Wolf Bites

CGL Coverage Excluded for Misappropriating Another’s Name, Likeness

In a decision filed August 5, 2016, the United Stated District Court for the Northern District of California, applying California law, held that a wine dealer’s commercial general liability insurance policy excludes coverage for the dealer’s misappropriation of a third …

No Advertising Injury Coverage For Sale of Counterfeit Goods

Applying New York law, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit held that there was no advertising injury indemnity insurance coverage for nearly $35 million in judgments against an off-price luxury goods vendor, insured Ashley Reed Trading, …

Federal Law Requires Disputes Over Workers’ Comp Insurance Payment Agreements be Decided by Arbitration

The highest New York state court has ruled that disputes over workers’ compensation insurance payment agreements between National Union and three California-based employer insureds must be decided by arbitration under arbitration clauses of those agreements and the Federal Arbitration Act …

Claims For P/C Broker Negligence Assignable and Enforcement by Assignee Doesn’t Depend Upon Superior Equities

A California intermediate appellate court has reaffirmed that a client’s professional negligence claim against his or her property/casualty insurance broker is freely assignable. It held, also, that the assigned rights are enforceable in court by the assignee without proof that …

Owned Vehicle Exclusion Defeats Underinsured Motorist Claim

A U.S. district court in Missouri has rejected a policyholder’s strained interpretation of an “owned vehicle exclusion” standard in the underinsured motorist (UIM) coverage of automobile policies. The case, filed January 22, 2006, is entitled Walker v. Progressive Direct Ins.Co., …

Alternate Intentional Loss Exclusion Defeats Coverage for Wrongful Death From a Single, Criminal Blow

A verbal altercation that turned into a physical confrontation between two men on May 23, 2010, in Portland, Maine led to the recent Supreme Court ruling to affirm a trial court’s decision to uphold an insurer’s summary judgment. After William …

When an Insured Vehicle Becomes an Uninsured Motor Vehicle for Injuries Sustained While Riding in it

A prototypical uninsured motor vehicle insurance claim involves an uninsured third party vehicle injuring someone in a different car that has both liability and uninsured motorist (UM) coverages. What happens when the policyholder is injured while she is a passenger …

Insurance Policy ‘Escape’ Type ‘Other Insurance’ Clause Given Short Shrift by California Court

An insurer is ordinarily free to restrict the risks it will underwrite and is responsible only for losses within the coverage wording of its policies of insurance. (Fresno Economy Import Used Cars, Inc. v. United States Fid. & Guar. Co. …

Spirits Spirited Away Covered by Insurance Despite Policy Exclusions

Travelers insured Warehouse Wine & Spirits, Inc. against risks of direct physical loss, including theft, with certain exceptions. One James Ceseretti stole more than $1 million worth of wine and liquor while he ran a warehouse for Warehouse Wines, where …

Homeowners Policy Excludes Damage From Prolonged, Unattended Water Inundation

Based on standard homeowner policy water damage exclusions, the United States District Court in Utah found no coverage for extensive damage from water escaping over several months from a sink located in the lower level of a seasonal cabin in …

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