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As discussed in an article Zelle drafted in November 2023, "Viewpoint: Non-renewal, Cancellation, Reformation and Rescission of Insurance Policies in Texas", an insurer that wishes to rescind an insurance policy on the basis...more
In a win for Wiley’s client, a New Jersey appellate court, applying New Jersey law, affirmed a trial court’s decision rescinding four lawyer’s professional liability policies because of material misrepresentations made in the...more
The dispute arose when USA Underwriters rescinded an auto insurance policy due to material misrepresentation, rendering the policy void ab initio (from inception). Another insurance company, acting as the uninsured motorist...more
Most pandemic-related businesses interruption insurance claims failed because policyholders could not show a direct physical loss. But some California courts issued conflicting decisions. The California Supreme Court has now...more
The United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida has held that an insurer was entitled to rescind a professional liability insurance company where the insured architecture firm made multiple material...more
The United States District Court for the Central District of California, applying California law, has held that an insured behavioral health center’s material misrepresentations on an application and its prior knowledge...more
The United States District Court for the Central District of California, applying California law, has held that an insurer may rescind a policy issued to a law firm where the firm failed to disclose, when applying for...more
A 2021 survey by Finder.com reveals that roughly 15% of Americans admit to lying on a life insurance application. While significantly lower than the incidence of lying when procuring other types of insurance (auto, 29% and...more
An insured applies for a life insurance policy, answering “no” to all medical and health-related questions. She dies within two years of her application, and the insurer discovers she was in fact diagnosed with cancer two...more
The Southern District of New York federal confirmed an arbitral award related to a credit insurance policy claim over claims of manifest disregard of the law related to the materiality of misrepresentations in the insurance...more
QBE Seguros brought a successful action declaring a marine insurance policy was void ab initio under the doctrine of uberrimae fidei and the breach of the warranty of truthfulness in the application for insurance....more
American Nat'l Prop. & Cas. Co. v. Felix, No. 3:16-CV-147, 2018 WL 1747697 (W.D. Pa. Apr. 11, 2018) - When a fire destroyed defendant Daniel Felix’s home, he sought coverage under his American National homeowner’s...more
In this episode of OnRisk, K&L Gates attorneys Carolyn Branthoover and Max Louik discuss the misrepresentation defense, also known as the rescission defense, a defense that insurers have been aggressively pursuing in recent...more
When is a misrepresentation material on an application for insurance coverage? The Ninth Circuit affirmed a decision from the Central District of California, finding that an answer on an application for D&O insurance was a...more
Contingency fee multipliers increase attorney fee awards substantially. The general custom in American law is that each party is responsible for his or her own attorney’s fees, regardless of the outcome of the action. See...more
John Cordell Young, Jr. put Progressive on notice of a claim for the theft of his missing motor home, which was later found submerged in a canal with a pole wedged against the accelerator. Progressive’s investigation turned...more
The rescission of an insurance policy is one of the most underutilized tools in handling insurance claims. If used properly, it unwinds the insurance transaction and the parties are restored to their position prior to the...more
Two federal appellate courts have affirmed, on different grounds, the cancellation of large life insurance policies that were alleged to be stranger originated life insurance (STOLI), permitting the issuing insurers to retain...more
The North Carolina Court of Appeals recently released an unpublished opinion further illuminating how insurers can effectively cancel worker's compensation policies. However, nothing in the case limits its application solely...more