Goldberg Segalla, Author at The Insurance & Reinsurance Report

May 25, 2018 General

Insurance Companies May Get the Last Say Regarding Arming Teachers

Three months after the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting, and just days after the Santa Fe High School shooting, the debate continues to rage over whether the presence of armed teachers and/or officers would increase school safety, or just increase the risk of a shooting.

The idea’s not new – arming teachers was the subject of serious debate after the 2012 Sandy Hook massacre, but the idea was quickly shut down in most areas by insurers. Now, the spotlight is on it again. Attempts …

May 22, 2018 Uncategorized

Introducing Timely Notice: What’s New and Exciting in Insurance Law

Timely Notice is your on-the-go source for sharp takes and expert analysis of the latest trends, breaking news, and sea-changes in global insurance law and the insurance marketplace.

With episodes hosted by Goldberg Segalla partners, including Jonathan Schwartz and Sharon Angelino, Timely Notice offers intelligent insights, frequently delivered, and in easy-to-digest episodes you can access any time. The podcast will feature discussions with outside and in-house counsel, claims professionals, underwriters, brokers, and other insurance industry professionals. Whether you listen on your work-week commute, while …

May 22, 2018 Policy Conditions, Considerations, Construction, and Formation

A Window Opens? Are Defective Product Construction Defect Claims Covered Under Pennsylvania Law?

A recent decision from a Pennsylvania court highlights tension in Pennsylvania law regarding whether a construction defect claim involving consequential damages caused by a defective product involves a covered “occurrence.” Sapa Extrusions, Inc. v. Liberty Mut. Ins. Co., 2018 WL 2045496 (M.D. Pa. May 1, 2018).

In this coverage action, the insured, a window frame manufacturer, sought a declaratory judgment that it was owed coverage for an underlying action brought by a customer that used the window frames to manufacture windows. The customer alleged …

May 11, 2018 Automobile Coverage

Illinois Supreme Court Puts the Brakes on Named Driver Exclusion

The Illinois Supreme Court held in Thounsavath v. State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co., 2018 IL 122558, that an insurer cannot rely on a named driver exclusion to deny underinsured motorist coverage to its insured because the exclusion is unenforceable under Illinois’ mandatory automobile insurance statutory scheme and the state’s public policy.

State Farm provided automobile liability and uninsured motorist (UM)/underinsured motorist (UIM)coverage to Thounsavath, which contained a named driver exclusion stating no liability shall attach “while any motor vehicle is operated by …

April 16, 2018 Policy Conditions, Considerations, Construction, and Formation

Insurer Obligated to Provide Coverage for DWI Accident Resulting from Fundraising Event

In Philadelphia Indemnity Insurance Company v. Central Terminal Restoration Corp., 2018 WL 992312 (2d Cir. 2018), the Second Circuit found coverage existed for a car accident which resulted from the overserving of alcohol to a patron at an event because it held that the ensuing consequences were unintentional.

On April 1, 2013, Central Terminal Restoration Corp. (CTRC) held a fundraising event in association with Dyngus Day, a traditional post-Easter festival that attracts tens of thousands of Polish Americans to Buffalo, New York. In connection …

April 5, 2018 Environmental

NY’s Highest Court Holds “Unavailability Exception” Unavailable for Pro Rata Allocation

Policyholders must pick up the tab for pollution claims in years when insurance was unavailable for those risks, the New York Court of Appeals ruled on March 27, 2018. In the closely-watched case KeySpan Gas East Corp. v. Munich Reinsurance Am., Inc., the first-impression ruling decisively decided the applicability of the “unavailability” rule in policies that mandate pro rata allocation in the context of continuous environmental contamination and other “long-tail” claims implicating many policy periods.

Under standard pro-rata allocation, the policyholder, rather than the …

April 5, 2018 Policy Conditions, Considerations, Construction, and Formation

A Divided Court Finds Additional Insured Coverage is Enforceable Across New York

On March 27, 2018, the New York Court of Appeals, in a matter of first impression for the state’s highest court, held that a direct contract was required to confer automatic additional insured status under common policy language. Gilbane Bldg. Co./TDX Constr. Corp. v. St. Paul Fire & Marine Ins. Co., 143 A.D.3d 146 (1st Dep’t 2016), aff’d, __N.Y.3d__, 2018 WL 1473553 (Mar. 27, 2018).

Many standard blanket additional endorsements often confer additional insured status on entities “with whom” the named insured has …

April 2, 2018 Regulatory

The Current Status of Brexit: Ramifications for the Global Insurance Industry

What is Brexit and What are its Legal Ramifications for the UK?

The 28 nation “single market” received a stunning blow when the UK voted, in a referendum on June 23, 2016, to terminate its membership and, subsequently, its passport-free, duty-free, trade and other advantages.

From a legal perspective, under the January 2017 Miller decision by UK’s Supreme Court, Parliament has the right to thwart Brexit by the court’s affirmation that the Brexit referendum is not legally binding until Parliament ratifies the outcome of the …

March 22, 2018 Cyberinsurance

Better Late Than Never — Time to Get Those Cybersecurity Certifications of Compliance into NYDFS

If you are an individual or company regulated by the New York State Department of Financial Services (NYDFS), you may have received an email from NYDFS reminding you to submit your Certification of Compliance as soon as possible. New York’s relatively new cybersecurity regulation, 23 NYCRR 500 (the Regulation), requires all people and companies covered by the Regulation (Covered Entities) to file an annual statement by February 15 certifying that the entity was compliant (Certification of Compliance) with the Regulation as of December 31 of …

March 15, 2018 General

New Wave of Products and Other Challenges to State Insurance Regulators: Reflections from ACI 14th Annual National Forum

The 14^th annual National Forum on Insurance Regulation, sponsored by American Conference Institute, convened in New York City on March 7-8, 2018. This yearly event is a great opportunity to learn about emerging issues and recent developments in state insurance regulation from leaders of the insurance industry. This year’s Forum brought together senior officials of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC); state insurance commissioners; Chief Legal Officers of leading U.S. insurers, reinsurers and brokers; founders and CEOs from InsureTech startups; experts in the …