Jeffrey L. Kingsley, Author at The Insurance & Reinsurance Report

October 22, 2012 Policy Conditions, Considerations, Construction, and Formation

Ohio Supreme Court Finds Defective Construction is Not an ‘Occurrence’

Westfield Ins. Co. v. Custom Agri Sys., Inc.
(Ohio Oct. 16, 2012)

The Ohio Supreme Court finally addressed whether faulty workmanship constitutes an “occurrence” that triggers coverage under a CGL policy, and decided that it does not.

Younglove Construction entered into a contract with PSD Developments, wherein it agreed to construct a feed-manufacturing plant in Sandusky, Ohio. Younglove filed suit in federal court against PSD after PSD withheld payment. In its answer, PSD alleged that it sustained damages as a result of defects in a …

October 9, 2012 Policy Conditions, Considerations, Construction, and Formation

Court Reinstates Policy, Finds Application Ambiguous

Great Am. Ins. Co. v. Christy
(N.H. Sept. 28, 2012)
An attorney in a two-partner law firm confessed to forging documents to misappropriate money from a client’s estate. The attorney entered into a settlement agreement with the estate in April 2007, setting forth a payment plan for the attorney to satisfy his obligations to the estate. A month later, the second partner at the law firm executed a renewal application for professional liability coverage on behalf of the law firm. Question 6(a) on the renewal …

October 1, 2012 Reinsurance

Whether Reinsurance Intermediary Entitled to Annual Fee After Reinsured Changed Brokers Mid-Year is a Matter for Trial

Homeowners Choice, Inc. v. Aon Benfield, Inc.
(N.D. Ill., September 10, 2012)

Homeowners Choice Property and Casualty Insurance Company (Homeowners Insurance) is a subsidiary of Homeowners Choice, Inc. (Homeowners Choice). Homeowners Insurance signed a broker authorization contract (contract) with Aon Benfield (Aon) designating Aon as its broker of record beginning July 1, 2007. On March 31, 2009, the parties entered into a revenue-sharing agreement so that Aon would pay Homeowners Choice a portion of commissions that it received from Homeowner Insurance’s reinsurance placements. In March …

September 19, 2012 Policy Conditions, Considerations, Construction, and Formation

Insurers Forced to Cover Policyholder for Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) Violations

Owners Insurance Co. v. European Auto Works, Inc.,
(8^th Cir. Sept 17, 2012)
In this case, the plaintiff insurer brought a declaratory judgment action seeking an order stating that it owed no coverage to the defendant policyholder in the underlying case. In the underlying case, the defendant auto repair company faced a state court action brought by Percic Enterprises, Inc, which alleged violations of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) for sending unsolicited fax advertisements. The policyholder faxed out 5,000 unsolicited “junk” faxes to …

September 17, 2012 Reinsurance

Reinsurer Avoids Asbestos Defense Costs

Pacific Employers Insurance Co. v. Global Reinsurance Corp. of America
(3d Cir. Sept. 7, 2012)
On September 7, 2012, the US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit reversed a lower court ruling holding Global Reinsurance Corp. (Global) accountable for $1 million in asbestos litigation costs paid by Pacific Employers Insurance Co. (Pacific), finding that Pacific did not promptly notify Global.

The court said that Pacific was obligated to notify Global of the asbestos suits facing manufacturing company Buffalo Forge Co. as soon as Pacific …

September 7, 2012 Uncategorized

New Look, New Features — Same Great Insight and Analysis

The Insurance and Reinsurance Report welcomes our current subscribers and new readers to our newly enhanced blog. If you are not already subscribed to the blog, you can do so by entering your email address on the right hand side. Current subscribers will continue to receive notifications on all new blog posts and discussions. The Insurance and Reinsurance Report will continue to give readers timely and comprehensive analysis of legal and regulatory developments, news, and other critical information impacting the global insurance and reinsurance industries. …

August 29, 2012 Policy Conditions, Considerations, Construction, and Formation

No Coverage for Not-For-Profit Accused of Selling Body Parts

Evanston Insurance filed a declaratory judgment complaint seeking a declaration that it did not owe coverage to its insured, Legacy of Life, in an underlying suit which accused Legacy of Life of selling body parts despite being a nonprofit company which engages in organ donation. The plaintiff in the underlying complaint claimed that Legacy of Life sold her mother’s remains to another company at a profit. The woman claimed that Legacy of Life approached her while her mother was in the hospital and asked to …

August 13, 2012 Excess Insurance

California Supreme Court Adopts All-Sums-With-Stacking Approach in Major Policyholder Victory

State of California v. Continental Ins. Co. (Cal. Aug. 9, 2012)
In a much-anticipated decision, the Supreme Court of California ruled last week that several excess insurers were obligated to indemnify the State of California for all sums relating to the clean-up of the Stringfellow Acid Pits waste site, regardless of whether the damage occurred during the insurers’ policy periods. The court also held that the State could stack its policies from multiple years to maximize recovery.

The State sought indemnity from several insurers that …

July 31, 2012 Uncategorized

Colorado Secular, For-Profit Employer Granted Temporary Injunction From ACA Contraception Rule

Newland v. Sebelius
U.S. Dist. Ct., Dist. of Colorado, July 27, 2012

The plaintiff in this case is a for-profit, secular employer, that adheres to the Catholic denomination of the Christian faith. The company directors “seek to run Hercules in a manner that reflects their sincerely held religious beliefs” and have implemented within the company a program designed to build their corporate culture based on Catholic principles.

Because the Catholic Church condemns the use of contraception, the company’s self-insured plan does not cover abortifacent drugs, …

July 30, 2012 Uncategorized

Fourth Circuit: No Coverage for Defrocked Priest’s Sexual Abuse

Ranta v. Catholic Mut. Relief Soc’y of Am.

(4^th Cir. (S.C.) July 24, 2012)
The Fourth Circuit recently upheld a denial of coverage to a Catholic priest accused of sexually abusing the plaintiff, finding that the molestation did not amount to an “occurrence” within the meaning of the policy.

The plaintiff filed suit against Wayland Yoder Brown, a defrocked Catholic priest and convicted pedophile, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Savannah, and the Diocese’s former and current bishops, alleging that Brown sexually molested, raped, and …