image credit: moolanomy Contractor Not Covered Under Subcontractor’s Policy For Claim By Subcontractor’s Employee. The rules for interpreting a contract, including an insurance policy, require a court to give meaning and effect to every word whenever practicable. That principle is illustrated by a recent case,… READ MORE
Image by Free-Photos from Pixabay. Wading into a dispute about the Clean Water Act’s applicability to groundwater discharges, the Supreme Court handed environmentalists a somewhat surprising victory in County of Maui v. Hawaii Wildlife Fund. However, the lower courts, EPA, and the regulated community will have many… READ MORE
As government agencies at every level continue to implement programs to combat the spread of the Coronavirus, many environmental practitioners are struggling to make sense of what this means for their environmental permitting timelines. Below, we have compiled an overview of the main federal, state, and local… READ MORE
A bill (Senate No. 2888) currently pending in the Massachusetts Legislature could provide some much needed relief for businesses such that have incurred losses or interruptions due to COVID-19. The bill would allow businesses to recover under their property damage insurance policies for any loss of business or business… READ MORE
Image by Baudolino from Pixabay On February 20, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that it would begin a regulatory determination process aimed at deciding “whether or not to begin the process to propose and promulgate a national primary drinking water regulation” for… READ MORE
Image by TeroVesalainen from Pixabay Insurer Is Still Obligated To Conduct Reasonable Investigation And Make Good Faith Effort To Settle When Liability Is Reasonably Clear. Many professional liability policies provide that the insurer will not settle without the policyholder’s consent. These consent-to-settle clauses give professionals… READ MORE
Image by Tumisu from Pixabay A recent Massachusetts federal court decision (Stearns, J.) addresses two vexing coverage questions involving Massachusetts coverage law: Does a tort plaintiff have standing to argue in favor of coverage before there is a judgment in the… READ MORE
Image by Tumisu from Pixabay But Appeals Court Vacates Order For New Trial And Remands, Concluding That The Trial Judge Applied the Wrong Standard In Allowing A Motion for Mistrial. This blog entry takes a detour from our usual insurance coverage topics to address an… READ MORE
Image by Emilian Robert Vicol from Pixabay A Large Disparity Between Insurer’s Offers And A Reference Award Is Not Sufficient for an Insured to Defeat Insurer’s Summary Judgment Motion. Homeowners’ insurance claims for water infiltration due to snow and ice present a difficult challenge both… READ MORE
Image by rawpixel from Pixabay Case also determines when an insurer can stay a suit against the insured when there is a coverage dispute and whether paying the limits into court tolls the insurer’s liability for interest Commerce Insurance was confident that it was not… READ MORE