First Circuit Broadly Interprets Exclusion in Commercial General Liability Policy Under Current Massachusetts Law

Bill Wilson | Construction Law Zone In Admiral Insurance Co. v. Tocci Building Corp., 120 F.4th 933 (1st Cir. 2024), the federal Court of Appeals ruled that, under current Massachusetts law, a general contractor’s Commercial General Liability (CGL) policy does not cover damage to non-defective work resulting from defective work by subcontractors. The defendant contractor was… Continue reading First Circuit Broadly Interprets Exclusion in Commercial General Liability Policy Under Current Massachusetts Law

First Circuit Rules On Important Coverage Issue For Contractors

Christopher Sweeney | Conn Kavanaugh First Circuit Court of Appeals Rules That Standard Commercial General Liability Policy Excludes Coverage for Downstream Property Damage When General Contractor’s Scope of Work Covers Entire Building It is well-accepted that standard commercial general liability policies exclude coverage for construction contractors’ own defective work. That is, for example, a roofer… Continue reading First Circuit Rules On Important Coverage Issue For Contractors

Your Excess Policy May Not “Follow Form” to Your Primary Policy’s Aggregate Limits: How to Avoid a Multi-Million Dollar Mistake

Kyle A. Bechet and Richard W. Brown | Saxe Doernberger & Vita Commercial general liability (“CGL”) policies providing limits on a “per-project” basis have become standard in the construction industry. General contractors and other upstream parties on large construction projects, as a rule, require downstream subcontractors to maintain CGL coverage with limits provided on a… Continue reading Your Excess Policy May Not “Follow Form” to Your Primary Policy’s Aggregate Limits: How to Avoid a Multi-Million Dollar Mistake

Massachusetts Appellate Court Confirms Construction Defects are Not Covered Under Commercial General Liability Policies

Bill Wilson | Construction Law Zone In a case of first impression in Massachusetts, Lessard v. R.C. Havens & Sons, Inc., 104 Mass. App. Ct. 572 (2024), the Appellate Court confirmed that construction defects, without more, do not constitute property damage within the meaning of a commercial general liability policy (CGL). In Lessard, the homeowners filed suit against… Continue reading Massachusetts Appellate Court Confirms Construction Defects are Not Covered Under Commercial General Liability Policies

US Appeals Court Upholds No CGL Coverage for General Contractor for Subcontractor’s Defective Work

John Hugo, Kelly Martin Malone and Michael Robertson | MG+M The Law Firm On November 8, 2024, the US Court of Appeals for the First Circuit (the Court) issued a decision in the matter of Admiral Insurance Company, et al. v. Tocci Building Corporation, et al., No. 22-1462 (1st Cir. 2024). The appeal concerned a dispute… Continue reading US Appeals Court Upholds No CGL Coverage for General Contractor for Subcontractor’s Defective Work