A commentary on insurance coverage issues in Hawaii and beyond
Whether an exclusion for coverage of bodily injury to an employee of "the insured" applied to an additional insured was the issue in James McHugh Construction Co. v. Zurich Am Ins. Co., 2010 Ill. App. LEXIS 318 (Ill. Ct. App. April 13, 2010).
McHugh, the general contractor, hired JMS Electric, Inc. to…
Check out today's postover at hawaiioceanlaw.com where my Damon Key colleague, Mark Murakami, discusses a Katrina-related case in which the insured refused to accept the insurer's choice of defense counsel. The choice was risky because the Second Circuit relieved the insurer of having to pay defense costs.
The following guest post on surety bonds is provided by Kevin Kaiser of Surety Bonds.com, a nationwide bonding agency dedicated to educating people about surety bonds through their Surety Bond Education Program. (http://www.suretybonds.com/edu/). Five questions about bonds follow and are answered by Kevin.
1) What is a Surety Bond and How is…
The issue in Fabozzi v. Lexington Ins. Co., 2010 U.S. App. LEXIS 7040 (2nd Cir. April 6, 2010), was whether the limitations period for suit against the insurer was triggered when damage to the insureds' home occurred or when all the conditions precedent to filing suit had been met.
When first issuing…
Valuing an insured's "net worth" for determining eligibility for benefits under the Hawai`i Insurance Guaranty Association Act was before the court in C. Brewer and Company, Ltd. v. Hawaii Insurance Guaranty Assoc., 2010 Haw. App. LEXIS 200 (Haw. Ct. App. April 28, 2010).
C. Brewer bought excess workers' compensation insurance coverage from…
The court considered the validity of a contractual provision to provide insurance when the indemnity clause was deemed invalid. See Travelers Lloyds Ins. Co. v. Pacific Employers Ins. Co., 2010 U.S. App. LEXIS 7113 (5th Cir. April 6, 2010).
The landlord, The Centre, leased commercial property to the tenant, Best Buy Stores, Inc. Pursuant to the…
Whether a duty to defend was triggered by allegations of the failure to disclose a chemical's dangerous characteristics was the issue in Shell Chemical L.P. v. Discover Prop. & Cas. Ins. Co., 2010 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 30143 (S.D. Tex. March 29, 2010).
Mission Petroleum was an interstate carrier delivering naphtha to one…
After being sued in a personal injury action, Marc-Scot Realty (property owner) and Willie Construction, sought a defense as additional insureds under Arch Builder's (general contractor) liability policy. See Marc-Scot Realty Corp v. Praetorian Ins. Co., 2010 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 29380 (E.D. N.Y. March 26, 2010).
The court agreed Willie Construction was an…
The insureds originally had flood coverage with Allstate. See Dennis v. Fidelity Nat. Prop. and Cas. Ins. Co., 2010 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 28759 (March 25, 2010). To reduce their premiums, the insureds requested their agent, Lyons Insurance, Inc., to obtain a new flood insurance policy on their home in May 2007. The insureds did not submit the required elevation…
In a brief opinion, a New York court found the insured contract provision ambiguous. See Majawalla v. Utica First Ins. Co., 2010 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 2510 (N.Y. App. Div. March 23, 2010).
Yashi Associates leased a store location to the insured. The lease required the lessee to maintain liability insurance for the…
