INSURANCE: Reasonableness of $29 million stipulated judgment for breach of duty to defend improperly considered solely from perspective of uninsured Defendants, remanded for 2nd hearing and objective consideration of merits of underlying case and value to a prudent uninsured of confessing judgment… ESOP payouts not required to be deducted from $29 million but may be considered in reasonableness of settlement… Plaintiffs will be entitled to postjudgment interest if settlement approved following 2nd hearing, but not to prejudgment interest… Townsend reversed, affirmed. [Read more…]
$3,146,185 fees, $29M ESOP stipulated judgment
ATTORNEY FEES: $3,146,185 fees, $89,153 costs awarded in $29 million settlement/stipulated judgment and assignment of rights by grocery chain executives to 35 ESOP participants… $35,816,986 total judgment with $6,816,986 prejudgment interest… appeal bond waived for $26 billion insurer… Townsend. [Read more…]
Political contributions, Citizens United test
POLITICAL CONTRIBUTIONS: Wrong standard applied for permanently enjoining enforcement of Montana’s restrictions on contributions, must be tested under more restrictive Citizens United test… Lovell reversed. [Read more…]
Insurance, $29 million ESOP settlement, defend
INSURANCE: $29 million settlement by 35 ESOP participants and grocery chain executives found reasonable following reasonableness hearing on remand from Supreme Court holding that insurer breached duty to defend and was estopped from denying coverage and no evidence of collusion but reasonableness hearing required… $29 million judgment against insurer… Townsend. [Read more…]
Elections, political committee disclosures
ELECTIONS: Election-eve request for preliminary injunction against enforcement of political committee disclosure laws denied… Christensen. [Read more…]
Insurance, duty to defend, stipulated judgment
INSURANCE: Court correctly found, without coverage analysis, that insurer breached duty to defend after recognizing policy potentially implicated, estopped from denying coverage… $29 million stipulated judgment improperly granted without [Read more…]
Jurisdiction, grassroots lobbying ads, Younger
JURISDICTION: Request for intervention in proposed grassroots lobbying ads declined under Younger, not justiciable due to ripeness/standing concerns… Lovell. [Read more…]
Elections, judicial endorsements/expenditures
ELECTIONS: Montana permanently enjoined from enforcing ban on endorsements and expenditures supporting or opposing a judicial candidate, not the ban on contributions… nunc pro tunc order following 9th Circuit clarification… Lovell. [Read more…]
Insurance, ESOP, $29 million stipulated judgment
INSURANCE: Defense of corporate officers in grocery chain ESOP litigation was tendered when insurer on notice in federal litigation and repeated requests for payment of defense costs in state action, insurer had duty to defend, policy not one of mere indemnification of defense costs, breached duty by [Read more…]
Discrimination, same-sex couples
DISCRIMINATION: General challenge of denial of protections/benefits to same-sex couples that are available to different-sex married couples rejected as overly broad, but Plaintiffs allowed to amend to challenge specific statutes… Sherlock affirmed, reversed. [Read more…]