policies, the insurers maintain in a complaint filed in Texas federal court.

  • October 30, 2024

    Arbitration Bid Fought In Reinsurance Billing Row Involving MOU

    LOS ANGELES — Urging a California federal court to reject an arbitration bid in a lawsuit over reinsurance billings arising from asbestos bodily injury claims, an insurer contends that the abstention doctrine doesn’t apply and that the arbitration clause is in a different agreement than the one at issue and doesn’t include the present billing dispute.

  • October 29, 2024

    Pollution Exclusion Bars Coverage For Underlying Chemical Exposure Suits

    PHILADELPHIA — A pollution exclusion bars coverage for underlying bodily injury suits seeking damages caused by exposure to ethylene oxide (EtO) released from an insured’s medical device manufacturing facility because EtO qualifies as a pollutant and the policy’s pollution exclusion clearly bars claims arising out of the release of EtO, a Pennsylvania federal judge said Oct. 28 in granting an insurer’s motion for judgment on the pleadings.

  • October 29, 2024

    Panel Affirms Ruling For Pollution Liability Insurers In Contamination Suit

    CHICAGO — A trial court correctly found that an insurer properly paid its insured only one limit under its pollution liability policy for related pollution conditions at an insured property and that another insurer properly denied coverage for environmental contamination cleanup costs because there was no claim made against the insured during the policy period as required by the claims-made-and-reported pollution liability policy, the First District Illinois Appellate Court said in affirming the trial court’s summary judgment ruling.

  • October 29, 2024

    No Coverage Owed For Contamination Suits, Insurer Says In Amended Complaint

    ROME, Ga. — Following the transfer of an environmental contamination coverage suit from Alabama to Georgia federal court, an insurer filed a second amended complaint, reiterating its contention that no coverage is owed for contamination caused by wastewater and perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) stemming from an insured’s manufacturing facilities.

  • October 28, 2024

    Denial Of Coverage For Failed Water Pipe Was Not Bad Faith, Panel Says

    PASADENA, Calif. — A district court did not err in granting summary judgment in favor of a homeowners insurer on a bad faith claim because no reasonable juror could find that the insurer’s denial of coverage based on its policy’s exclusion for continuous or repeated seepage or leakage of water was unreasonable, the Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals held Oct. 25 in an unpublished opinion.

  • October 28, 2024

    Judge: CGL Insurer Has No Duty To Defend Against Suit Alleging Defective Work

    EL DORADO, Ark. —A federal judge in Arkansas granted a commercial general liability insurer’s motion for summary judgment in its lawsuit seeking a declaration that it has no duty to defend its insured against underlying breach of contract and breach of warranty of sound workmanship claims for unfinished construction and fraud for misrepresenting both his credentials and background as a construction contractor, finding that the insured’s alleged actions giving rise to property damage “were undoubtedly ‘first set in motion’” before the policy began.

  • October 28, 2024

    Insurer Asks California Court To Dismiss Subrogation Suit Against Roofer

    LOS ANGELES — An insurer seeks dismissal with prejudice of its entire subrogation lawsuit against a roofer in a case that was consolidated with a condominium homeowners association’s breach of contract and bad faith lawsuit arising from storm damage to the roof of a Studio City building that housed 31 luxury condominiums.

  • October 22, 2024

    Contamination Exclusion Bars Coverage For COVID-19 Losses, Federal Judge Says

    SACRAMENTO, Calif. — An all-risk policy’s contamination exclusion bars coverage for losses sustained during the COVID-19 pandemic because a California appellate panel’s determination that a contamination exclusion bars coverage for COVID-19 losses is binding and warrants the same finding in a similar suit filed by insureds in federal court, a California federal judge said Oct. 21 in granting an insurer’s motion for summary judgment.