In the home health care business? Whether a franchisor, franchisee, or independent agency, beware of bodily injury exclusions in professional liability policies that could eliminate coverage for otherwise covered claims....more
In a win for Wiley’s client, a Florida federal court held that a professional services exclusion barred coverage for underlying litigation arising out of the insured’s faulty DNA analysis services. A DNA laboratory provided...more
The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, applying California law, has affirmed a district court’s determination that California Insurance Code § 533 barred indemnity and defense costs coverage for a lawsuit...more
This is the first in a series of articles addressing critical issues in risk management and insurance for skilled nursing facilities. Owners and operators of skilled nursing facilities know that a claim or lawsuit against...more
The United States District Court for the Central District of California, applying California law, has held that a lending exclusion in a bankers professional liability policy barred coverage for underlying lawsuits alleging...more
In 2015, Continental Casualty Company issued a commercial general liability policy to Zongwei Shen dba Nobles Massage Spa. The policy covered Shen (the spa owner) and Zhong Xin (the spa manager and Shen’s wife) for damages...more
The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, applying Michigan law, granted a primary insurer’s motion to dismiss, determining that a professional liability policy required potential claims to be...more
The United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, applying New Jersey law, has held that the series-qualifier (and not the last-antecedent) canon of construction applied in an insurance coverage dispute, such that...more
The California Court of Appeal, applying California law, has affirmed a trial court’s decision dismissing claims with prejudice against two excess carriers for the insureds’ failure to allege exhaustion of the underlying...more
The United States District Court for the Middle District of Georgia, applying Georgia law, has held that an insurer had no obligation to pay a judgment against its insured in an underlying personal injury lawsuit because the...more
The Appellate Court of Maryland, applying Maryland law, has held that an insurer had no duty to defend or indemnify an insured under a professional liability policy containing a contractual liability exclusion for a lawsuit...more
A Connecticut state court has held that an insurer owes no coverage to an insured law firm that misrepresented its prior knowledge of a potential malpractice claim to be filed by a former client. Evans & Lewis, LLC v. Nat’l...more
The Superior Court of New Jersey, Appellate Division, applying New Jersey law, has held that a professional liability policy afforded no coverage for a lawsuit alleging sexual misconduct because the insured had knowledge of...more
The United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida, applying Florida law, has held that a Business Enterprise exclusion in a professional liability policy barred coverage for claims brought against a law firm...more
The United States District Court for the District of New Jersey, applying New Jersey law, granted an insurer’s motion for summary judgment, finding that an insured’s claim related back to a prior policy period when the...more
An Ohio federal court, applying Ohio law, has held that a letter threatening a bad faith action against an insured insurance company did not constitute a “Claim” for the purposes of the company’s errors and omissions...more
Dominance was the theme of this year’s NCAA basketball tournament, with the UConn men’s team winning back-to-back championships and the South Carolina women’s team reclaiming the title with a perfect record. But let’s not...more
The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, applying New York law, has held that a letter asserting legal liabilities and threatening litigation constitutes a claim first made prior to the policy period. The...more
The United States District Court for the Central District of California, applying California law, has held that wrongful business practices and wrongful death lawsuits against a nursing facility both alleging understaffing by...more
The United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida, applying Florida law, has held that a law firm was not entitled to coverage under a professional liability policy for claims involving its allegedly...more
In this month’s insurance update, we address: •Whether opioid suits allege an occurrence - •Whether the recurring presence of wild turkeys is “infestation” - •Whether improper copying of an industry publication was in...more
The United States District Court for the Central District of California, applying California law, has held that an underlying pleading sufficiently alleged that an individual was sued in an insured capacity as an officer of...more
In a win for Wiley’s client, the California Court of Appeal, applying California law, affirmed the grant of an insurance tower’s motion for summary judgment, finding that an investment advisor’s unauthorized copying of a...more
A Pennsylvania federal court, applying Pennsylvania law, held that a policy’s Wage and Hour Violation exclusion applied to the entirety of underlying class actions that alleged the insured employer schemed to underpay its...more
In a win for Wiley’s clients, the Fourth Circuit has held that a federal indictment containing a criminal forfeiture allegation does not constitute a “claim” under a law firm’s professional liability policy because a...more