This author suggested, in an earlier May 2016 Bad Faith blog article, that an insurer can measure on a “strength scale” its insurance coverage defenses while it defends its insured against underlying claims and lawsuits under a reservation of rights. …

WHOSE SETTLEMENT IS IT, ANYWAY? NEGOTIATING CONSISTENT WITH AN INSURER’S STRONG COVERAGE DEFENSES Read more »

When does receipt of a pre-suit claim notice letter trigger an insurance carrier’s obligation to provide a defense and/or indemnity? In Sanders v. Phoenix Insurance Co., the First Circuit provided some guidance to this question, holding that a pre-suit notice …

First Circuit Provides Guidance as to When a Notice of Claim Triggers Policy Obligations Read more »

Georgia has a very specific law called “Holt demands” concerning time-limited demands made against a liability insurance policy. In Southern General Ins. Co. v. Holt, 262 Ga. 267, 416 S.E.2d 274 (1992), the Georgia Supreme Court held that where the …

Don’t Get Burned by a “Holt Demand” in Georgia Read more »

Insuring fine art can present challenges that are not encountered with other types of property. One of these challenges involves the application of the Visual Artists Rights Act of 1990 (17 U.S.C. §106A) (“VARA”) when artwork by a living artist …

Insuring Fine Art: The Visual Artists Rights Act and Its Bad Faith Implications Read more »

This past June the California Supreme Court issued its decision in Nickerson v. Stonebridge Life Insurance Company, 63 Cal.4th 363 (2016), holding that post-trial Brandt fees could be included in the damage calculus for purposes of evaluating the ratio of …

Nickerson Redux: Five Lessons On Punitive Damages For Bad Faith Attorneys Read more »

Can an insurer be potentially liable for breach of contract or bad faith where the insured can only plead a plausible claim of damages? The Ninth Circuit has answered “yes” in a recent decision in the case of Beverly Burton …

Ninth Circuit Finds Plausible Claim of Damages Avoids Dismissal of Bad Faith Lawsuit Read more »

Recently, once again, a California appeals court weighed in on the scope of the right to Cumis counsel and the meaning of Cal. Civil Code §2860. St. Paul Mercury Insurance Company v. McMillin Homes Construction, Inc., No. 15cv1548 JM (BLM), …

Cumis Counsel: An Insurer’s Right To Dispute Coverage Does Not Automatically Trigger A Right to Cumis Counsel Read more »

Bad faith litigation is complex and costly. In these types of cases, the discovery process often sets the initial tone of the lawsuit and the request for production of the insurer’s claim file is automatic. Typically, the insurer’s response is …

Production of Insurance Company Claim Files In Bad Faith Litigation: Three Years After Cedell, Where Are We? Read more »