Policyholder Perspective

Insights and Issues in Commercial Insurance Coverage

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By: Farella Braun + Martel LLP

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Amber Chrystal
Dave Bruns
Dennis Cusack
David Hofmayer
David Smith
Erica Villanueva
Farella
John Green
Karen Kimmey
Mary McCutcheon
Morgan Jackson
Nathan Anderson
Shanti Eagle
Shawn Barnett (ZA)
Tyler Gerking
Bill Friedrich

Latest from Policyholder Perspective

Ninth Circuit Asks the California Supreme Court to Interpret the Scope of Personal Injury Coverage
On January 15, 2019, the Ninth Circuit certified the following question to the California Supreme Court: Does a commercial liability policy that covers “personal injury,” defined as “injury… arising out of… [o]ral or written publication… of material that violates a person’s rights of privacy,” trigger the insurer’s duty to defend the insured against a claim that the insured violated the Telephone Consumer Protection Act by sending unsolicited text message advertisement that did not reveal any…
shutterstock_158233841_Are You Covered
In an unpublished decision, the Ninth Circuit affirmed the Central District of California’s interpretation of the related acts provision in a professional liability policy, holding that related acts reported in a prior policy period were not excluded from coverage in a subsequent period because that policy defined “Policy Period” to mean only the current policy period, not any policy period. Attorneys Insurance Mutual Risk Retention Group, Inc. v. Liberty Surplus Ins. Co., No. 17-55597 (9th…
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In November, Tyler wrote about insurance issues raised by both the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the California Consumer Privacy Act, which goes into effect on January 1, 2020. California’s governor Jerry Brown signed two other cyber-related laws in September, which will also go into effect on January 1, 2020 – Assembly Bill 1906 and Senate Bill 327, which address security concerns relating to devices that are capable of connecting to the…
cannabis-commercial-farm-blog
A 6th Circuit case decided earlier this year demonstrates how positions taken by insureds in prior litigation can impact or foreclose coverage in subsequent disputes with insurers. See K.V.G. Properties, Inc. v. Westfield Ins. Co., 900 F.3d 818 (6th Cir. 2018). In K.V.G. Properties, Inc., K.V.G., was unaware that its tenant was operating a cannabis growing operation. Although Michigan allowed for limited legal marijuana cultivation, there was no evidence the tenant was in compliance…
shutterstock_113739760-Protection Level High
An obscure niche product less than a decade ago, cyber insurance is now a staple of many companies’ risk transfer programs. Its rise in prominence is no wonder. High-profile data breaches have caused businesses millions of dollars in losses and untold reputational harm. Companies are right to shed some of their cyber risks through insurance, and the basic protections it offers are well known. It pays for the business’s investigation and notification to consumers of…
Board Meeting-shutterstock_292051286-Blog
I recently participated in a panel at the Association of Business Trial Lawyers Annual Meeting – “Bad News Delivered: The Board Meeting and Crisis Management.”  Among other topics, the panel discussed the role of insurance counsel in crisis management, and addressed the following questions: Who Is The Client?  When meeting with a board in a time of crisis, it is critical to identify whether your client is the company or the board.  And if it…
Blog-Image---DataSecurity
A federal district court in Florida has ruled that a claim against a policyholder arising out of a hacker’s theft of confidential credit card information was not covered under a commercial general liability (CGL) policy.  St. Paul Fire & Marine Ins. Co. v. Rosen Millennium, Inc., M.D. Fla. Case No. 17-cv-540 (Sept. 28, 2018).  This is not the first such decision.  Courts have held similarly in Innovak Int’l, Inc. v. Hanover Ins. Co., 280 F.Supp.3d…
Settlement_Insurance-Blog-Post
Defense counsel often assume that an insurer has a “duty” to fund any settlement opportunity their client wants to accept. The legal requirements under California law for triggering an insurer’s duty to settle are far more nuanced.  For non-insurance practitioners, this is often a confounding and confusing topic!  The fact is, an insurer doesn’t have a “duty to settle” a case simply because the defendant wants to do so, or because defense counsel recommends it. …
Autonomous Vehicles-shutterstock_148830749_72dpi_12_15-Blog
While experts debate how quickly autonomous vehicles (AVs) will take over our roads, there is little doubt they will be a fixture in the next decade. Fully self-driving vehicles are predicted to substantially reduce the accident rate, given the dominant role of human error in most crashes today. But there still will be accidents. And where there are accidents, there are plaintiffs’ lawyers. But who will these lawyers sue, and how will the defendants insure…
Mediation
I recently participated in a negotiation with an insurer who had denied coverage for an underlying errors and omissions claim in the mid-seven figures. The insurer’s counsel and I exchanged stern letters, each explaining why our respective client’s position was absolutely correct, and the other’s absolutely wrong. The client’s broker arranged a meeting with principals and counsel on both sides. At the meeting, the insurer’s counsel and I debated our respective positions once more. Neither…