Can You Hear (or See) Me Now? No, and that May Constitute Spoliation
2/24/16
By: Andy Treese
The Georgia Court of Appeals recently held that a municipality may be subject to sanctions for failure to preserve audio recordings of a police pursuit when the recordings were destroyed in the ordinary course of business before …
Issuing a Reservation of Rights? You May Lose Control Over Settlement
2/5/16
By: Jonathan Romvary
By reserving the right to deny coverage, insurers may be relinquishing the power to force the policyholder to forego reasonable settlement opportunities for covered claims that do not align with the goals of the insurer. In Babcock …
Insurance Application Omissions Not Enough to Rescind Policy
1/19/16
By: Kristian Smith
Insurers may need to pay closer attention to insurance applications. A Pennsylvania jury recently ruled that an insurer knew (or should have known) about omissions on an insurance application, preventing the insurer from rescinding the policy.
In …
The Tripartite Relationship: Minefield or Common Sense?
1/11/16
By: Jeremy W. Rogers
The tripartite relationship between the attorney, insurance carrier, and the insured, has been the subject of innumerable law review articles, blogs, seminar presentations, and other publications. The vast majority of these publications stress that the tripartite …
Court of Appeals Clarifies Georgia Law Regarding Insurance Policy Notice Provisions
1/6/16
By: Connor Bateman
The Georgia Court of Appeals recently ruled in Plantation Pipe Line Co. v. Stonewall Ins. Co. that an insured’s two-year delay in notifying its excess liability insurer of potential third-party claims, although untimely as a matter of …
Drug Distributors May Find Themselves Without a Defense
12/23/15
By: Michael Bruyere and Kristian Smith
Rising prescription drug abuse has put drug distributors under scrutiny in the last few years. Now, pharmaceutical companies are being sued for the economic costs associated with the epidemic, but they may not be …
Does Insurer Have Duty to Defend Non-Covered Lawsuit When Insured Proclaims Innocence?
11/23/15
By: Bill Buechner
An insurer’s duty to defend is generally determined by comparing the allegations in the complaint to the insurance policy. If the allegations in the complaint arguably or potentially bring the claim within coverage, the insurer has a …
The Risk of Calculating Risks: Insurers Beware
10/1/15
By: Phil Savrin
Creative plaintiff lawyers are always looking for ways to increase recoveries against insurance companies beyond the scope of coverage for the loss or the liability limits. Aided by the courts, insurers must traverse such landmines as timely …
Ashley Madison Hack Raises Questions of Insurable Loss
9/10/15
By: Jessica Samford
By now most everyone should be familiar with the frenzy surrounding the recent hacking of the Ashley Madison website, making headlines due to its risqué premise—adultery. Hackers known as the “Impact Team” made available for download account …
Mission: Impossible – Rogue Onions
8/20/15
By: Seth Kirby
After trailing the tractor-trailer from the shipyard to the warehouse facility, the surveillance team scrambled to obtain a view of the unloading process. Using their sophisticated camera equipment they hoped to be able to record evidence that …
6/24/15
By: Abby A. Vineyard
Last week, the Georgia Supreme Court held that, where a lawsuit involves a question as to the validity of a hospital lien for charges for a patient’s care, the patient challenging the reasonableness of the charges …
3/13/15
By: Jessica Samford
This week, a Pennsylvania man was charged with insurance fraud for buying car insurance after he had a car accident. This news sounds somewhat similar to the amusing “State of Regret” commercials State Farm ran a few …
