Howard B Epstein

June 26, 2024 | New York Law Journal

Many businesses have sought to recover their pandemic losses under commercial property insurance policies, only to be denied coverage. A significant number of policyholders have filed lawsuits challenging these disclaimers. But to the dismay of the insureds, a growing majority of high state courts have sided with the insurers in these disputes.

By Howard B. Epstein and Theodore A. Keyes

9 minute read

April 10, 2024 | New York Law Journal

While RWI policies are manuscripted policies separately negotiated for each transaction, the vast majority contain arbitration clauses, meaning that claim disputes are resolved privately without published court rulings. The recent ruling in 'Novolex Holdings v. Illinois Union Insurance' sheds some light on one of these claim disputes, while also providing important lessons for insurers and M&A practitioners.

By Howard B. Epstein and Theodore A. Keyes

8 minute read

January 25, 2024 | New York Law Journal

D&O liability insurance policies provide coverage for claims arising out of wrongful acts committed by directors or officers of the insured entity—that is their insured capacity. By contrast, in policies where insured capacity is addressed by exclusion, the outside capacity exclusion will bar coverage for loss arising from claims relating to an insured person's conduct in any capacity other than as a director or officer of the insured entity.

By Howard B. Epstein and Theodore A. Keyes

8 minute read

November 15, 2023 | New York Law Journal

Every now and then, an insurance product emerges that addresses risks in a manner that facilitates transactions such that the product becomes a regular part of the dealmaker's toolkit. While judgment preservation insurance may not have the impact that RWI has had, its increasing popularity suggests that insureds are discovering that JPI is a very useful tool to mitigate risk.

By Howard B. Epstein and Theodore A. Keyes

6 minute read

September 28, 2023 | New York Law Journal

Recently, the Eastern District of New York granted summary judgment to an insurer, holding that the insurer had no duty to defend based on the terms of an exclusion in the policy. This decision highlights how, where the facts plainly fall within a clearly-drafted exclusion, courts will not hesitate to enforce the exclusion as written.

By Howard B. Epstein and Theodore A. Keyes

6 minute read

June 28, 2023 | New York Law Journal

In Amerisure v. Selective, the Second Circuit held that the subcontract terms governed the additional insured question while the other insurance clauses in the insurance policies governed the priority dispute.

By Howard B. Epstein and Theodore A. Keyes

8 minute read

March 28, 2023 | New York Law Journal

In the case of prior or pending litigation exclusions, the policyholder-insurer dispute is typically over whether a later filed claim arises out of the same subject matter or alleged activities as a prior or pending litigation.

By Howard B. Epstein and Theodore A. Keyes

7 minute read

February 07, 2023 | New York Law Journal

In some cases, a dispute over the duty to defend may be justiciable but a dispute over the duty to indemnify involving the same facts may not be. This article discusses the recent case 'Admiral Insurance Co. v. Niagara Transformer Corporation,' which addressed this issue and clarified the applicable standards to use.

By Howard B. Epstein and Theodore A. Keyes

7 minute read

November 10, 2022 | New York Law Journal

In their Corporate Insurance Law column, Howard Epstein and Theodore Keyes discuss 'Cumis Specialty Insurance Co. v. Kaufman', where the U.S. District Court for the Southern District held that the final adjudication limitation in conduct exclusion cases does not require exhaustion of all appeals.

By Howard B. Epstein and Theodore A. Keyes

7 minute read

September 23, 2022 | New York Law Journal

The clear lesson from this case is that, in connection with a warranty statement, it is important to carefully evaluate known information prior to execution—particularly with respect to government inquiries and proceedings—and to carefully consider the impact of disclosing or not disclosing potentially significant matters.

By Howard B. Epstein and Theodore A. Keyes

7 minute read