INSURANCE: Ambiguous premises endorsements correctly construed as covering Montana suicide flowing out of use of behavior program’s Utah premises, insurer breached duty to defend, liable for $3 million consent judgment… Christensen affirmed (unpublished). [Read more…]
Attorney fees, $3 million consent judgment
ATTORNEY FEES: Attorneys entitled to fees based on what client, as assignee of insurer in $3 million “tough love” suicide consent judgment, would have been able to recover for time & expenses [Read more…]
Insurance, “tough love” suicide, “arising out of,”
INSURANCE: Only “false conflict” between Utah and Montana law as to “arising out of” in context of duty to defend, Montana law applied to CGL/umbrella policies covering Utah entity that provided services to Montana residential youth program… [Read more…]
Insurance, “tough love” school suicide
INSURANCE: CGL/excess insurers had duty to defend “tough love” school against teen suicide claims, liable for $3 million consent judgment plus $568,767 interest… $1,188,399 fees improperly awarded based on judgment and contingency in underlying case, remanded for recalculation on [Read more…]
Suicide liability, troubled teen school, foreseeability
SUICIDE LIABILITY: Foreseeability evidence improperly limited to what troubled student knew; what operator of tough love boarding school and entity providing program policy knew and whether it was designed to treat suicidal teens also relevant… settlement of school did not settle [Read more…]
Insurance, duty to defend, troubled teen suicide
INSURANCE: Insurers had duty to defend entity purporting to find boarding school placements for troubled teens, coverage not barred by “professional” exclusion in light of non-professional conduct including panicked school employee failing to aid potentially suicidal teen found [Read more…]
Climate change, greenhouse gas mitigation
CLIMATE CHANGE: Petition to require State to enforce greenhouse gas mitigation denied… order. [Read more…]
Insurance, owned vehicle
INSURANCE: Vehicle owned by husband & wife in which wife injured while husband driving within “insured auto” exception [Read more…]
Insurance, “insured auto” UIM exception
INSURANCE: Vehicle owned by husband & wife in which wife injured while husband driving within “insured auto” exception to “underinsured auto,” wife’s UIM claim following release of husband for $300,000 liability limits rejected… insurer not [Read more…]
Defense verdict, excessive force booking
VERDICT: Defense, excessive force booking, skull fracture during struggle, subsequent seizure & drowning.
An 11-1 Missoula jury found that Missoula Officer Andrew Roy was not negligent (no unreasonable force) in connection with his arrest of Courtney [Read more…]