Insurance Law Commons^™

When Justice Should Precede Generosity: The Case Against Charitable Immunity In Arkansas, Courtney Jane Baltz

Arkansas Law Notes

This Comment discusses various aspects of the modern hospital and examines charitable immunity’s incompatibility with modern law.

First, Part II explains the historical justifications for immunity and presents the doctrine’s landscape in the United States. Part III examines the role precedent plays in continuing to adhere to the rule of immunity. Part IV takes an in-depth approach of the big business of hospitals by evaluating various financial aspects of charitable hospitals. Part V explores the reality of charitable immunity falling out of touch with concepts of modern law. Part VI takes a more specific look at the application of the …

The Deterrence Case For Comprehensive Automaker Enterprise Liability, Kyle D. Logue

Journal of Law and Mobility

This Article lays out the potential (at this point purely theoretical) deterrence benefits of replacing our current auto tort regime (including auto products liability law, driver-based negligence claims, and auto no-fault regimes) with a single, comprehensive automaker enterprise liability system. This new regime would apply not only to Level 5 vehicles, but to all automobiles made and sold to be driven on public roads. Because such a system would make automakers unconditionally responsible for the economic losses resulting from any crashes of their vehicles, it would in effect make automakers into auto insurers as well, although such a change will …

Most Claims Settle: Implications For Alternative Dispute Resolution From A Profile Of Medical-Malpractice Claims In Florida, Neil Vidmar, Mirya Holman, Paul Lee

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Tort Arbitrage, Robert J. Rhee

Robert Rhee

The economic models of bargaining and tort law have not been integrated into a coherent theory that reflects the operational realities of the dispute resolution process and the negligence standard. Applying a theory of bargaining based on asset pricing principles of financial economics, this Article argues that there is systematic devaluation of tort claims in the civil litigation system. This results because in essence the parties value different tort transactions, even when they are tied together in a common dispute and view the facts and laws similarly. For the party that can mitigate the risk exposure, the discount to value …

Tort Arbitrage, Robert J. Rhee

Faculty Scholarship

The economic models of bargaining and tort law have not been integrated into a coherent theory that reflects the operational realities of the dispute resolution process and the negligence standard. Applying a theory of bargaining based on asset pricing principles of financial economics, this Article argues that there is systematic devaluation of tort claims in the civil litigation system. This results because in essence the parties value different tort transactions, even when they are tied together in a common dispute and view the facts and laws similarly. For the party that can mitigate the risk exposure, the discount to value …

Can The Injured Pet Owner Look To Liability Insurance For Satisfaction Of A Judgment? The Coverage Implications Of Damages For The Injury Or Death Of A Companion Animal, Mark Sadler

Animal Law Review

Much has been written in recent years regarding the important role pets play in our society and the legal consequences that have developed from that relationship. Both our courts and legislatures have recognized, in certain circumstances, the ability of a pet owner to recover from a wrongdoer in the event of negligent or intentional conduct that results in the death or injury of a companion animal. However, securing a damages award and recovering on a judgment secured may present the aggrieved pet owner with two entirely different challenges. Liability insurance coverage is critical to the latter concern. This paper provides …

The Tale Of A Tail, James F. Hogg

Faculty Scholarship

The commercial general liability insurance industry shifted, in 1986, from the use of an “occurrence-based” to a “claims-made” policy form. So-called “tail” or “long tail” claims have continued nevertheless, to be asserted under the older “occurrence” policies which required that injury occur during the term of the policy, but not that the claim for such injury be made or brought at any particular time. In seeking state approval to use the new “claims-made” form in 1985-86, the insurance industry represented that the new form would not affect coverage under the old “occurrence” form. Despite that representation, insurers are now asserting, …

"Supervisor" Hostile Environment Sexual Harassment Claims, Liability Insurance, And The Trend Towards Negligence, Amanda D. Smith

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

A lack of settled standards for determining liability in supervisor hostile environment sexual harassment lawsuits combined with similar uncertainty in the context of employer liability insurance coverage has resulted in increased litigation in this area. This Note argues that the current predominant standard in the employer liability context, which is based on negligence principle should be rejected in favor of an apparent authority standard, which more appropriately strikes a balance between encouraging employers to identify harassing behaviors and exonerating them from liability when they do so and take appropriate remedial action. It further argues that in order to develop effective …

A Theory Of Insurance Policy Interpretation, Kenneth S. Abraham

Michigan Law Review

The first principle of insurance law is captured by the maxim contra proferentem, which directs that ambiguities in a contract be interpreted "against the drafter," who is almost always the insurer. Yet given the modern recognition that language is an inherently imperfect instrument for communicating meaning, insurance policy provisions are in a sense always ambiguous. Moreover, in addition to contra proferentem, policyholders may invoke such allied doctrines as waiver, estoppel, and the rule that the reasonable expectations of the insured should be honored even if those expectations are unambiguously contradicted by fine-print provisions in the policy. Contra proferentem and these …

Accountable Accountants: Is Third-Party Liability Necessary?, Victor P. Goldberg

Faculty Scholarship

Should accountants be liable to third parties if they conduct an audit in negligent manner? A half century ago, in Ultramares Corporation v. Touche, Niven & Co., Cardozo argued that they should not, unless their performance could be characterized as fraud. In recent years, courts in a minority of jurisdictions have concluded that Cardozo's argument is no longer compelling and they have found that "foreseeable" third parties could bring a tort action for ordinary negligence against the accountants. In addition to being subject to tort actions, accountants may also be liable under federal and state securities laws.

Suits against …

Protection Of Shipowners’ Liability Under United States Law And Marine Insurance Practice, Izak Stephanus Fourie

LLM Theses and Essays

Shipowners are exposed to a variety of risks that are, to a large extent, unique to maritime business. Because of factors like the recent increase in the size and value of ships, increase in marine traffic, enactment of legislation imposing new liabilities, and the tendency of courts to make huge awards to personal injury and death claims, shipowners are exposed to potential losses or claims worth millions of dollars in the event of disaster. These heavy risks led to the establishment of the marine insurance industry, as well as the enactment of legislation that limits shipowners’ liability. This legislation was …

The Fault Concept In Personal Injury Cases In Minnesota: Implications For Tort Reform, Michael K. Steenson

Faculty Scholarship

Legislative tort reform proposals have attempted to restore what is perceived to be an imbalance in the tort-litigation system by limiting tort recoveries. One of the motivating factors behind tort reform proposals is a concern that tort law has deviated from a fault-based system of liability. It is this concern over the structure of the fault system in Minnesota that is the subject of this Article. This Article examines Minnesota Supreme Court opinions of the 20th Century to determine whether the court's decisions deviated from a fault-based system of liability. The focus is on change, accepted and rejected. The purpose …

Case Digest, Law Review Staff

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

RELIGIOUS ORGANIZATIONS AND MEMBERS OF CLERGY OF VARIOUS DENOMINATIONS LACK STANDING TO CHALLENGE ADOPTION AND IMPLEMENTATION OF DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS WITH THE VATICAN

--Americans United for Separation of Church and State v. Reagan, 786 F.2d 194 (3d Cir.1986)

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EVEN THOUGH PROCEEDINGS IN THE FOREIGN FORUM MAY TAKE MORE TIME AND MAY YIELD A SMALLER RECOVERY THAN PROCEEDING IN THE UNITED STATES FORUM, THE FOREIGN FORUM MAY BE CONSIDERED AN ADEQUATE FORUM FOR THE PURPOSES OF THE FORRUM NON CONVENIENS DOCTRINE

--De Melo v. Lederle Laboratories, 801 F.2d 1058 (8th Cir. 1986)

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ASSERTION OF PERSONAL JURISDICTION IN CALIFORNIA OVER AN …

Torts, Various Editors

Villanova Law Review

No abstract provided.

An Insurer's Liability To Third Parties For Negligent Inspection, Michael Braden

Kentucky Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Roth V. Old Republic Insurance Co., 269 So. 2d 3 (Fla. 1972), Florida State University Law Review

Florida State University Law Review

Insurance - INDEMNIFICATION - LESSEE'S PERMITTEE WHO WAS UNAUTHORIZED To DRIVE VEHICLE UNDER LEASE CANNOT BE REQUIRED To INDEMNIFY LESSOR FOR DAMAGES CAUSED BY PERMITTEE'S NEGLIGENCE.

No-Fault Automobile Insurance In Pennsylvania - A Constitutional Analysis, Joel M. Martel

Villanova Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Virginia Uninsured Motorist Law: Its Intent And Purpose, James L. Tucker

William & Mary Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Friendly Versus Hostile Fire Dichotomy, Robert I. Reis

Villanova Law Review

No abstract provided.

Evidence -- 1964 Tennessee Survey, Lyman R. Patterson

Vanderbilt Law Review

The difficulty in dealing with presumptions arises in part from the fact that the term embraces a host of different meanings, varying with the purposes underlying the presumption in a given situation. Unfortunately, the courts seldom articulate the meaning which they are attributing to the term and consequently do little to clear up the confusion... In Arnett v. Fuston, a negligence action, plaintiff argued that a verdict of not guilty against one of the two co-defendants was not supported by any evidence, and that a presumption should apply against him "for his election to stand on his motion for directed …

The Financially Irresponsible Motorist: A Survey Of State Legislation, Fredric C. Jacobs

Villanova Law Review

No abstract provided.

Abstracts Of Recent Cases, William Walter Smith

West Virginia Law Review

No abstract provided.

Private Insurance As A Solution To The Driver-Guest Dilemm, Harvey R. Friedman

Michigan Law Review

The duty of the driver of an automobile to his nonpaying passenger, and liability arising from the breach of that duty, has long presented a troublesome area of litigation for the courts and the parties involved. Application of standards unsuited for the peculiar risks of automotive transportation has produced inadequate compensation in some cases and excessive recoveries in others. Meanwhile, trial calendars are overcrowded with personal injury litigation, and insurance companies must bear the awards of sympathetic juries and those resulting from collusion between passenger and driver. The over-all expense of this method of determination of liability, far too little …

Insurer's Failure To Settle, John L. Heaslip

Cleveland State Law Review

When one purchases a liability insurance policy he is contracting with the insurer for the insurer to stand in his place and to pay all liability claims brought against the insured for which the insured is legally liable. In essence, the risk of financial loss is transferred from the shoulders of the insured to those of the insurer, to the extent of the policy limits. The rights and duties of the parties created by a typical automobile liability policy are clearly stated in the policy.

Concurrent Causation In Insurance Contracts, William Conant Brewer Jr.

Michigan Law Review

A great deal of work and thought has been devoted to concurrent causation problems in the field of torts. Less attention has been paid to the insurance cases, and no serious effort has been made to formulate the separate rules applicable to them. It is the thesis of this article that concurrent causation problems which arise under an insurance contract must be handled somewhat differently from those which arise in connection with tort litigation, and that the tendency to borrow rules of law from the larger tort field and apply them to the smaller volume of insurance cases can only …

Contacts - Subrogation - Partial Subrogation Of A Cause Of Action For Personal Injuries, Jerome M. Salle

Michigan Law Review

Plaintiff, an incorporated home for the aged, provided all essential medical care to one of its residents under the provisions of a life-care contract between it and the resident. On the basis of a contract clause which purported to subrogate plaintiff to the right of the resident to recover medical expenses caused by the negligence of third parties, plaintiff brought an action to recover certain medical expenses incurred from the party who was allegedly responsible for the injuries and death of the resident. The trial court sustained a demurrer to the complaint for failure to state a cause of action …

Green: Traffic Victims. Tort Law And Insurance, Spencer L. Kimball

Michigan Law Review

A Review of Traffic Victims. Tort Law and Insurance. By Leon Green.

Insurer Liable For Beneficiary's Murder Of Life Insured

Washington and Lee Law Review

No abstract provided.

Insurance - Settlement - Extent Of Insurer's Liability For Wrongful Refusal To Settle When Subsequent Judgment Exceeds Policy Limits, Michael B. Lewiston

Michigan Law Review

The insured, while driving a borrowed truck, injured plaintiff and his wife. Defendant, insurer on a policy which contained liability limits of $10,000 per person and $20,000 per accident, was notified of the accident but refused to defend the subsequent suit against the insured on the ground that plaintiff's claim was not covered by the policy. Defendant refused an offer to settle the claim for $4,000 solely on the basis of its belief as to coverage, though it was aware that the insured was financially unable to effect his own settlement. A judgment of $25,000 for a plaintiff and $1,250 …

Insurance - Recovery - Delay Of Insurance Company In Rejecting Application For Insurance, Harry D. Krause S.Ed.

Michigan Law Review

Plaintiff, designated as beneficiary by deceased life insurance applicant, sued defendant life insurance company in assumpsit. Deceased, a combat pilot in the Korean War, had applied for one of defendant's policies, passed the medical examination, and made several premium payments on the policy. After the applicant was killed in combat defendant refused payment, contending that it had never accepted the risk but that it had responded to the application with a counter offer containing an aviation waiver. Because of ·the applicant's frequent change of address and his early death this proposal had never been communicated to him. On appeal from …