California
Vandenberg, John B. vs. Superior Court of the State of California
Year: 1998
Court: California Supreme Court
Case Number: S067115
Issue:
  • Coverage
State:
  • California

A coverage determination for property damage losses depends on the property itself and the nature of the risk causing the injury. Decision pertains to Commercial General Liability Policies
Unigard Insurance Co. vs. The City of Lodi, California, et al
Year: 1998
Court: U.S. Court of Appeals, 9th Circuit
Case Number: 99-15802
Issue:
  • Insurance Companies are fiduciaries
State:
  • California
Uhrich vs. State Farm Fire & Casualty Co.
Year: 2002
Court: California Supreme Court
Case Number: S117639
Issue:
  • Coverage
State:
  • California

Letter Brief. A personal liability insurer cannot promise to defend and pay claims for enumerated intentional torts such as false arrest, false imprisonment, defamation, or invasion of privacy and then deny coverage because the inherently intentional quality of the insured’s act violates the policy requirement…
Truck Insurance Exchange vs. Superior Court of California
Year: 1997
Court: California Court of Appeal
Case Number: Civ. No. B117294, Court of Appeals, California, No. BC090825, c/w BC135685
Issue:
  • Plain Meaning
State:
  • California

Tutorial: contract v. tort; plain meaning as ordinary and popular meaning; legally obligate
State of California v. Underwriters at Lloyd’s London, Allstate
Year: 2006
Court: California Supreme Court
Case Number: Supreme Court Case No. S149988, CA Court of Appeal case no. E037627
Issue:
  • Pollution Exclusion and Coverages
State:
  • California
State of California v. Continental Insurance Company
Year: 2008
Court: California Court of Appeal, 4th District, Division 2
Case Number: E041425
Issue:
  • Environmental Liabilities
State:
  • California
Cussler v. Crusader Entertainment, LLC
Year: 2009
Court: California Supreme Court
Case Number: S181428
Issue:
  • Bad Faith
State:
  • California

UP argued that the Court of Appeal’s reversal of a jury verdict threatens the most basic expectation of a contracting party—that the other party will not act in bad faith to deprive it of the benefit of its bargain. This issue is of particular importance…
Abdelhamid v. Fire Insurance Exchange
Year: 2009
Court: California Supreme Court
Case Number: C059098
Issue:
  • Proof of Loss
State:
  • California

The ruling was against a homeowner whose home was destroyed in a fire. UP weighed in to request depublication of a CA. Court of Appeal opinion in case where Farmers Insurance Exchange denied a total fire loss claim on the grounds that the homeowner had…
Hameid, Mohammed vs. National Fire Insurance of Hartford
Year: 2001
Court: California Supreme Court
Case Number: S104157
Issue:
  • Advertising Injury
State:
  • California

In the context of an advertising injury when insured is a small business, the coverage must be broadly defined to encompass the activities of a small business.
Galanty vs. Paul Revere Life Insurance Company
Year: 1999
Court: California Supreme Court
Case Number: S073678
Issue:
  • First Manifestation
  • Incontestability clause
State:
  • California

The two year incontestability clause in a policy cannot be contradicted by a “First Manifest” provision under the definition of sickness or any other language in the policy.
Bischel vs. Fire Insurance Exchange
Year: 1991
Court: California Supreme Court
Case Number: SO24563
Issue:
  • Code Upgrades
  • Guaranteed Replacement Cost
State:
  • California

In a letter supporting a petition for review, UP urged the California Supreme Court to determine whether the appellate court’s holding really does support insurers’ position that guaranteed replacement cost policies do not include coverage for code upgrades. UP was contacted by thousands of homeowners…
Wixon vs. Amica Mutual Insurance Company
Year: 1995
Court: California Court of Appeal, 1st District
Case Number: A068078
Issue:
  • Calculation of deductible in an earthquake claim
State:
  • California

Opposition to request for depublication.
Fogel v. Farmers Group, Inc.
Year: 2010
Court: California Superior Court, County of Los Angeles
Case Number: BC300142
Issue:
  • Insurance Exchanges
  • Settlement of Class Action
State:
  • California

Proposed settlement of a class action in relation to insurance exchanges in which the unclaimed funds would revert back to the culpable insurer and in which the attorney’s fees were unfairly high in relation to the expected actual reimbursements to class members.
Fluor Corp. , et. al. v. Superior Court Of The State Of California, County Of Orange
Year: 2010
Court: California Supreme Court
Case Number: S. 196592
Issue:
  • Anti-assignment Clause
State:
  • California

Overly strong and incredibly broad interpretation of the anti-assignment language that the insurer was trying to invoke. Had the insurer’s interpretation been accepted, insurers could deny the transfer of any CGL policy to any successor in interest, a conclusion that would drastically affect the worth…
Hakimfer v. ROC Design
Year: 2010
Court: California Court of Appeal, Second District, Division 5
Case Number: SC 106414
Issue:
  • Conflict of Interest
  • Reservation of Rights
State:
  • California

Counsel provided by the insurer under duty to defend failed to disclose to the insured the potential for a conflict of interest, in violation of attorney professional rules of conduct.
MacKay v. Superior Court of Los Angeles (21st Century National)
Year: 2009
Court: California Supreme Court
Case Number: B220469
Issue:
  • Insurance rate filings
State:
  • California

UP sought to depublish the MacKay opinion on the grounds that it undermines the essential function of civil lawsuits to the law enforcement activities performed by the California Department of Insurance.
Villa Los Almos HOA v. State Farm General Ins. Co.
Year: 2010
Court: California Court of Appeal, 1st District, Division 4
Case Number: A128443
Issue:
  • Pollution Exclusion and Coverages
State:
  • California

This is a “total pollution exclusion” case akin to–though with significantly different facts than–the Cold Creek Compost case. In this matter, a homeowners association hired a contractor to scrape acoustic ceilings, resulting in a one-time, accidental and localized release of asbestos in and around the…
L.A. Checker Cab Coop, Inc. vs. First Specialty Insurance Co.
Year: 2009
Court: California Court of Appeal, 2nd District
Case Number: B213948
Issue:
  • Intentional Acts
State:
  • California

Whether an employer is deprived of coverage for its vicarious liability for the act of an employee if the employee acted intentionally. The Court of Appeal held that because the employee’s act was intentional, the employer could not satisfy the portion of the “occurrence” definition…