Can You Get Stuck With Stucco? Coverage Under An EIFS Exclusion For Property Damage Caused By Construction Defects

Kathy Maus and J. Blake Hunter | Butler Weihmuller Katz Craig Many commercial general liability policies contain an exterior insulation and finish systems (EIFS) exclusion, which bars coverage under specific circumstances when EIFS is used in construction. EIFS is also known as synthetic stucco and generally refers to a multi-layered exterior building finish. EIFS usually… Continue reading Can You Get Stuck With Stucco? Coverage Under An EIFS Exclusion For Property Damage Caused By Construction Defects

What a Difference a Word Makes

Ethan Price-Livingston | Cozen O’Connor             A recent decision by a Massachusetts Appellate Court reinforces that every word in an insurance policy has meaning, and that one word can make all the difference.             In Phoenix Baystate Constr. Co., Inc. v. First Ins. Co., 145 N.E.3d 911, 2020 WL 2516670 (Mass. App. May 18, 2020), review denied  150… Continue reading What a Difference a Word Makes

Insurance Policies and Indemnity Provisions Are Not the Same

Garret Murai | California Construction Law Blog Just because you own a pair of Air Jordans doesn’t make you Michael Jordan. In the next case, Carter v. Pulte Home Corporation, Case No. A154757 (July 23, 2020), the 1st District Court of Appeal denied an insurance carrier’s equitable subrogation claim explaining that an insurer’s obligations under its… Continue reading Insurance Policies and Indemnity Provisions Are Not the Same

Requesting an Allocation Between Covered and Non-Covered Damages? [Do] Think Twice, It’s [Not Always] All Right

Todd Likman | Colorado Constructin Litigation As is often the case in construction defect and other insurance defense litigation, a plaintiff’s claims for relief typically encompass both covered and uncovered damages.  Obviously, it is in the insured’s best interests to have as many damages covered by insurance as possible.  From the insurer’s perspective and against the backdrop… Continue reading Requesting an Allocation Between Covered and Non-Covered Damages? [Do] Think Twice, It’s [Not Always] All Right

Ensuing Loss Clause Does Not Create Coverage for “Collapse” Inseparable from Damage Caused by Excluded Perils

Jordan Hess and Paul Ferland | Property Insruance Law Observer             In Jowite Limited Partnership v. Federal Insurance Company, the United States District Court for the District of Maryland issued a rare opinion addressing whether “collapse” is a covered “ensuing loss” under an all-risks insurance policy without a specific collapse coverage.  Case No. 1:18-cv-02413-DLB (D. Md.… Continue reading Ensuing Loss Clause Does Not Create Coverage for “Collapse” Inseparable from Damage Caused by Excluded Perils