Industries / Insurance Litigation

Insurance Litigation

Our team represents insures in coverage and bad faith litigation when they require experience and expertise in courts in Missouri, Illinois and Kansas.

We defend insurers in class actions attacking coverage and claims handling, and in claims seeking bad faith or extra contractual damages. We regularly provide counsel and opinions about commercial general liability insurance, financial loss insurance, professional liability, directors and officers liability, title insurance, property insurance, automobile and truck insurance, and self-insured risk. We are also regularly called upon to monitor litigation for our insurance clients in connection with litigation that may implicate their level of coverage.

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Successes

Summary Judgement

Successfully obtained summary judgment for insurance carrier client in the United States District Court-Western District of Missouri after intervening in state court and moving to stay underlying litigation where plaintiff filed sued against insured alleging various tort and negligence claims arising out of a shooting on the insured’s premises. The federal court granted summary judgment in declaratory judgment suit filed by insurer and declared insurer’s assault and battery sub-limit applied to limit coverage for the underlying litigation.

American Family

The 8th Circuit ruled in favor of American Family in the unanimous court affirmed a Missouri federal court’s ruling that the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) exclusion had been timely added to the business owners’ policies, barring coverage for the TCPA claim asserted in the underlying class action case. For more information consult American Family Mutual Insurance Company v. Vein Centers for Excellence, Inc. and St. Louis Heart Center, Inc. (No. 17-3266).

Breach of Contract

Our team obtained summary judgment in the City of St. Louis for an insurer in a breach of contract and equitable garnishment suit relating to alleged coverage for a third-party claim stemming from a personal injury to a co-employee which resulted in a $750,000 judgment against the alleged insured. The summary judgment was appealed by the opposing party. The summary judgment was affirmed by the Missouri Court of Appeals.

Commercial General Liability (CGL)

We were retained by a CGL insurer to defend multi-million dollar bad faith case resulting in favorable settlement in United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri.

Duty to Indemnify

Our team obtained a judgment in Madison County, Illinois, declaring that there was no duty to indemnify the insured on her first party property loss and no duty to defend or indemnify her against the claims of the multiple homeowner carriers asserting property damage claims valued at more than $1 million.

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)

We obtained summary judgment for an insurer in a declaratory judgment action filed in the United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri regarding whether the insurer properly denied coverage under a claims made and reported employment practices liability policy when the insured failed to provide timely notice of an EEOC charge, which later resulted in a lawsuit.

Excess Insurer

Our team represented our client in of excess insurer against primary insurer resulting in favorable settlement in St. Clair County, Illinois.

Group Benefits

Our attorneys regularly represent of group benefits insurer in benefits coverage litigation in state and federal courts in Missouri and Illinois.

Fire Damage

We obtained defense verdict after jury trial in United States District Court of Eastern Missouri in first-party fire damage case. The plaintiff and its public adjuster contended the plaintiff was entitled to recover substantially more than what our insurance carrier client paid during the claims process for the damage to three apartment buildings in the 32 building apartment complex.

Sexual Impropriety

Our team obtained summary judgment for a professional liability carrier in coverage litigation instituted by a medical professional that sought coverage under his policy stemming from accusations of sexual impropriety by a patient.

Stroke

We obtained summary judgment on behalf of insurer in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri. The case presented a matter of first impression in Missouri as to whether a stroke is an “accident” within the meaning of accidental injury policies.

Worker’s Compensation

Our team obtained summary judgment for an insurance carrier in Missouri state court in a coverage dispute involving a worker’s compensation policy.

Wrongful Payment

We obtained reversal on appeal in favor of a life insurance company, extinguishing a claim for wrongful payment of insurance proceeds in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Missouri.

CGL/Multiple Occurrences

Obtained summary judgment in Missouri state court on issue of whether single vehicle accident which resulted in the drowning of two people triggered multiple occurrences under a Commercial General Liability policy and an additional $1 million in coverage.  The court found in our client’s favor and ruled there was only a single occurrence under the policy and a single $1 million limit of coverage.