Despite some early rulings across the country that were adverse to policyholders, a recent ruling from a federal judge in Kansas City could be the first of many upcoming rulings in support of the business interruption policyholders’ claims against their insurers related to COVID-19. In Studio 417 Inc. et al v. The Cincinnati Insurance Co.,…
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The Houston Rockets might be back at it in a big way with James Harden’s 49 points against the Dallas Mavericks, but the organization and the operators of the Toyota Center are embarking on a new challenge—fighting for business interruption coverage related to COVID-19 shutdowns. The new complaint filed on July 15, 2020, in Rhode…
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COVID-19 business interruption insurance litigation is certainly heating up. On July 14, 2020, a Pennsylvania federal judge declined a summary judgment motion filed by the insured, Windber Hospital, against Travelers Property Casualty Co. of America (“Travelers”), the insurer (see Winber Hospital, et al. v. Travelers Property Casualty Co. of America, case number 3:20-cv-00080, in the…
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The Texas Supreme Court is on a roll for policyholders! We recently reported on the Barbara decision where the Texas Supreme Court upheld extra-contractual claims of insureds even after an appraisal award was paid by the insurer (read more about it on our previous article here) and three cases that followed (you can learn about those…
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The world of COVID-related business interruption litigation changes rapidly, particularly with regard to class pleadings. A Pennsylvania proposed class action filed against an Erie Insurance Exchange seeking coverage related to COVID-19 was voluntarily dismissed by the restaurant plaintiff, Sieb’s Pub. The plaintiff alleged it suffered business income loss as a result of COVID-19 and its…
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Given the nationwide momentum in COVID-19 related BI claims, it is important to keep an eye on the classes on-file and how courts deal with the insurers’ arguments to strike them. In Germack v. The Dentists Insurance Co., case number 2:20-cv-00661, in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington, the insurer, The…
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The business interruption litigation arena is heating up and a recent Pennsylvania Supreme Court decision certainly has the potential to advance the ball for policyholders seeking coverage for lost business income and extra expense as a result of COVID-19 even though it did not involve an insurance dispute. In Friends of DeVito, et al. v….
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Generally, insurance contracts will include a “duty to defend”, which gives an insurer both the right and obligation to defend a policyholder against lawsuits. To determine whether this duty exists, Texas courts use the “eight-corners rule”. This rule limits courts to the terms of the policy and the pleadings against the insured when deciding whether…
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One source of protection for policyholders is the Texas Prompt Payment of Claims Act (TPPCA), which places various deadlines on an insurance company’s claims processing. In order to encourage that claims are timely paid, the TPPCA penalizes insurers who break those deadlines. Recently, the Texas Supreme Court decided several cases which raised the question of…
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With a record number of Americans filing for unemployment (about 3.3m) amid the COVID-19 crisis, the economic fallout is beginning to be felt by employers and employees alike. Now more than ever, business owners should be analyzing their financial health and determining what course of action to take going forward, particularly in the short term….
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