Corporate transactions are carefully negotiated to allocate assets and liabilities. However, one valuable asset is frequently overlooked and may fall by the wayside during this process: the right to recover under historic insurance policies. This can result in one entity
Policyholder Pulse
Policyholder Pulse, published by Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP, focuses on issues relevant to insurance policyholders, including coverage disputes, risk management strategies, and emerging insurance risks. The blog addresses topics such as long-tail liability claims, self-insured retentions, bad faith claims against insurers, and the interpretation of insurance policy language. It also covers developments in environmental liability, transactional risk insurance, and complex claims management. The content is aimed at helping policyholders navigate insurance challenges and understand evolving legal and regulatory landscapes affecting insurance coverage and claims.
Latest from Policyholder Pulse
Appellate Decision Finds Standard Definition of Occurrence to Be Ambiguous, Allowing Policyholder to Choose Most Advantageous Interpretation in Determining Number of Occurrences
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit’s just-issued decision Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints v. National Union Fire Insurance Company of Pittsburgh, PA, et al., has established an important new tool for general liability insurance…
You Paid for It. Are You Using It? Why Buyers Should Actively Manage Their Representations and Warranties Insurance Policies
Representations and Warranties Insurance (RWI) has become a standard deal tool. Buyers purchase it to obtain recourse independent of the seller. RWI can strengthen a Buyer’s bid for attractive targets while giving Sellers a clean exit: no indemnity, minimal escrow…
The Last Word on CGL Coverage for Expanding “Public Nuisance” Torts Is Still to Come
Over the last decade, governmental plaintiffs have secured tens of billions of dollars in settlements from certain manufacturers, wholesale distributors, and pharmacy operators that allegedly contributed to a nationwide epidemic of opioid use disorder (OUD), a/k/a addiction. Bellwether litigation has…
AI Exclusions in Insurance Policies: Broad Language, Uncertain Impact
By Jay Konkel & Hadhy Ayaz
As generative artificial intelligence (gen AI) becomes embedded in day-to-day commercial operations across virtually every sector, businesses are confronting a parallel rise in litigation and regulatory risk tied to AI development, deployment, and disclosure. Insurers are responding in kind. Perhaps…
Delaware Supreme Court Rejects Application of the “Bump-Up” Exclusion in Harman Decision
When corporate transactions engender shareholder litigation, Directors’ and Officers’ liability insurers all too often invoke the so-called “bump-up” exclusion to bar coverage of such claims. These provisions, common in D&O policies, purport to exclude coverage for settlements or judgments that…
SDNY Rejects Insurer’s Attempt to Stretch D&O Policy’s “Subsequent Acts” Exclusion
In a recent decision from the Southern District of New York, Judge Jed S. Rakoff rejected an insurer’s attempt to stretch a “Subsequent Acts” exclusion beyond its text and denied a motion to dismiss a policyholder’s coverage action. The decision…
[E]stopping Insurers from Taking Inconsistent Coverage Positions
Most insurance policies use standardized wording drafted by the insurance industry. Coverage disputes frequently center on these standardized wordings. Policyholders only sporadically face significant claims that escalate into disputes with their insurers and result in litigation. Insurers, on the other…
Conflict Premium: Insurance and Supply Chains During the Iran War
Colleagues Joseph Jean and Meaghan Murphy recently authored a four-part series examining the myriad insurance considerations brought to the forefront by recent and ongoing events in Iran.
Part I – When Chokepoints Become Chokeholds
When trade routes detour, ports slow…
AI and Insurance Policy Interpretation After Snell v. United Specialty: What Policyholders Need to Know
“I continue to believe—perhaps more so with each interaction—that LLMs have something to contribute to the ordinary-meaning endeavor. They’re not perfect, and challenges remain, but it would be myopic to ignore them.” —Judge Kevin Newsom
The decision by the U.S.…