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Casualty Matters®

Casualty Matters reviews new liability developments affecting General Liability, Commercial Umbrella and Personal Umbrella business. Our underwriters provide perspectives on what the developments mean to insurers and specific types of insureds.

 

Casualty Matters -- Changing the Rules--State High Courts Redefine Exposures for Commercial and Personal Lines Insurers (size:0.84MB)
Issue: November, 2011   Language: English
Authors:  Laura Allison,  Mindy Pollack,  Maria Slowinski
Summary: This edition highlights recent cases testing liability and coverage involving commercial and personal lines. Commercial lines discussion includes construction defects, pollution exclusions and exposures, occurrence and global warming, workers' comp exclusions, business auto, data breach and liquor liability. Personal lines discussion includes social host liability, homeowners occurrences and dog bite liability.
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Casualty Matters -- Where Personal and Commercial Lines Meet--Liability and Coverage Developments (size:0.49MB)
Issue: May, 2011   Language: English
Authors:  Laura Allison,  Mindy Pollack
Summary: This edition of Casualty Matters highlights recent cases testing liability and coverage involving commercial and personal lines. Topics include: Drywall Developments - Commercial Policies; Landlord Duties and Exposures; Construction Defects; Pollution Exclusions; Food Liability; Sexual Abuse - Commercial and Personal Lines; HO Coverage for Off-Premises Injuries; HO Liability for Contractor/Worker Injuries; and UM/UIM Reforms and other UM/UIM Issues.
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Casualty Matters -- Old Issues, New Issues for Personal and Commercial Lines Insurers (size:0.52MB)
Issue: November, 2010   Language: English
Authors:  Robert Button,  Gregg Healey,  Mindy Pollack
Summary: In this article, we highlight recent cases testing liability and coverage involving identity theft, cyberbullying, sexual abuse, liquor liability, landlord responsibilities, construction defects, UM/UIM forms and the pollution exclusion. We delve into many examples of recent Personal Lines issues, Commercial Lines issues, and Liquor Liability issues with both social host and dramshop examples.
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Casualty Matters -- Crossing the Line -- Developments in Commercial and Personal Lines (size:2.91MB)
Issue: May, 2010   Language: English
Authors:  Robert Button,  Mindy Pollack
Summary: This edition of Casualty Matters highlights several new decisions and laws that alter the liability and coverage landscape for many commercial and personal lines accounts. The latest developments on a variety of liability topics are also discussed.
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Casualty Matters -- Personal Privacy Issues Drive Commercial Exposures (size:0.98MB)
Issue: December, 2009   Language: English
Authors:  Charlie Kingdollar,  Mindy Pollack
Summary: This edition highlights emerging claims and law involving privacy and habitational risks. As usual, we also discuss developments on a variety of liability topics including Privacy, Internet and Security Breaches; Sexual Misconduct; Public Nuisance; Dramshop; Hotels; Contractors/Drywall; and Auto.
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Casualty Matters -- Liquor Liability -- The Rules of the Road (size:1.24MB)
Issue: April, 2009   Language: English
Authors:  Lane DeCoster,  Mindy Pollack
Summary: In this article we discuss the underwriting challenges posed by liquor liability, both dram shop and social host, and provide an overview of the laws shaping the exposures. We also highlight recent cases redrawing the parameters of liquor legal liability coverage. The rules can be nuanced and insurers need to know how to navigate them.
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Casualty Matters -- Emerging Issues From Inside and Outside the Courts (size:0.26MB)
Issue: October, 2008   Language: English
Author:  Mindy Pollack
Summary: This edition of Casualty Matters reviews recent developments in the courtroom, economy or laboratory that may create new insurance exposures for liability underwriters. We discuss cases, lawsuits and trends of importance to many GL, BOP, CU, HO and/or PU insurers. Our research in this publication includes Business Pursuits -- The blurring line between business and personal activities; Green Construction -- Will it lead to more defect claims?; Pollution Exclusions -- A strong trend toward enforcing policy language; and Emerging Issues Updates -- Bisphenol-A, nanotechnology, cell phones and more.
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Casualty Matters -- Changing Tort Law and Exposures (size:0.61MB)
Issue: May, 2008   Language: English
Summary: This publication reviews recent developments that signal major changes in tort law and insurance exposures. In particular, we highlight a legislative trend toward broadening tort remedies and recoveries. Our research includes: Tort Law Changes; Commercial and Social Host Liquor Liability; Construction Defects and Insurance Coverage; Employer Liability and Workers' Compensation; Internet Defamation and Cyberbullying Claims; as well as some Toxic Tort and Emerging Issues updates.
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Casualty Matters -- Business and Home--New Liability Questions and Answers (size:0.88MB)
Issue: November, 2007   Language: English
Summary: This edition of Casualty Matters focuses on important liability and coverage issues that are now being argued before several state supreme courts. We highlight the questions that will soon be answered in key states, and the potential impact on insurers. We also review the latest cases, regulations and other developments changing GL, BOP, CU, HO and/or PU exposures.
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Casualty Matters -- New Laws and Emerging Exposures (size:1.47MB)
Issue: July, 2007   Language: English
Author:  Charlie Kingdollar
Summary: This publication reviews new laws and decisions in 2007 that change liability rules and create new exposures for insurers. Research includes social host liability--laws and maps showing where liability is assigned in each state; state legislative changes on contractor insurance requirements; verdicts involving schools and blogs; tort law changes affecting damages and recoveries; new bad faith laws for first-party insurers; and updates on asbestos and nanotechnology.
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Casualty Matters -- Underwriting to New Liability Exposures (size:0.31MB)
Issue: April, 2007   Language: English
Author:  Mindy Pollack
Summary: This publication reviews recent developments that create new insurance exposures and redefine existing ones. We discuss cases, lawsuits and trends of importance to many GL, BOP, CU, HO and/or PU insurers. It includes a focus on liquor liability in response to the significant number of state appellate and high court decisions on the topic.
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Casualty Matters -- Common Coverages, Uncommon Exposures (size:0.54MB)
Issue: December, 2006   Language: English
Author:  Charlie Kingdollar
Summary: This edition of Casualty Matters reviews recent developments that test the boundaries of liability and coverage. We review cases, lawsuits and trends that signal new exposures for many GL, BOP, CU, HO and/or PU insurers. Our research in this publication includes: Secondhand smoke and property owners; Internet postings and defamation verdicts; UM/UIM claims and umbrella policies; Illegal immigration and demographics; and Retail websites and access requirements
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Casualty Matters -- Emerging Issues--Emerging Losses (size:0.31MB)
Issue: June, 2006   Language: English
Author:  Charlie Kingdollar
Summary: This article focuses on emerging issues affecting both personal and commercial lines of insurance. We review recent claim, litigation and coverage developments that may signal a new exposure or direction in claims. We discuss these issues and the implications, along with our additional observations on how the GL, BOP, CU, HO and/or PU insurer is affected. Our research in this publication includes: Expanding areas of premises liability; Nuisance laws and toxic tort claims; Nanotechnology developments; and Federal credit reporting law and growing insurer exposures.
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Casualty Matters -- Around the House--Homeowners and Personal Umbrella Exposures (size:0.54MB)
Issue: April, 2006   Language: English
Author:  Charlie Kingdollar
Summary: This edition of Casualty Matters focuses on Homeowners and Personal Umbrella exposures. We review recent coverage, liability and claim developments arising out of liability exposures in and around the home -- dogs, pools, fuel tanks, guns, computer use and miniature vehicles, for example. We discuss these issue and the implications, along with our additional observations on how the HO and/or PU insurer is affected. Our research in this publication includes: Coverage for shootings of multiple victims and how state courts have interpreted the number of occurrences, Dog bite claims and exclusions, Internet exposures, Coverage of motorized vehicles (mini-bikes, pocket bikes), Negligent entrustment claims, and Fuel oil, lead and mold exclusions and state regulatory views.
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