Jose A. Aquino | Duane Morris For approximately 25 years, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has been involved in developing building codes to help homes withstand natural disasters. However, the Trump Administration has recently halted these efforts, withdrawing FEMA’s involvement from the latest building code improvements. National Public Radio (NPR) reported that FEMA is… Continue reading FEMA’s Withdrawal From Building Code Development
Month: March 2025
Hawaii Supreme Court Paves the Way for Maui Fire Settlement to Proceed
Tred R. Eyerly | Insurance Law Hawaii The settlement reached in the Maui fire cases appears to be a step closer to becoming a reality after the Hawaii Supreme Court issued its Order answering three reserved questions posed by the circuit court. In the Matter of the Petition for the Coordination of Maui Fire Cases,… Continue reading Hawaii Supreme Court Paves the Way for Maui Fire Settlement to Proceed
Three-Dimensional Chess: Harmonizing Dispute Resolution Clauses in Commercial Insurance Programs
Elizabeth J. Dye and Mark J. Plumer | Policyholder Pulse Considering the complex structure of commercial insurance programs—typically purchased in annual “towers” of insurance—risk managers and in-house counsel often do not pay sufficient attention to arbitration-related provisions, which the insurance industry is more frequently including in its policies. That’s like playing only one board in… Continue reading Three-Dimensional Chess: Harmonizing Dispute Resolution Clauses in Commercial Insurance Programs
Is It Defamatory to Call Your Contractor a Crook and a Con Man?
John Mark Goodman | BuildSmart Not according to a decision from a federal court in Ohio. The case involves a landscaping project at a hillside home in Cincinnati. The property overlooks the Ohio River, but like many projects that become cases, it ended up in the ditch. Dissatisfied with the progress of the work, the… Continue reading Is It Defamatory to Call Your Contractor a Crook and a Con Man?
Insured’s Count for Bad Faith Stripped from Claim
Tred R. Eyerly | Insurance Law Hawaii The insurer’s motion for partial summary judgment challenging the insured’s bad faith claim was successful. Baker v. Allstate Index. Co., 2024 U,.S. Dist. LEXIS 227802 (N.D. Miss. Dec. 17, 2024). Teresa Baker alleged that the roof of her rental property sustained wind and rain damage during… Continue reading Insured’s Count for Bad Faith Stripped from Claim