Topic
Every decision we've filed under Insurance.
The Ninth Circuit affirmed the district court's summary judgment in favor of mortgage lenders, ruling that appellants failed to prove the existence of an enforceable contract. The court held that the plaintiffs' claims lacked the written evidence required under Washington's statute of frauds and contract principles.
The Ninth Circuit reversed a district court dismissal, holding that ambiguous annual aggregate limits in 1960s insurance policies do not cap liability for property damage claims. The court found that extrinsic evidence and historical industry practices confirmed the policies lacked a clear cap for the County's environmental remediation costs.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit affirmed the denial of arbitration for domestic insurers while vacating the refusal to stay litigation pending arbitration of foreign insurers. The court held that separate contracts existed between the hospital and each insurer, precluding the Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards for domestic entities.
The Ninth Circuit affirmed summary judgment for JPMorgan Chase on a conversion claim, ruling that a bank acts within its account agreement when freezing funds to investigate suspicious deposits. The court held that the bank's reasonable suspicion and active verification efforts negated the 'wrongful act' element required for conversion liability.
The Eleventh Circuit affirmed the dismissal of breach of contract and unjust enrichment claims against State Farm entities that were not the actual contracting parties. However, the court vacated the dismissal for lack of subject matter jurisdiction because the district court failed to analyze whether diversity existed after removing non-diverse defendants.
The Tenth Circuit affirmed a district court ruling denying uninsured motorist coverage to plaintiffs injured in a rollover accident. The court held that the plaintiffs failed to satisfy the causation prong of the Kastner test under Colorado law.
The Eleventh Circuit affirmed the dismissal of an insurance coverage complaint, ruling that the plaintiff failed to plead sufficient facts to support a breach of contract claim under Florida law. The court further held that the district court properly denied leave to amend the complaint because the proposed amendments would have been futile given the policy's specific exclusions.
The Fifth Circuit certified a question to the Louisiana Supreme Court regarding whether an insurer's breach of a cooperation clause bars a third party's direct action under Louisiana law. The court paused the federal appeal because it cannot make a reliable 'Erie guess' without state guidance on this unsettled issue.
The Tenth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a RICO lawsuit alleging a loan scam orchestrated by an attorney and his colleagues. The court held that plaintiffs failed to plausibly allege the existence of an unincorporated partnership, which was a necessary element for both the RICO claims and the liability of the individual attorneys.
The Ninth Circuit reversed a district court's denial of a motion to compel arbitration, holding that the burden of proving involuntary acceptance of terms lies with the parents, not the company. However, the court affirmed that the school districts were not authorized agents to bind parents to the arbitration clause.