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Subro Round-up
A recent opinion out of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania illustrates the ongoing and vexing problem of determining whether documents created during an insurer’s early claims investigation are protected from disclosure in subsequent litigation under an attorney-client or work-product privilege. In Henriquez-Disla v. Allstate Prop. and Cas. Ins. Co., 2014...
Consider this hypothetical: It is 2 a.m. on a Monday morning. John and Jill Smith are fast asleep in the master bedroom while their kids are asleep down the hall. John awakes to the noisy smoke detector and the smell of smoke coming from their master bathroom. John goes to the bathroom to see what...
The New Law Journal is likely to soon feature the following article by Rob Kay discussing the very recent English case of Emirates Trading Agency LLC v. Prime Mineral Exports Private Limited [2014] EWHC 2104 (Comm).  The decision held that a clause which required parties to have friendly discussions prior to resorting to arbitration – a clause...
In British Columbia, condominiums are referred to as “strata corporations”. When a loss occurs at a strata corporation, there could be potential for subrogation. However, even though the wrongdoer may be known to the strata corporation, there are limitations on commencing an action. It is important to be aware of these limitations as proceeding otherwise...
We have all experienced the frustration of having negotiated an acceptable settlement recovery after years of loss investigation and discovery, only to have the settling defendant drag its heels in terms of proffering a release and/or tendering the settlement proceeds. That frustration will be felt less frequently in Illinois due to new legislation. Effective at...
Since the mid-1980’s, virtually all Commercial General Liability (CGL) policies have contained some form of a total (or absolute) pollution exclusion. The 1988 ISO total pollution exclusion endorsement provides that there is no liability coverage for “property damage…which would not have occurred in whole or in part but for the…discharge, dispersal, seepage, migration, release or...
Many states require that subrogation carriers demand the insured’s deductible as part of a pre-suit subrogation demand. For example, in California the Insurance Code requires that subrogating carriers include the insured’s deductible in any demand to a third party tortfeasor, and share subrogation recoveries on a proportionate basis with the insured, unless the insured already...
“Hello Dave.” In 1968, director Stanley Kubrick introduced the world to an interactive, albeit maniacal, talking computer named Hal in “2001: A Space Odyssey.” Fast forward to 2013, and not only do such computers generally exist, they are now prevalent in everyday items, including in the iPhone. With “Hello, Siri,” science fiction has become reality....
What are “Doe” amendments to a complaint? How can Doe amendments avoid statute of limitation defenses? What is the effect of serving one defendant out of many before the statute of limitations runs? Those questions and more are reviewed inPowers v. W.B. Mobile Servs., Inc. 311 P.2d 58, 2013 WL 5645561 (2013), Division Two of The...
When a defendant does not answer a complaint, the typical procedure is to move for a default judgment. You should be aware that pursuant to Federal law, the court must determine whether the defendant is a member of the armed forces before entering default judgment. Pursuant to The Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA), the court...
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