A commentary on insurance coverage issues in Hawaii and beyond
The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court refused to grant an injunction to the insurer to prevent a pending suit in Washington state. North Am. Elite Ins. Co. v. Space Needle, LLC, 2021 N.Y. LEXIS 6792(N.Y. App. Div. Dec. 2, 2021).
In 2019 Seattle based Space Needle, LLC procured a…
The Ohio Court of Common Pleas granted the insured's motion for summary judgment, denied the insurer's motion for summary judgment and and set the COVID-19, business interruption case for trial on damages. McKinley Dev. Leasing Co. v. Westfield Ins. Co., 2021 Ohio Misc. LEXIS 885 (Ohio Ct. Pleas Nov. 14, 2021).
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The insurer was unsuccessful in seeking to dismiss business interruption claims due to COVID-19 under a pollution policy. New York Botanical Garden v. Allied World Assur., 2021 N.Y. Misc. LEXIS 6012 (N.Y. Sup. Ct. Oct.15, 2021).
The insured was forced to cease operations after executive orders by the governor and…
The California Court of Appeal affirmed the trial court's dismissal of the insured's business interruption claim based upon COVID-19 government shutdown orders. The Inns by the Sea v. California Mut. Ins. Co., 2021 Cal. App. LEXIS 956 (Calif. Ct. App. Nov. 15, 2021). The Inns is the first state appellate court decision…
Determining that government shutdown orders during the pandemic were a physical cause of loss and finding the virus exclusion ambiguous, the court denied the insurer's motion to dismiss. Risinger Holdings v. Sentinel Ins. Co., 2021 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 192474 (D. E.D. Texas Sept. 30, 2021).
Risinger owed several orthodontic practices. It held a policy…
The federal district court denied the insurer's motion for summary judgment to dismiss the restaurant's business interruption claim because expert testimony created a factual issue on whether COVID virus particles had actually contaminated the insured's property. K.C. Hopps v. Cincinnati Ins. Co., 2021 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 179633 (W.D. Mo. Sept. 21, 2021).…
The court granted the insurer's motion for judgment on the pleadings, in part, but left the door open for the insured to pursue claims under two provisions in the policy. Monarch Casino & Resort v. Affiliated FM Ins. Co., 2021 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 179812 (D. Colo. Sept. 17, 2021).
Monarch…
While the insured failed to demonstrate direct physical loss, Crisis Event coverage was still possible. SJP Investment Partners LLC v. Cincinnati Insurance Company, 2021 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 162612 (N.D. Ala. Aug. 27, 2021).
The insured owned a hotel in Birmingham. The state's public health orders limited operations and caused temporarily…
The court denied the insurer's motion to strike class action allegations in the insureds' complaint seeking to establish business interruption claims under the insurer's policy. Legacy Gymnastics, LLC v. Arch Ins. Co., 2021 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 108242 (W.D. Mo. June 9, 2021).
In its putative class action, Legacy alleged that Arch…
After denying Society Insurance's motions to dismiss business interruption claims, the court rejected Society's motion to certify the order for an interlocutory appeal under 28 U.S.C. Sec. 1292 (b). In re Soc'y Ins. Co. COVID-19 Bus. Interruption Protection Insurance Litigation, 2021 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 111217 (N.D. Ill. June 15, 2021).
Plaintiffs…
