A commentary on insurance coverage issues in Hawaii and beyond
The federal district court determined the insurer had no coverage obligations for environmental damage when the injury in fact occurred long before the policy period. Alabama Gas Corp. v. Travelers Cas & Sur. Co., 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS July 16, 2013).
The predecessor of Alabama Gas Corp. manufactured gas on the property…
The Third Circuit affirmed the District Court's finding that the insurers had no duty to defend day care and youth centers for bribes and kickbacks allegedly paid to two state court judges. Markel Int'l Ins. Co. v. W. Childcare, LLC, 2013 U.S. App. LEXIS 14017 (3d Cir. July 8, 2013).
In 2009…
Having previously decided that construction defect claims did not arise from an occurrence and were consequently not covered under Hawaii law, the Hawaii Federal District Court refused to dismiss the insured's second amended counterclaim alleging various claims for relief. Ill. Nat'l Ins. Co. v. Nordic PCL Construc., Inc., 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 108932…
In an significant decision touching on a host of issues, the Hawaii Intermediate Court of Appeals (ICA) overturned the circuit court and found numerous insurers had a duty to defend its insured for bodily injury and property damage caused by the 2006 breach of the Kaloko Dam on Kauai. C. Brewer and Co., Ltd. …
In a decision authored by Judge Leslie E. Koybayashi, the U.S. District Court for the District of Hawaii followed its prior decisions that construction defect claims were not covered because such claims do not arise from an occurrence. Nautilus Ins. Co. v. 3 Builders, Inc., 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 88480 (D. Haw. June…
In addressing a certified question from the Eleventh Circuit, the Florida Supreme Court found that an insurer may not rely upon extrinsic evidence to salvage ambiguities in a policy. Wash. Nat'l Ins. Corp. v. Ruderman, 2013 Fla. LEXIS 1388 (Fla. July 3, 2013).
The case arose as a class suit against Washington…
The West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals affirmed the dismissal of plaintiffs' bad faith claim because they were not insureds under the policy. Triad Insulation, Inc. v. Nationwide Mut. Fire Ins. Co., 2013 W.Va. LEXIS 768 (W. Va. June 24, 2013).
Triad Insulation was the sole named insured under a commercial…
The court agreed with State Farm that the insureds' request for an appraisal made after the statute of limitations had run was too late. Stolz v. State Farm Fire and Cas. Co., 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 86834 (S.D. Miss. June 20, 2013).
The insureds' property sustained damage from Hurricane Katrina. State Farm…
The insured's effort to expand the California Supreme Court's decision in Montrose did not survive the Ninth Circuit's review. City of San Buenaventura v. The Insurance Company of the State of Pennsylvania, 2013 U.S. App. LEXIS13084 (9th Cir. June 26, 2013).
The City of San Buenaventura contracted with a developer to build…
The Georgia Supreme Court has determined that an "occurrence" may arise under a CGL policy even if "other property" is not damaged. Taylor Morrison Servs. v. HDI-Gerling Am. Ins. Co., 2013 Ga. LEXIS 618 (Ga. July 12, 2013).
Taylor Morrison, the insured, was a homebuilder. It was sued in a class action…
