The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit recently reversed summary judgment in favor of an insurer and against a mortgagee in an action involving state tort claims arising from a deadly fire in the collateral property, holding that an issue of fact existed regarding who was in possession of the property when the fire occurred.
Posts tagged as “insurance law”
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit recently affirmed the dismissal of allegations that a mortgage lender colluded with an insurance company and insurance agent to inflate the rate of the borrowers’ force-placed hazard insurance policies in violation of various consumer protection statutes, RICO, and the common law.
In an action by a lender and its affiliate to recover insurance proceeds for defense costs of a federal qui tam action and indemnification for the resulting settlement, the New York Court of Appeals recently held that an arbitration panel can reconsider an initial determination, or “partial final award,” so long as the determination or award does not resolve all of the issues submitted for arbitration.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit recently held that the failure to present the issuer of a letter of credit with draw request before the appointment of a conservator does not necessarily preclude recovery of damages by the beneficiary.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit recently reversed the dismissal of a homeowner’s claims against her hazard insurer related to its deduction for costs of labor as “depreciation” in determining its net payment for damage to the home.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit recently reversed a trial court’s certification of an injunction class, holding that the injunctive relief sought by the class was improper because the true relief sought was really damages. A copy of the opinion in AA Suncoast Chiropractic Clinic, P.A. v. Progressive American Insurance Co. is available at: Link to Opinion. In 2012, Florida’s law requiring automobile insurance policies to provide personal injury protection (“PIP”) benefits up to $10,000 was amended so that “not every injured motorist will be eligible to access all $10,000 in benefits.” Coverage is capped at $2,500…
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit recently held that a borrower’s claims concerning lender-placed insurance practices were barred by res judicata, because the alleged practices were the subject of a class action suit in which the borrower was a class member who was provided notice of the settlement and did not object to the settlement. However, the Eighth Circuit also concluded that the servicer failed to establish that the statute of frauds barred the borrower’s claims concerning an alleged contract for interest rate reduction. A copy of the opinion in Calon v. Bank of America, NA is…
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit recently affirmed a trial court’s order certifying a class of Arkansas homeowners against an insurer that improperly withheld amounts for labor depreciation when paying covered property damage claims under their insurance policies. A copy of the opinion in Stuart v. State Farm Fire and Casualty Company is available at: Link to Opinion. A putative class of Arkansas homeowners (“insureds”) sued their insurer alleging that between Nov. 21, 2008 and Dec. 6, 2013 the insurer improperly withheld labor depreciation costs when paying insureds for covered property damage under their insurance policies. The insureds…
Reversing the rulings of the trial court and intermediate appellate court, the Supreme Court of Wisconsin recently concluded that a fire which spread across several properties was a single ‘occurrence’ for purposes of the commercial general liability policy, and not a new ‘occurrence’ each time the fire crossed a property line. By determining that the fire was a single ‘occurrence’ under the policy, the policy’s reduced per-occurrence limit for property damage “due to fire, arising from logging or lumbering operations” under its incorporated endorsement, rather than its higher aggregate limit, applied. A copy of the opinion in Ecura Insurance v. Lyme…
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit recently affirmed the dismissal of a bank’s lawsuit against its insurer for breach of contract and bad faith denial of coverage, holding that the insurance policy’s exclusion for any claim based upon or arising from fees or charges applied to the facts alleged. The bank argued that the primary sources of the claims against it concerned the bank’s policies and procedures, which were not the subject of a policy exclusion. However, the Court held the insurer was not required to defend or indemnify the bank for the underlying $24 million settlement…
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit recently held that a liability insurance policy that broadly excluded coverage for invasion of privacy claims also excluded coverage for claims for violations of the federal Telephone Consumer Protection Act. A copy of the opinion in L.A. Lakers v. Federal Ins. Co. is available at: Link to Opinion. In 2012, a class action complaint was filed against the Los Angeles Lakers for allegedly sending text messages using an automatic telephone dialing system in violation of the TCPA, 47 U.S.C. § 227, et seq. The Lakers asked their insurer to defend them against…