Our last post [here] summarized a case in which the Ninth Circuit found the anti-concurrent provision to be ambiguous. See Alexander Mfg., Inc. v. Illinois Union Ins. Co., No. 07-35812 (9th Cir. March 25, 2009) [here]. Today we review a case in which the anti-assignment provision was strictly construed
2009
Ninth Circuit Determines Anti-Assignment Provision Ambiguous
By Tred R. Eyerly on
Historically, the Ninth Circuit has not favored anti-assignment clauses. See, e.g., Northern Ins. Co. of New York v. Allied Mut. Ins. Co., 955 F.2d 1353 (9th Cir. 1992)(benefits of policy transfer by operation of law to successor corporation despite anti-assignment provision). Applying Oregon law, the Ninth Circuit recently continued its pattern, determining…
Fifth Circuit Again Finds in Favor of Policy-Holder
By Tred R. Eyerly on
Continuing its recent trend in post-Katrina cases to find for the policy-holder (see Dickerson v. Lexington Ins. Co., 2008 WL 5295389 (5th Cir. Dec. 22, 2008)[ reviewed hereGrilletta v. Lexington Ins. Co. 2009 U.S. App. LEXIS 276 (5th Cir. Jan. 8, 2009)[reviewed here]), the Fifth Circuit reversed an award of summary judgment in
Insured’s Motion for Summary Judgment on Bad Faith Denied
By Tred R. Eyerly on
The insured moved for summary judgment on bad faith because of the insurer's alleged delayed and incomplete payments after Hurricane Katrina destroyed property. See Plaquemines Parish School Bd v. Indus. Risk Insurers, No. 06-7213, 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 20004 (E.D. La. March 11, 2009).
School buildings operated by the insured …
Assignee Bound by Policy’s Obligations
By Tred R. Eyerly on
We have previously discussed here, here, here, and here the validity of assigning liability policies to corporate successors without securing the insurer's consent as required by the policy. Coverage issues arise when the successor seeks benefits under the policy assigned to it by the predecessor. Although the validity of the assignment was not at issue…
Insurer Must Defend Until Jury Determines No Duty to Indemnify
By Tred R. Eyerly on
In Emhart Indus., Inc. v. Century Indemn. Co., No. 07-2806 (1st Cir. March 13, 2009)[here], the First Circuit found a duty to defend a CERCLA case until the point at which it was determined there was no duty to indemnify.
From 1944 to 1968, Metro-Atlantic operated a chemical plant at the …
Insurers Must Idemnify Where Inability to Allocate Between Covered and Uncovered Losses
By Tred R. Eyerly on
Revisiting the longstanding Stringfellow Acid Pits coverage litigation, the California Supreme Court relied on the doctrine of concurrent proximate cause as applied to the pollution exclusion to determine the insurer must indemnify for covered and uncovered claims. See State of California v. Allstate Ins. Co., S149988 (Cal. March 9, 2009)[here].
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Jury’s Determination of Bad Faith Upheld by Californa Court of Appeal
By Tred R. Eyerly on
In McCoy v. Progressive West Ins. Co., B199978 (Cal. Ct. App. Feb. 26, 2009) [here], the appellate court upheld the jury's verdict finding bad faith arising from Progressive's denial of the insured's vehicle theft claim.
In March 2004, the insured's Ford Mustang was stolen in Las Vegas. When recovered, the Mustang, …
Efficient Proximate Cause Doctrine Not Applicable In Barge Grounding
By Tred R. Eyerly on
The First Circuit recently determined the efficient proximate cause doctrine would not apply under Maine law. See First Specialty Ins. Corp. v. Am. Home Assurance Co., 2009 U.S. App. LEXIS 3943 (Feb. 27, 2009 1st Cir.).
The insured was hired to deliver a construction barge on the Merrimack River using a tug. …
Outline on Transfer of Liabilty Policies When No-Assignment Clause
By Tred R. Eyerly on
The outline on transfer of liability policies to a successor created by Rina Carmel and me for our round table presentation last week at the ABA Section of Litigation, Insurance Coverage Litigation Committee in Tucson, is here. Materials from the plenary and breakout sessions are available at the ABA Section of Litigation website