The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, applying California law, has held that an insurer is not required to show prejudice to deny coverage under a claims-made-and-reported policy based on an insured’s late notice. Euraupair Int’l, Inc. v. Ironshore Spec. Ins. Co., 2019 WL 6817593 (9th Cir. Dec. 13, 2019).
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Applying Ohio law, a federal district court has held that misrepresentations in an application warranty statement regarding three unreported lawsuits filed against the insured during the initial policy period rendered a renewed claims-made and reported policy void ab initio. Certain Underwriters at Lloyds London Subscribing to Policy No. HMPL 18-0164 & HMPL 17-0158 v. KG Admin. Servs., Inc., 2019 WL 6770061 (N.D. Ohio Dec. 12, 2019). The court also held that, because the claims were not reported during the initial policy period, the insurer did not have any coverage obligations under the initial policy.
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Applying Ohio law, an Ohio appellate court has held that renewal of a claims-made policy does not extend the time by which an insured may report a claim. ISCO Indus., Inc. v. Great Am. Ins. Co., 2019 WL 6353709 (Ohio Ct. App. Nov. 27, 2019). The court further held that the “notice prejudice” rule does not apply because coverage under a claims-made policy is generally restricted to claims made and reported during the policy period.
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Applying Iowa law, a federal district court has held that an insured’s failure to give notice of a letter seeking information in connection with a
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The United States District Court for the District of Minnesota, applying Minnesota law, has held that coverage is unavailable where the insured failed to report the claim to its insurer “as soon as practicable” as required by the policy’s notice provision. Citizens Ins. Co. of Am. v. Assessment Sys. Corp., 2019 WL 4014955 (D. Minn. Aug. 26, 2019).
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The United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, applying Florida law, has affirmed a ruling that no coverage was available in connection with a criminal investigation where the insured failed to timely report a sealed affidavit that constituted a “claim” under the language of the policy at issue. Crowley Maritime Corp. v. Nat’l Union Fire Ins. Co. of Pittsburgh, Pa., 2019 WL 3294003 (11th Cir. July 23, 2019).
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Applying Texas law, a federal appellate court has held that an insured is not entitled to coverage for subsequent related claims when the insured gave late notice of the first claim. ADI Worldlink, L.L.C.. v. RSUI Indem. Co., 2019 WL 3521815 (5th Cir. Aug. 2, 2019).
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The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas, applying Arkansas law, has held that coverage is unavailable for a lawsuit arising out of Interrelated Wrongful Acts at issue in an EEOC charge where the insured failed to report the EEOC charge to its insurer within the claims-made policy’s reporting period. Pine Bluff Sch. Dist. v. ACE Am. Ins. Co., 2019 WL 3074011 (E.D. Ark. July 12, 2019). The court also held that the insurer was not barred from denying coverage based on waiver or estoppel after it first provided a defense under a reservation of rights.
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In a win for Wiley Rein’s client, a California state court has held that an insurer correctly denied coverage under a D&O policy on the basis that the operative “claim” was made before the policy period. CNEX Labs, Inc. v. Allied World Assurance Co. (U.S.), Inc., Case No. 18-CV-334461 (Cal. Super. Ct., Santa Clara Cty. Jul. 17, 2019). The court found that a letter the insured received before the policy period “clearly suggested a lawsuit” against the insured and, in any event, the insured had also signed a standstill agreement before the policy’s inception, which separately constituted a “claim.”
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Applying California law, the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit has held that an insurer properly denied coverage under consecutive claims-made-and-reported policies based on the insured’s failure to provide timely notice of a claim and the insured’s failure to disclose the pending claim in its application for coverage. US HF Cellular Commc’ns., LLC v. Scottsdale Ins. Co., 2019 WL 2323802 (6th Cir. May 31, 2019).
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