Representative Cases Blue Diamond Group Corp. v. Klin Construction Group, Inc., et al., Nassau Supreme Court. Prevailed on
motions to dismiss the third-party complaints against an excess lines Commercial General Liability insurer for alleged breach
of contract and unfair claims practices related to construction defect disputes.
Brown v. Farmers Ins. Group, Santa Clara Superior Court. Prevailed in judicial arbitration and obtained judgment in trial de novo to a 26 cause of action complaint
alleging a Commercial General Liability insurer’s obligation to pay for the investment losses of limited partnerships
operated as the side business of a captive insurance agent. Procedures included a demurrer, motion for summary adjudication,
motion for judgment on the pleadings and trial by general reference.
Argonaut
Ins. Co. v. Grove Lumber & Building Supply, Inc., New York Supreme Court. Obtained an order compelling arbitration to resolve the insured’s contentions in a tort action
filed in the Central District of California of the overpayment of workers compensation claims in relation to an insurance
program and collateral security agreement.
Visa USA, Inc. v. Firemans Fund
Ins. Co., et al., San Francisco Superior Court. Obtained
summary judgment against the insured who alleged advertising injury and personal injury coverage for a suit involving antitrust
allegations between Visa and the Discover Card.
Northern Assurance Co. v.
Dionofrio Construction, Eastern District of New York. Obtained
declaratory judgment that incursion of seawater damages were not covered by a hull and machinery policy, as at the time of
the loss, the vessel was outside the inland waterways area of navigation designated in the policy.
Sablad v. Montgomery Ward Life Ins. Co., San Francisco Superior
Court. Obtained judgment on the pleadings in favor of a hospital indemnity insurer in a second
suit from the same plaintiff alleging pattern and practice bad faith.
Pejcha
v. Maryland Cas. Co., Northern District of California. Litigated
to a favorable resolution the commercial general liability insurer’s obligations to purchasers of a real estate development
as judgment creditors for construction defects.
Essex Ins. Co. v. Safeco
Ins. Co., San Francisco Superior Court. Prosecuted
this contribution action against a subsequent and mutually obligated liability insurer for defense costs incurred in an underlying
federal trademark dispute.
Continental Casualty Co. v. Travelers Indemnity
Co., Alameda County Superior Court. Obtained a favorable
settlement in this contribution action from a Commercial General Liability insurer for construction claims involving the Life
Science Building at the University of California, initially paid under the architect’s claims made errors and omissions
policy.
Mutual Marine Office, Inc. v. Kemper Re, New York Supreme Court. Served
as New York counsel opposing Mutual Marine Office’s demand for the appointment of one of three specific arbitrators
to serve as umpire in a reinsurance arbitration dispute.
Church v. Consolidated
Freightways Corporation, Northern District of California. Successfully represented an umbrella liability insurer in a mediation involving commercial general liability and directors
& officers liability insurers concerning a class action for Title VII employment discrimination that followed the insured’s
merger with Emery Air Freight.
Minnesota Mutual Life Ins. Co. v. A Certain
Policyholder, Contra Costa Superior Court. Prosecuted
a recoupment action against a wealthy business owner insured for several years of disability benefits paid for an illness
when the insured actually continued working during the periods of alleged disability.
Hewlett-Packard v. Factory Mutual Ins. Co., Santa Clara Superior Court.Obtained summary judgment based on a limited warranty for a component manufacturer of industrial machinery
in a subrogation action following a clean room fire in Singapore.
Ramirez
v. Pacific A&M, et al., Ventura Superior Court. Represented
a third party administrator in trial concerning a beneficiary’s alleged entitlement to life insurance proceeds
for benefits not purchased.
Huff v. Zurich Ins. Co., San Francisco Superior Court. Obtained summary judgment in this bad faith action
alleging the third-party insurer’s alleged wrongful refusal to make premises medical payments.
Prassad v. Cisco Systems, Inc., et al., San Mateo Superior Court.
Represented absentee landlord sued for alleged liquor liabilities arising from auto accident
following a holiday party at Bay Meadows Raceway.
Carpenter v. InnCal, Inc.,
Sacramento Superior Court. Obtained summary judgment in this action alleging a motel's liability for a guest's armed robbery in her
room based on the motel's purported failure to safeguard the premises from the criminal conduct of third parties.
PPG Industries v. Libby-Owens Ford, Eastern
District of California. Served as umbrella oversight counsel in this products liability
action for defective glass allegedly stemming from contaminated dolomite minerals mined from the Natividad quarry.
Argonaut Ins. Co. v. County of Los Angeles,
Los Angeles Superior Court. Participated in this casualty insurance rescission action based
on the concealment of known losses involving a national broker’s role in the insurance application process and the potential
imputation of the broker’s knowledge to the carrier.
Reinsurance Arbitrations in New York, Philadelphia and Chicago. Litigated
reinsurance arbitrations addressing the allocation to facultative and treaty reinsurance of millions of dollars of claims
under excess liability, umbrella, directors & officers, architects & engineers, excess workers compensation, and entertainment
liability policies. The arbitrations included issues of the appropriate triggers for aggregated claims, the application of
the relation-back doctrine, the analysis of complicated commercial insurance portfolios to determine the actual obligations
of cedents, and reinsurers’ potential liability for claims that were subject to cumulative-retrospective rating under
the original policies.
