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In a Case of First Impression, California Court of Appeal Extends the Duty to Defend Under a CGL Policy
Commercial General Liability (“CGL”) policies that cover personal injury and property damage require CGL carriers to defend “suits,” typically defined to mean “a civil proceeding in which damages . . . to…
Ninth Circuit Applies New Hardt Decision to Deny ERISA Participant Attorney’s Fees
Last month, the U.S. Supreme Court handed ERISA plan participants a big victory when they decided the important ERISA disability case of Hardt v. Reliance Standard Life Insurance, __ U.S….
Submission of the Claim File: Seal or Redact?
For most insurance litigation, the majority of the evidence used by both sides comes from the claim file, also known as the administrative record in ERISA cases. The claim file…
Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals Applies Montour to the Conflict of Interest Analysis in ERISA Case
In the aftermath of the United States Supreme Court holding in Metropolitan Life Ins. Co. v. Glenn, 554 U.S. 105, 128 S.Ct. 2343, 2348 (2008), the courts have struggled to…
Documents Reviewed by Independent Medical Examiner Sufficient to Satisfy Plan Obligation to Consider All Relevant Documents
The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, in an unpublished decision, addressed the question of whether documents reviewed by an independent medical examiner, but not by the…
New California Health Insurance Legislation Moves Forward
The debate over national health care reform has moved to the California Legislature, which will begin taking the initial steps to implement the complex series of health insurance overhauls prescribed…
U.S. Supreme Court Hands ERISA Plan Participants Major Victory in Allowing Recovery of Attorneys’ Fees
As predicted in my April blog post, the U.S. Supreme Court today handed ERISA plan participants a big victory when they decided the important ERISA disability case of Hardt v….
Differential Standard of Review in ERISA Cases Clarified
The Tuesday May 4, 2010 edition of the Los Angeles Daily Journal featured my article, entitled “Deferential Standard of Review in ERISA case Clarified,” in the Perspective column. It explains…
Insurance Commissioner Announces Examination of Anthem’s Claims-Related Data
Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner announced last week that his office will conduct an examination of Anthem Blue Cross’s claims-related data used by Anthem to justify its future rate filings. This…
Two Major California Health Insurers to Cease Practice of Policy Rescissions
For several years, health insurers have been strongly criticized for engaging in post claim underwriting and improper policy cancellations, known in the law as “rescissions.” The Insurance Commissioner has even…
