Insurers Reach the Summit: N.Y. Court of Appeals Reverses K2, Says Exclusions Not Lost in Breach of Duty to Defend

After granting reargument, the New York State Court of Appeals reversed its previous decision finding that the rule of stare decisis must govern and that the court erred by failing to take account of controlling precedent in Servidone Const. Corp. v. Sec. Ins. Co. of Hartford. In that previous decision, K2-I, the court arguably rewrote New York law by adopting a minority position that recognized the doctrine of coverage by estoppel ruling that where an insurer breaches its duty to defend, it has …

Continue Reading