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Blog Posts: Insurance

April 16, 2018
Commercial contracts often require the party with less bargaining power to procure insurance for the party with more bargaining power as a way to shift risk and potential liability. General Contractors often require a Subcontractor's policy to name the General Contractor as an "Additional Insured." Lenders often require a Borrower's policy to name the Lender a...
March 28, 2018
The Holding In Hunton v. American Zurich Ins. Co., 2018 WL 1182550 (D. Ariz. Mar. 7, 2018), an insurance bad faith case arising from a workers compensation claim, the Arizona District Court excluded an Insured’s expert opinion that the Insurer’s alleged “claims handling failures” were “pervasive enough to support the conclusion that u...
March 13, 2018
The Holding  In Knightbrook Insurance Company v. Payless Car Rental System Incorporated, 2018 WL 769295 (Ariz. February 8, 2018), an insurance bad faith and equitable indemnification case arising from an auto claim, the Arizona Supreme Court answered a Certified Question from the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and held that Arizona's equitable indem...
February 22, 2018
The Award In McClure v. CC Services Inc. & Country Life Insurance Company dba Country Life Financial, an Arizona insurance bad faith case arising from a disability claim, a jury awarded $1.29 million in compensatory damages and $5 million in punitive damages. The Takeaway Although Arizona has a reputation for conservative juries—particularly Ph...
February 6, 2018
Nate Meyer and Micalann Pepe: Panel Moderators for 26th Annual Insurance Coverage Litigation Committee  Micalann Pepe will moderate for "Reasonable Settlements, Stipulated Judgments, and Primary and Excess Insurers" panel  What: Standard primary and excess liability policy provisions require insurer consent to any settlement for which the insurer will be o...
January 9, 2018
The Holding  In Cheatwood v. Christian Brothers Services, 2018 WL 287389 (D. Ariz. Jan. 4, 2018) (Unpublished) (Order), a bad faith case arising from a health benefits claim, the Arizona District Court quashed portions of the Insureds’ subpoena to a medical expert which sought:  (a) all medical review reports prepared by the medical ...
January 8, 2018
Video Transcript: Most first-party homeowners policies contain an appraisal provision. An appraisal provision is something that allows the insured and the insurer to resolve a difference about the amount of a particular loss. Most of these appraisal provisions have some common provisions. One, either party may invoke the appraisal provision by making a written req...
December 11, 2017
Although the Arizona Court of Appeals resolved this issue 20 years ago, I frequently see insureds' counsel argue that an insurer must pay the "undisputed amount" of a UM or UIM claim—and I just saw this argument last week—so this post is a refresher. The Holding In Voland v. Farmers Ins. Co. of Arizona, 189 Ariz. 448, 453, 943 P.2d 808, 813 (App. 1997)...
November 27, 2017
The Holding In Hoarau v. Safeco Ins. Co. of America, 2017 WL 3328078 (D.Ariz. August 4, 2017), the Arizona District Court denied an insured's Motion to Remand in an insurance bad faith, punitive damages, and declaratory judgment case.   The Takeaway Insurers may consider attorney fees and punitive damages when considering whether a case on the ...
November 8, 2017
The Holding  In Chukly v. American Family Mut. Ins. Co., 2017 WL 3262541 (D.Ariz. Aug. 1, 2017) (Order), a breach of contract and insurance bad faith case arising from a homeowners claim after a microburst and “massive rain,” the Arizona District Court ruled that aiding and abetting claims against a non-diverse claims manager and a non-divers...
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