Archive for Insurance Category
Posted In: Insurance
Time-on-the-Risk Allocation Does Not Apply to Defense Costs, Says First Circuit
In a victory for policyholders, the First Circuit has rejected an insurer’s argument that defense costs should be allocated pro rata when claims involve multiple years of continuing or progressive…
Posted In: Insurance
Pollution Insurance Coverage: What Did the Insured Know and When Did It Know It?
A new Appeals Court decision (litigated on behalf of the insureds by Anderson & Kreiger) has restored the usefulness of pollution legal liability (PLL) policies, overturning a Superior Court decision…
Posted In: Insurance
If a Tree Falls in a Forest, Is It an Occurrence?
Not If You Cut More Trees Than Called For in Your Contract. That’s Faulty Workmanship, Not an Accident, Massachusetts Appeals Court Rules; Business Risk Exclusions Also Bar Coverage. In light…
Posted In: Insurance
“If You Snooze, You Lose:” The Danger of Forgetting About Insurance When a Hazardous Waste Issue Hits
Recent hazardous waste cases make it clear that late notice can be fatal under occurrence-based policies. Environmental practitioners need to be attuned to the possibility of insurance coverage, so they can identify…
Posted In: Insurance
Massachusetts Will Require Joint and Several Allocation for Defense Costs on Long-Tail Claims, NY Federal District Court Predicts
Narragansett Electric Decision Breaks a Tie Between Massachusetts District Court Decisions The Boston Gas Defense Cost Allocation Split Boston Gas Co. v. Century Indem. Co., 454 Mass. 337, 352 (2009)…
Posted In: Insurance
National Flood Insurance and Businesses: The Price of A Clam Roll May Be Rising
The National Flood Insurance Program’s redrawing of flood maps and roll-back of flood insurance subsidies for some properties have caused an uproar from homeowners in coastal and other areas where…
Posted In: Insurance
Everybody Complains About the Weather, but Whose Fault Is It?
Earlier this week I attended a Boston Bar Association presentation on climate change and insurance. The speaker was Lindene Patton, Chief Climate Product Officer at Zurich Insurance Group. It should…
Posted In: Insurance
Pollution Coverage May Be Elusive, Even Under a Pollution Liability Policy
If you are buying insurance for a formerly polluted site, be careful – you may not be buying as much protection as you thought. A recent Superior Court decision has…
Posted In: Insurance
It Might Get Messy: Environmental Site Cleanups under Boston Gas
Judge Hillman notes in Graphic Arts Mutual Ins. Co. v. D.N. Lukens, Inc. that his interpretation of insurance obligations for long-tail claims “has the potential for creating a maelstrom of…