Jury awards Harrison County woman $825K after State Farm failed to pay
Before the trial, State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co. offered to settle the matter for $25,000, attorneys said, but the plaintiff declined.
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Insurance company not required to cover costs of replacing furnace refractory, 7th Circuit affirms
An insurer wasn’t responsible for indemnifying a Kendallville-based company for the cost of replacing an aluminum furnace refractory destroyed in an explosion, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Friday in affirming a district court’s judgment .
Artificial intelligence risk management, testing for insurers: Faegre Drinker launches new service as national organization gives guidance
Faegre Drinker has announced the launch of its algorithmic testing and AI governance and risk management service for insurers. The announcement comes as the National Association of Insurance Commissioners unanimously adopted a model AI governance bulletin.
Complex rules, costly mistakes: Why the stakes are rising in legal malpractice claims
Even as the number of legal malpractice claims has remained relatively flat, the severity of those claims continues to climb, with costlier mistakes and social inflation serving as two key factors driving the rise.
COA affirms dismissal of insurance dispute for lack of jurisdiction
A worldwide retailer’s complaint against its insurer will not continue in Indiana state court after the Court of Appeals of Indiana affirmed dismissal for lack of personal jurisdiction.
Appellate court reverses summary judgment, remands for payment in dispute between insurers
Overturning summary judgment in a dispute between insurance providers, the Court of Appeals of Indiana ruled Tuesday that the trial court erred in granting summary judgment to the insurer that hadn’t met its payment obligation.
COA: Common law duty of good faith doesn’t extend to surety-obligee relationship
The common law duty of good faith that applies to insurance does not extend to the relationship between a surety company and bond obligee, the Court of Appeals of Indiana has ruled.
City of Aurora suing insurer for coverage after paying more than $233K to fraudster
The city of Aurora is suing its insurance company in a claims dispute involving a cybercrime in which the city was tricked into sending more than $233,000 to a fraudster.
7th Circuit affirms insurance co. must pay USA Gymnastics ‘reasonable and necessary’ fees incurred from Nassar-related claims
An insurance company that balked at representing USA Gymnastics against lawsuits stemming from Larry Nassar’s sexual abuse of hundreds of female athletes has failed in its challenge to an order that it pay significant fees to the Indianapolis-based athletic organization.
Fight for COVID interruption coverage continues
Attorneys representing businesses fighting their insurance carriers over interruption insurance claims are continuing to argue over the meaning of “physical loss and damage,” but some are also contending that the losses linked to COVID-19 are covered when the policy does not contain a virus exclusion provision.
Indiana Supreme Court relies on COA analysis in ruling for insurer in drunken driving case
Adopting the efficient and predominant cause analysis, the Indiana Supreme Court has found an insurance company did not have a duty to defend two Kokomo bars and their owner who are alleged to have continued serving alcohol to an inebriated patron who subsequently got into a drunken driving accident.
On second thought, Carroll Circuit judge erases rant from original order
The Carroll County judge who claimed insurance companies have broken Indiana’s civil litigation system and begged the parties to appeal his ruling to the Indiana Supreme Court has scrubbed his original order of all but two paragraphs that state summary judgment is granted in favor of the defendants.
7th Circuit finds for insurance company in adjuster’s game of chess
A public adjuster who assured an Indiana homeowners association that the way to get a claim for storm damage processed was to play a game of chess with the insurance company, got checkmated when he failed to heed the deadline for filing a lawsuit, prompting the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals to make this observation: “Such is the price of gamesmanship.”
Angry trial judge calls for changes to civil litigation system: Insurance companies faulted for pursuing frivolous claims
By the third paragraph of the April order granting summary judgment to the defendants, Carroll Circuit Judge Benjamin Diener showed his frustration by declaring, “The civil litigation process in Indiana is broken.”
Woman in legal battle with independent insurance company has no appealable claims, COA rules
A woman who spent roughly a decade in a legal battle with her employer has had her case dismissed for a lack of appealable issues.
Ruesch: Insurance industry responses to 2020 and future trends
As the workforce continues to adapt to and accept this “new normal,” the insurance industry is also adjusting and evolving and introducing new methods of doing business that will impact in-house and outside practitioners alike. Here are some 2021 industry trends that we will likely see.
Insurance covers in wrongful death truck crash, COA rules
An endorsement to an insurance policy providing coverage for vehicles not specifically listed in the policy applied to a wrongful death dispute involving a trucker, the Indiana Court of Appeals has ruled.
Judgment for state against insurer in Lawrenceburg official’s theft reversed
The Indiana Attorney General’s Office waited too long to file claims under a crime insurance policy after a former Lawrenceburg city official absconded with more than $40,000 in misappropriated public funds, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled Thursday, finding for the insurer and reversing a trial court judgment in favor of the state.
Caesars puts pandemic losses at $2B, wants insurers to pay
Casino giant Caesars Entertainment Inc. is putting its losses because of the coronavirus pandemic in 2020 at more than $2 billion, and is suing a long list of insurance carriers it accuses of balking at paying its business interruption costs at its casinos in Indiana and across the nation.
Justices remand insurance dispute over ransomware attack coverage
Neither an insurer nor a claimant was entitled to summary judgment in a dispute over coverage of a ransomware attack, the Indiana Supreme Court has ruled, sending the case back to the trial court.