Insurance Law Commons^™

Reassessing The Sophisticated Policyholder Defense In Insurance Coverage Litigation, Jeffrey W. Stempel

Scholarly Works

Insurance law often is ironically regarded as both consistent and confusing. However, the 1980s saw significant flowering in the development of an insurance coverage interpretation doctrine that, although seriously flawed in its present form, offers the as yet untapped potential of substantial improvement in judicial construction of commercial insurance policies through seemingly inconsistent treatment of insurance coverage disputes.

During the past two decades, in response to the prodding of lawyers representing insurers, courts have increasingly noted that not all insurance policyholders are equal. Some have more money and bargaining clout than others. Some have more sophistication and understanding about the …

Case Comment: Smyth V. Szep Unsettling Settlements: Of Unconscionability And Other Things, David Vaver

Articles & Book Chapters

The recent decision of the British Columbia Court of Appeal in Smyth v. Szep once again canvasses the validity of releases signed by injured victims in favour of insurance companies and once again plunges into the murky waters of contractual unconscionability. Both issues have become more or less permanent squatters on judicial calendars throughout North America, and it seems worthwhile to consider why this is so and whether something can be done to reduce their tenure at least in Canada.

Reinsurance: Bad Faith Considerations And Insolvency Dilemma, Hui-Ju Hsieh

LLM Theses and Essays

Reinsurance is insurance that an insurance company purchases from another insurance company. The original insurance company is called the reinsured, and the insurance company that is contracted is called the reinsurer. The main purpose of reinsurance is to disperse or spread the risk of loss. The reinsurance relationship is frequently characterized as an exercise of fiduciary responsibility based upon an undertaking of utmost good faith between contracting parties. However, disputes arise; most litigation involving reinsurance has been between reinsurers and persons not party to the reinsurance agreement. This paper’s first major area of discussion is the relationship between the reinsurer …

Buchwald V. Paramount Pictures Corp. And The Future Of Net Profit, Adam J. Marcus

Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal

No abstract provided.

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 …

Insurance In The People's Republic Of China: Laws And Practice, Henry R. Zheng

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

The insurance industry in the People's Republic of China (PRC) has expanded rapidly during the past several years. Since the end of 1979 when domestic insurance was reestablished, the income generated from insurance business has been increasing at a rate of over forty-four percent annually.' By early 1987, over 500,000 enterprises and business entities utilized property insurance and about 34 million people purchased personal insurance; during the first half of 1986 the total insurance earnings from the People's Insurance Company of China alone reached a record high of over 2.33 billion yuan. In the meantime, the insurance business has become …

Bad Faith In First Party Insurance Contracts—What's Next, Paula J. Casey

University of Arkansas at Little Rock Law Review

No abstract provided.

Conflicts Of Interest In The Insurer's Duty To Defend In Illinois, 17 J. Marshall L. Rev. 379 (1984), John Dwight Ingram

UIC Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Reconstruction Of Insurance Contracts Under The Doctrine Of Reasonable Expectations, 18 J. Marshall L. Rev. 155 (1984), Scott B. Krider

UIC Law Review

No abstract provided.

Section 767 Of The Illinois Insurance Code: Does It Pre-Empt Tort Liability, 16 J. Marshall L. Rev. 471 (1983), J. Douglas Durham

UIC Law Review

No abstract provided.

Notice Provisions In Insurance Contracts: Great American Insurance Co. V. C.G. Tate Construction Co., Wanda Naylor

North Carolina Central Law Review

No abstract provided.

Misrepresentation In Procurement Of Insurance: The Arkansas Law, D. F. Adams

University of Arkansas at Little Rock Law Review

No abstract provided.

A Reasonable Approach To The Doctrine Of Reasonable Expectations As Applied To Insurance Contracts, Karen K. Shinevar

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

Part I of this article examines standard insurance contract analysis and the existing confusion within that analysis. Part II examines the doctrine of reasonable expectations. In Part Ill, Professor Keeton's expansion of the reasonable expectations doctrine is explained and analyzed. This article concludes in Part IV that Keeton's expanded doctrine has the effect of confusing most courts, which continue to discuss reasonable expectations in relation to conventional rules of contract construction. The article proposes that the reasonable expectations doctrine be limited to contractual language and surrounding circumstances in order to establish clearer guidelines for insurers and consumers.

Insurance - Suit Limitation Clause - An Insurer's Bad Faith Accusation Of Criminal Conduct By The Insured, Or An Accusation Which Is The Result Of A Negligent Investigation, Can Toll The Suit Limitation Clause, Kathleen Seybold Turezyn

Villanova Law Review (1956 - )

No abstract provided.

Contract Law - Life Insurance Contracts - Temporary Insurance - Binding Receipts Imposing Conditions Precedent Upon Temporary Insurance Coverage Held Ineffective In Pennsylvania, William Jackson

Villanova Law Review (1956 - )

No abstract provided.

Survey Of Develpoments In West Virginia Law: 1977, Joseph W. Bowman, Thomas Evans, Janet Archer Goodwin, Laura Jane Kelly, Kenneth E. Tawney

West Virginia Law Review

No abstract provided.

Agency And Licensing Problems In Reforming Group Credit Insurance Contacts, William G. Reed

North Carolina Central Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Insurance Contract And Policy In General As It Relates To North Carolina, Randal Rogers

North Carolina Central Law Review

No abstract provided.

Recent Legislation

University of Richmond Law Review

This is a list of the recent legislation from 1970.

Pyramiding Of Insurance Coverage Under The Standard Family Automobile Liability Policy, Edward J. Ciechon Jr.

Villanova Law Review (1956 - )

No abstract provided.

Agency And Insurance: Should The Defense Of Fraud By Its Own Agent Be Available To An Insurance Company Issuing Automobile Insurance?, J. Dennis Hynes

Publications

No abstract provided.

Damages Assessed Against Insurers For Wrongful Failure To Pay, Terry B. Light

William & Mary Law Review

No abstract provided.

Secured Transactions-Insurance-A Security Interest In The "Proceeds" Of Secured Collateral Does Not Include Insurance Proceeds-Universal C.I.T. Corp. V. Prudential Investment Corp., Michigan Law Review

Michigan Law Review

In return for a loan, a debtor executed a promissory note to codefendant, Prudential Investment Corporation, and entered into a written agreement to secure this note, designating as collateral a semi-tractor and the proceeds therefrom. Under this type of arrangement, Prudential's security interest would attach automatically to any property received from a sale, exchange, or other disposition of the tractor. Petitioner, Universal C.I.T. Corp., held the conditional sales contract which was executed in financing the purchase of the tractor and was named as loss payee in the insurance contract covering the tractor. When the tractor was totally destroyed, petitioner collected …

Changing A Life Beneficiary By Will, Thomas C. Clark

William & Mary Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Anomalous Position Of The Insurance Agent - An Invitation To Schizophrenia, Robert M. Morrison

Villanova Law Review (1956 - )

No abstract provided.

The Friendly Versus Hostile Fire Dichotomy, Robert I. Reis

Villanova Law Review (1956 - )

No abstract provided.

Basset V. Hapol Compulsory Insurance Ltd., Shimon Agranat, Zvi Berinson, Yitzhak Olshan

Translated Opinions

The first appellant was involved in a traffic accident, for which he was partly responsible. as a result of which a number of persons were injured. The respondent, the insurer of the other vehicle, settled the claims of some of the injured in negotiations outside court, after having invited the appellants to join in the negotiations. The latter refused to do so nor did they make any contribution to the payments made by the respondent who sued for contribution. The appellant denied liability and applied for the action to be dismissed in limine for no cause of action.

Held. The …

The Extension Of Insurance Subrogation, Spencer L. Kimball, Don A. Davis

Michigan Law Review

When an insured loss occurs under circumstances that make a third person liable to reimburse the insured, there are various possible ways to adjust the loss among the three persons involved. One solution would permit the policyholder to recover both on the insurance and from the third person, i.e., would permit double recovery for the loss. A second solution would give the third person the benefit of the insurance by denying recovery from him. A third solution would subrogate the insurer to the policyholder's rights against the third person. Combinations of these three solutions are possible by applying sometimes …

Insurance-Rate Regulation-Construction And Effect Of Guaranty Bond Agreement, Robert L. Harmon

Michigan Law Review

Plaintiff, an insurance agents' association and several other insurance companies and associations, instituted an action attacking an order of the State Board of Insurance. The order approved a guaranty bond form, together with rates and rules, which had been submitted to ,the Board pursuant to statute by the defendant insurance company. The guaranty agreement was an arrangement whereby defendant guaranteed payment of losses under fire insurance policies of other insurers in the event the latter should be unable to pay. Although the bond form was not restricted to any specific original insurers, it was contemplated that defendant would use ,the …

Taxation-Federal Income Tax-Strike Insurance Agreements, Robert A. Butler S.Ed.

Michigan Law Review

Contracts indemnifying persons or corporations for losses and damage resulting from an interruption of business due to strikes have existed at least since the beginning of this century. The Mutual Security Company of Connecticut, for example, wrote such a policy for the Buffalo Forge on April 9, 1906. In more recent times, strike insurance agreements have been instituted in major industries, and their impact on collective bargaining has been the subject of some controversy. The purpose of this comment is to consider the federal income tax questions which arise from such arrangements. Specifically, attention is directed to the deductibility of …