Publications

Recently, in Mt. Hawley Ins. Co. v. East Perimeter Pointe Apts.,1 the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the denial of liability coverage for negligent security claims involving an assault and murder at an apartment complex in Georgia, finding that the insured owner of the complex and its property management firm waited too long to notify their […]

The 10th Circuit Court of Appeals, applying Colorado law, recently extended Colorado’s broad application of the phrase “arising out of” in insurance interpretation, barring an insured real estate developer from receiving a defense to a suit alleging liability for construction of a defective retaining wall and associated resulting damage.1  The decision also included a questionable […]

Presented by Saxe Doernberger & Vita, P.C.’s (“SDV”)1 Natural Disaster Recovery Group2 Authored by Kelly A. Johnson3 The devastating extreme cold weather event in Texas often referred to as Winter Storm Uri, which lasted from February 14 to February 18, 2021, caused significant damages to homes and businesses in the region. Temperatures during the winter storm […]

A bill that would amend the the wage and hour requirements of the New York Labor Law was recently passed by the New York State Legislature and is expected to be signed by Governor Cuomo. Bill Number S2766C (the “Bill”) is intended to protect construction workers against wage theft. However, it places a heavy burden […]

Recently, Theresa A. Guertin published a chapter in the 2021 Construction Law Update. This chapter provides an overview of indemnification agreements, the critical lines of insurance coverage most commonly purchased by construction industry players (builder’s risk, commercial general liability (CGL), excess/umbrella, automobile liability, and workers’ compensation), and some significant issues associated with each line of […]

The high-profile cyberattack on Colonial Pipeline Company is a poignant reminder of the new and ever-evolving risks corporate policyholders face. In addition to the risk of loss or damage from conventional causes, such as physical damage to property and equipment, companies must also contemplate their exposure to losses involving electronic transactions and electronically stored information. […]

Co-authored by Chad Hall, RT Specialty. 1. Understanding the “Products-Completed Operations Hazard” ISO commercial general liability (“CGL”) policies use the term “products-completed operations hazard” (“PCOH”) to define a category of risk which is treated specially by certain exclusions within the policy and often subject to separate limits of insurance. In construction, we think about PCOH […]

In Berkley Assurance Company v. Hunt Construction Group, Inc., 465 F.Supp.3d 370 (S.D.N.Y., 2020), professional liability insurer Berkley sued its insured, Hunt, a construction management firm, seeking a declaration that it did not owe Hunt a duty to defend and indemnify against breach of contract claims. The United States District Court for the Southern District of […]

David G. Jordan and Samantha M. Oliveira are regular contributors to the Construction Law Handbook, Chapter 17.  Click here to purchase.

Contract exclusions are common fixtures in directors and officers liability policies; however, they can be broadly interpreted to eliminate valuable coverage. The purpose of this Practice Note is to assist policyholders in identifying whether their policies contain a contract exclusion and providing them practical recommendations to assist in negotiating more favorable language in their policies. […]

In a significant victory for policyholders, the Northern District of Illinois has found a duty to defend under a commercial general liability (“CGL”) policy for damages related to COVID-19. In reaching this decision, the court made several significant findings regarding the scope and interpretation of “damages,” “because of,” and “bodily injury” in the context of […]

After suffering historically destructive fires in 2018, California endured five of the six largest fires in state history in 2020. Nearly 10,000 fires burned over 4.2 million acres making 2020 the most significant California wildfire season on record. Sadly, a recent study from Stanford University2 predicts that the frequency and potency of these fires will only […]