A federal judge in Camden has reconsidered his decision to affirm a magistrate judge's order requiring an insurance company to produce privileged documents in a coverage case.

U.S. District Judge Noel Hillman of the District of New Jersey directed U.S. Magistrate Judge Joel Schneider to give a fuller explanation of his ruling ordering Liberty International Underwriters of Canada to produce documents related to its settlement of a claim by the Borgata Hotel, Casino and Spa over a fire at the Atlantic City hotel.

Hillman, who initially affirmed Schneider's ruling in October, said Dec. 29 in Liberty International Underwriters v. Scottsdale Insurance that he does not believe Schneider's ruling was “clearly erroneous or contrary to law,” but there is “sufficient ambiguity” regarding the application of the U.S. Supreme Court's 1979 ruling In re Kozlov and other case law on attorney-client privilege to warrant remand.