CM Report of Recent Decisions – 2019 Volume 2

Iowa Supreme Court Declines To Recognize A Common Law Cause Of Action For Bad Faith Against A Claims Administrator Of A Workers’ Compensation Insurer

In De Dios v. Indem. Ins. Co. of N. Am. & Broadspire Servs., No. 18-1227, 2019 Iowa Sup. LEXIS 56 (Iowa 2019), the Supreme Court of Iowa held that under Iowa law, there is no common law cause of action for bad faith failure to pay workers’ compensation benefits against a third-party claims administrator of a worker’s compensation insurance carrier.

Florida Appellate Court Enforces Mandatory Mediation Notice

Florida’s Third District Court of Appeals, which includes the Miami area, recently held that once a dispute arises in a property insurance claim, an insurer is precluded from demanding appraisal under the policy, prior to providing the insured with notice of the right to participate in the mediation program provided for under Section 627.7015. Kennedy v. First Protective Ins. Co., 2019 Fla. App. LEXIS 3443 (Fla. 3d DCA).

Florida Reforms Assignment Of Benefits

After years of failed efforts by Florida lawmakers to curb rampant abuse of assignment of benefits (“AOB”) applied to property insurance policies, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has signed into law sweeping AOB reform approved by the Florida Legislature. The new law becomes effective for AOBs executed on or after July 1, 2019.

Premises Provision In Definition Of “Occurrence” Requires That Each Location Where Exposures To Asbestos-Containing Products Took Place Constitutes A Separate Occurrence

In Cont’l Cas. Co. v. Hennessy Indus., 2019 IL App (1st) 180183, the Appellate Court of Illinois, First District, held that, where the subject “occurrence” definition provided that “All such exposure to substantially the same general conditions existing at or emanating from each premises location shall be deemed one occurrence”, each location where exposures to asbestos took place as a result of handling the insured’s products constituted a separate occurrence.

Firearms Exclusion In CGL Policy Bars Coverage For Premises Liability Claim Arising From Fatal Bar Shooting

The U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Georgia holds that a firearms exclusion in a general liability insurance policy applied to preclude coverage for an underlying action arising from a shooting at the insured’s bar in Hudson Specialty Insurance Co. v. Snappy Slappy LLC, No. 5:18-cv- 00104-TES (M.D. Ga. May 1, 2019).

The Wisdom Of Removing Personal Injury Actions From Illinois State Court To Federal Court Again Illustrated By The Seventh Circuit’s Decision In McCarty v. Menard

In McCarty v. Menard, Inc., No. 18-3069, 924 F.3d 460 (7th Cir. 2019), the Seventh Circuit once again shows why defendants should remove a personal injury action out of Illinois state court and into federal court whenever possible . . . defendants always stand a better chance of having their duty arguments accepted as a basis for summary judgment in federal court, especially when that duty argument is based upon the open and obvious doctrine.