In a decision issued on February 13, the New York Court of Appeals ruled that a policy’s contractual limitations provision requiring suit to be filed within two years of a loss is “unreasonable and unenforceable” when the insured’s property cannot be reasonably replaced (as necessary to fulfill a separate condition of coverage) within the two-year limitations period ...
On Friday, January 17, 2014, the Texas Supreme Court issued its opinion in Ewing Construction Company v. Amerisure Insurance Company - holding that “a general contractor who agrees to perform its construction work in a good and workmanlike manner, without more, . . . does not ‘assume liability’ for damages arising out of its defective work so as to trigger the Contractual Liability Exclusion ...
Last December 23, the Supreme Court of Canada partially overturned the decision of the Quebec Court of Appeal in the case of Cinar Corporation v. Robinson1 and reinstated most of the conclusions of the Quebec Superior Court. BACKGROUND In the 1980s, Claude Robinson (“Robinson”) developed a project for a television series entitled “The Adventures of Robinson Curiosity” (“Robinson Curiosity”). He partnered with Pathonic to whom he had presented his project ...
A recently unsealed decision from the United States District Court for the District of Maryland demonstrates that insurers cannot hide behind the attorney-client privilege and work-product doctrine to shield claim files from discovery. The court made clear that involving counsel in claim handling does not operate to make either doctrine automatically apply. Charter Oak Fire Ins. Co. v. Am. Capital Ltd., No. 8:09-cv-100 (D. Md. Nov. 6, 2013) ...
Between 2007 and 2009 non-profit association Motor Sports Limes (MSL) hosted motocross races on a piece of land that it owned. It claimed to have taken all necessary safety precautions, including marking and securing circuit, for the races and associated events held there. According to MSL, only accredited photographers had to sign a contract with MSL, which included a clause stating that no commercial use of photos taken at the races could be made without MSL's prior consent ...
Whether you call it a “shutdown” or a “slowdown,” the lack of a fully-funded federal government is impacting more than the 800,000 federal workers furloughed since October 1.1 According to economic consulting firm, IHS Global Insight, the federal budget debacle will cost $1.6 billion per week in lost gross domestic product ...
With the publication of Law no.74/2013 of 6 September a Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) was created in Portugal. The law will come into force 90 days after the setting up of the CAS, which will be based at the Portuguese Olympic Committee (POC). In an official communication dated 13 September the POC has already announced that it will respond positively to the mandate conferred on it to set up the CAS ...
SUMMARY: 1. Principles of Belgian Sports justice – 2. The relationship between ordinary justice and Sports justice – 3. The relevant NOC regulations and NOC judicial body – 4. The relevant football regulations and RBFA judicial bodies – 5. Other sports judicial bodies – 6. Clubs’ and players’ rights and obligations – 7. Dispute settlement – 8. ADR and interim relief – Conclusion Abstract:This article aims at providing an overview of sports justice in Belgium ...
On March 1, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that $750 million of primary and excess coverage issued to Transocean Holdings, Inc. (“Transocean”) “imposes no relevant limitations upon the extent to which BP [BP American Production Company] is covered” as an additional insured in connection with the Deepwater Horizon incident in April 2010 ...
The High Court has ruled in favour of pop star Rihanna against high street clothes retailer Topshop, which used an unauthorised image of her (almost identical to one used on her CD) on some of its T-shirts.Customers had believed it was an approved image, so the High Court confirmed Topshop was guilty of passing off ...
Insurers often have a duty to settle underlying claims against their insureds. While that duty generally requires insurers to accept reasonable settlement offers, insurers and insureds alike face many other issues regarding settlement of the underlying case ...
The US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit recently held that excess insurance policies are triggered when the payment of losses exceed the attachment point rather than when the policyholder’s loss obligations exceed the attachment point. Ali v. Fed. Ins. Co., No. 11-5000-cv, 2013 WL 2396046 (2d Cir. June 4, 2013). The decision is another reminder that outcomes in insurance disputes may depend on subtle differences in the wording of insurance policies ...
On June 14, 2013, Governor Rick Perry signed legislation, which for the first time authorizes domestic captive insurers in Texas. The bill, known as SB 734, allows Texas businesses to realize the advantages, including tax benefits, of forming and operating a “pure” captive insurance company without the burden and cost associated with an out-of-state captive ...
In Louisiana Generating LLC v. Illinois Union Ins. Co., No. 12-30651 (5th Cir. May 15, 2013), the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit held that a lawsuit brought by the Environmental Protection Agency ("EPA") alleging violations of the Clean Air Act ("CAA") obligated an insurer to defend its insured ...
Another natural disaster has devastated a community. By now, all are aware of the tragedy the tornado inflicted on residents of Moore, Oklahoma, destroying lives and property. We join in offering our condolences to those affected by the storm. Although there is no way to replace lost lives, as with other catastrophes, there are likely to be a myriad of financial issues that will need to be addressed to rebuild and replace property. Maximizing insurance recoveries is one component ...
Every year, tornadoes in the United States cause dozens of fatalities and inflict billions of dollars in property damage. The EF5 tornado that struck Moore, Oklahoma on May 20 was the most powerful and destructive storm yet of the 2013 season. Although the Moore tornado is only one of 343 tornadoes already reported nationwide through May 23, more than 1300 occur annually in the United States, based on a three-year average ...
A recent posting on a popular intellectual property (IP) blog raised an issue that’s becoming increasingly important in the couch-potato / global- village world we now live in: what, if any, legal protection does a TV format enjoy? In South Africa we often watch local versions of foreign TV programs, be they ‘reality’ shows like Big Brother or Come Dine WithMe, ‘talent’ shows like Idols or Masterchef,or game shows like The Weakest L
In a recent decision by the Court of Appeal of Québec, the Honourable Jacques Chamberland, J.C.A. reviewed the application of exclusion clauses contained in a home insurance policy in the context of criminal activities1. THE FACTSThe Appellant, Union canadienne compagnie d’assurance insured the building of respondent, Mrs. Lise Houle and her spouse, Christian Alexandre. The latter was growing cannabis in the insured building ...
In recent months, high profile M&A warranty claims1 and falling premiums have dramatically increased the utilization of "representations and warranty insurance" (RWI), also known as "warranty and indemnity insurance," in mergers, acquisitions and related transactions. By one account, demand for transactional risk insurance policy limits in North America grew by eighty-six percent (86%) in 2012 ...
1 The regulator The Insurance Commission is the insurance regulator. It is a government agency under the Department of Finance. The Commission supervises and regulates the operations of insurance and reinsurance corporations, which need to be authorised ...
The decision of the Court of Appeal in the La Capitale Case has been expected since February 2012 when the Superior Court dismissed the Class Action taken against an insurer who, with the consent of the policyholder, had unilaterally modified the waiver of premiums clause in a group insurance contract2. To better understand the context, please refer to our NEWSLETTER IN JUNE 2012 following the Superior Court judgment ...
On March 1, 2013, the Court of Appeal rendered a judgment on the insurer's duty to defend and indemnify the insured in the area of commercial general liability insurance.1 It confirmed the decision of the trial judge which had held that the insurer has the duty to defend and indemnify,2 and ordered it to reimburse its insured for the amounts paid to settle the claim of a third party and the amounts incurred by the insured in defending itself against the action ...
You’ve heard of Victoria’s Secret, right! The US company is, of course, a well-known purveyor of lingerie, a product for which there is clearly a great deal of demand: Victoria’s Secret has some 1 000 stores throughout the world, and its turnover in 2010 was an impressive US$5.5 billion. In 2012 Victoria’s Secret lodged an objection to a domain name registration for www.victoriassecrets.com ...
