HNRK Coverage Corner

On February 26, 2018, United States Magistrate Judge H. Kenneth Schroeder of the WDNY issued a decision in American Precision Indus., Inc. v. Federal Ins. Co., Case No. 14-CV-1050-RJA-HKS, holding that an insured could obtain discovery of standard forms used by the insurer as “secondary evidence” of a lost insurance policy’s terms.

An insurance policy is a contract, and the determination whether the insured is entitled to coverage depends on the policy’s terms.  But what if the policy itself goes missing?  This is not as far-fetched as it may sound, particularly with regard to ...

A recent decision by Nassau County District Court Judge Scott Fairgrieve M.V.B. Collision Inc. v. State Farm Ins. Co., 2018 NY Slip Op 28043(Dist. Ct. Nassau Co. Feb. 20, 2018), provides a helpful survey of the case law on the enforceability of a policy provision prohibiting assignment or transfer of the insured’s rights under the policy.  As Judge Fairgrieve explains, the rule in New York is that such anti-assignment provisions are enforceable only as to assignments made before the insured sufferers a covered loss.  Thus, once the insured has a coverage claim, the right to ...

On February 21, 2018, the Second Circuit issued a decision in Philadelphia Indemnity Ins. Co. v. Central Terminal Restoration Corp., Case No. 17‐1636‐cv, holding that a car accident caused by a driver to whom the insured had served alcohol when he was visibly intoxicated, in violation of New York’s dram shop law, was a covered occurrence under a commercial general liability policy. A typical CGL Policy, such as the policy at issue in Philadelphia Indemnity Ins. Co., provides coverage for “bodily injury” resulting from an “occurrence” (defined as “an accident” ...

On January 31, 2018, Judge Spatt of the EDNY issued a decision in Striker Sheet Metal II Corp. v. Harleysville Ins. Co. of N.Y., Case No. 16-cv-5916 (ADS)(AYS), holding that an insurance company was relieved of its duty to defend where “extrinsic evidence” (including an email from the insured in response to questions from the insurer) demonstrated conclusively that the accident at issue was excluded from coverage.

In Striker Sheet Metal an employee of the insured company was injured while in the process of unloading HVAC ductwork from the insured's truck and delivering it to a ...

On January 23, 2018, Justice Masley of the New York County Commercial Division issued a decision in Bernstein Liebhard LLP v. Sentinel Ins. Co., Ltd., 2018 NY Slip Op 30169(U), holding that a law firm was entitled to business interruption coverage for the loss of new matters, even though its contingency fees for those matters would not have been received during the policy period.

The plaintiff, Bernstein Liebhard LLP (“Bernstein”), a mass tort law firm, sought coverage for loss of business income after a fire destroyed its offices. The firm’s business insurance policy covered ...