Pollution Exclusion Applicable When Underlying Suit Alleges Exposure To Migrating Vapors
Posted on Mar 4, 2015 in Litigation | Comments Off on Pollution Exclusion Applicable When Underlying Suit Alleges Exposure To Migrating Vapors
The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas granted summary judgment last week to an insurer finding it had no duty to defend a case brought against its insured for damages allegedly caused by vapors emitted from spray polyurethane foam (“SPF”) insulation. The insurer had issued a commercial general liability policy to the manufacturer of the insulation....
Federal Court Rejects “Stacking” Consecutive Insurance Policies But Applies Highest Coverage Limit
Posted on Feb 23, 2015 in Construction, Litigation | Comments Off on Federal Court Rejects “Stacking” Consecutive Insurance Policies But Applies Highest Coverage Limit
The Insured operated a New Mexico brine well facility involved in solution mining of salt from brine water from 1995 to 2008. In a state court lawsuit, a neighboring property owner sued the Insured for property damage caused by the mining operation (specifically, damages caused when the roof of the underground cavern caused by the mining operation collapsed). The underlying lawsuit...
Know What It Takes For Contract Clauses To Be Conspicuous Where Required
Posted on Feb 17, 2015 in Construction, Litigation | Comments Off on Know What It Takes For Contract Clauses To Be Conspicuous Where Required
Company A’s predecessor entered into a contract with Company B’s predecessor to build a water pipeline and A promised B indemnity for claims resulting from A’s work. While building the water pipeline, Company A accidentally hit a methanol pipeline and caused a leak that was not discovered for more than 20 years when the owner of the methanol pipeline had to pay for...
Adjuster’s Only Duty To Insurer And Not To Insured Manufacturer Following Workplace Incident
Posted on Feb 12, 2015 in Construction, Litigation | Comments Off on Adjuster’s Only Duty To Insurer And Not To Insured Manufacturer Following Workplace Incident
An employee of a staffing agency was critically injured while working at an assembly plant when he was pulled into a laser cutting machine. The worker brought suit against the plant owner (the “Insured”). The Insured forwarded the complaint to its Insurer. The Insurer then assigned the task of handling the complaint to its Adjuster. The Adjuster notified the Insured...
Safety Guard Designed To Be Periodically Removable Creates Question Of Fact On Design Defect Claims
Posted on Feb 3, 2015 in Construction, Litigation, Product Liability | Comments Off on Safety Guard Designed To Be Periodically Removable Creates Question Of Fact On Design Defect Claims
The workers’ compensation insurer of an injured worker’s employer brought product liability and negligence claims to recoup insurance payments made to the worker who sustained significant injuries when being cut by a large table saw. The saw had been sold with a plastic blade guard but the guard was not in place at the time of the incident. Last week, the U.S. District...
State’s Workers’ Compensation Law Contains Conflicting Provisions For Protecting Subcontractors
Posted on Jan 24, 2015 in Construction, Litigation | Comments Off on State’s Workers’ Compensation Law Contains Conflicting Provisions For Protecting Subcontractors
The Court of Appeals of Texas recently considered whether the Texas Workers’ Compensation Act (TWCA) bars suit against an independent subcontractor whose employees were covered by the general contractor’s workers’ compensation insurance policy. The court, after determining that two provisions of the TWCA are in conflict, failed to answer the question and instead...
FEATURED
The Crisis Response & Incident Investigation Team at Eversheds Sutherland has substantial experience in guiding companies through crises, big and small, in providing a coordinated response to help mitigate risk and liability. More>>