Indiana Court of Appeals Upholds Insurance Policy’s Two-Year Suit Limitation on UM Claim
Napier v. Am. Family Mut. Ins. Co., 2021 WL 5291911 (Ind. Ct. App. 2021) In 2014 and 2015, Paula Napier was involved in automobile accidents with operators of uninsured vehicles. More than three years later, in 2019, Napier sued her auto insurer, American Family Insurance Company, seeking uninsured motorist (“UM”) benefits for the accidents. American […]
Indiana Court of Appeals Concludes That General Liability Insurer Owed Duty to Defend Bar in Lawsuit by Accident Victim After Intoxicated Bar Patron Was Expelled
Ebert v. Illinois Cas. Co., 2021 WL 3853062 (Ind. Ct. App. 2021) Illinois Casualty provided both general liability and liquor liability insurance policies to two bars, Little Daddy’s and Big Daddy’s. A patron consumed alcohol at Big Daddy’s and became intoxicated. Big Daddy’s was using a bouncer who was an employee of Little Daddy’s, which […]
Court Of Appeals Finds That “Insured Location” Did Not Extend to Nearby Parking Lot in Which Insureds Joyrode Golf Cart
Hoppe v. Safeco Ins. Co. of Indiana, 2021 WL 3137195 (Ind. Ct. App. 2021) In Hoppe, a minor was injured after falling off of a golf cart being driven by her friend, the minor daughter of the insureds, in the parking lot of an outdoor music venue across the street from the insureds’ home in […]
Indiana Court of Appeals Concludes That MCS-90 Endorsement Applies to Intrastate Motor Carrier Travel
Progressive Southeastern Ins. Co. v. B&T Bulk, LLC 2021 WL 1747897 (Ind. Ct. App. 2021) Interpretation and application of an MCS-90 Endorsement is an ever evolving line of judicial decisions. In this case, the Indiana Court of Appeals addressed and offered two important rulings. First, the Court determined that the MCS-90 Endorsement, in Indiana, applies […]
Court of Appeals Upholds Insurer’s Introduction of Medical Bills at UIM Trial Even Though Plaintiff Sought No Recovery for Those Bills
Gladstone v. West Bend Mut. Ins. Co., 2021 WL 1113900 (Ind. Ct. App. 2021) Plaintiffs’ attorneys, defense attorneys, and insurers have long quarreled about the admissibility of evidence for measuring medical damages in personal injury actions. Before the Indiana Supreme Court’s decisions in Stanley v. Walker, 906 N.E.2d 852 (Ind. 2009) and Patchett v. Lee, […]
Indiana Supreme Court Reverses Summary Judgment for Insurer in Coverage Dispute Over Ransomware Attack
G&G Oil Co. of Indiana v. Cont’l W. Ins. Co., 2021 WL 1034982 (Ind. 2021) It has been estimated that this year a business will fall victim to a ransomware every 11 seconds, causing up to $20 billion in damage.1 The Indiana Supreme Court’s decision in G&G Oil Co. of Indiana v. Cont’l W. Ins. […]
Court of Appeals Determines Insured Owes Indemnity/Insurance Coverage Despite Having Self-Insured Retention on Insurance Policy
Roadsafe Holdings, Inc. v. Walsh Const. Co., 2021 WL 325677 (Ind. Ct. App. 2021) This case has a long appellate history involving a number of legal issues. After a driver was injured while operating his vehicle through a construction zone, he filed a lawsuit against Walsh Construction Company (“Walsh”) for allegedly creating an unsafe traffic […]
Are legal services a basic human need?
As we approach the end of 2020, many of us are contemplating our personal and business charitable contributions. The ravages of the pandemic have left many with no paycheck, no home and living in a state of hopelessness. Imagine what it has been like for people who were already in chronic need before COVID arrived. There has […]
Indiana Supreme Court Holds That UIM Insurer’s Right to Offset Payments by “Legally Responsible” Parties Does Not Include Payments by Other UIM Insurers
Glover v. Allstate Prop. & Cas. Ins. Co., 2020 WL 5951386 (Ind. 2020) The Indiana Supreme Court recently addressed a case with multiple insurance issues. Shelina Glover, a passenger in an automobile, died from a multi-car accident. Her estate settled claims against two responsible drivers who paid their policy limits totaling $75,000. The estate then […]
Charting the Course for Estate Plans
Many attorneys experience some version of the following scenario at one time or another – You meet with clients to discuss a legal agreement they want you to prepare, you prepare the agreement, send follow up correspondence to the clients regarding specific terms and issues of importance, revise the agreement according to the clients’ input, […]
