Wildfire Losses: Igniting a Recovery Claim [Claims Advisor]

Publication - Insurance Coverage, Subrogation & Recovery

Wildfire Losses: Igniting a Recovery Claim - Claims Advisor - Your BlackBerry beeps, revealing a series of new loss assignments. It must be fire season—again. So far in 2010, California has seen a multitude of wildfires (Crown, West, Bull, etc). Colorado also experienced devastating property loss from late summer blazes, and other states—albeit with fewer headlines—fell victim to widespread forest fires and the resulting economic losses. For insurance professionals, wildfire claims can

Stay Off the Hook for TCPA Claims [Law.com]

Publication

Stay Off the Hook for TCPA Claims - Law.com - Automatically dialing cell phones could land your company in court and cost you millions, with a growing number of
cases alleging violations of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) ...

Anticipating Changes in Food Packaging [Food Safety Magazine - eDigest]

Publication - Insurance Coverage - Insurance

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, an estimated 76 million cases of foodborne illness occur each year in the United States, resulting in approximately 325,000 hospitalizations and 5,000 deaths. These staggering statistics, along with a seemingly endless list of food recalls and associated public outrage, have prompted the government to react.

Curbing an Employee Classification Mistake [Risk and Insurance Online]

Publication - Insurance Coverage - Insurance

Curbing an Employee Classification Mistake - Risk and Insurance Online - Misclassifying employees as independent contractors is costing employers, with increased litigation and regulatory action. A
proactive approach can avoid missteps.

Product Identification in New York: Concerted Action, Market Share Liability, & Alternative Liability

Publication

Consent to Settlement Agreement May Not Bar Negligence Claim [The Legal Intelligencer]

Publication

Consent to Settlement Agreement May Not Bar Negligence Claim - The Legal Intelligencer - In Guido v. Duane Morris LLP , the New Jersey Supreme Court held in a June 8 opinion that a client's consent to settlement does not necessarily bar a malpractice action arising from that settlement. The court also held that the client need not seek to vacate the underlying settlement agreement as a prerequisite to the malpractice action. In so ruling, the New Jersey Supreme Court pulled back from an earlier

The Second Circuit Issues an Important Decision Regarding the Scope of the Bespeaks-Caution Doctrine [Securities and Financial Services Litigation and Securities Regulation Alert!]

Publication - Business

The Second Circuit Issues an Important Decision Regarding the Scope of the Bespeaks-Caution Doctrine - Securities and Financial Services Litigation and Securities Regulation Alert! - In a recent decision, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit made clear that the bespeaks-caution doctrine applies to forward-looking statements only and not to characterizations that communicate present or historical facts. Any company that makes public statements should take heed. Disclosures about risks will cover forward-looking statements; but where a plaintiff can show that an allegedly false or misleading statement pertains to present or historical facts,

NFPA Bans Use of Antifreeze in Sprinkler Systems [Subrogation and Recovery Alert!]

Publication - Subrogation & Recovery - Insurance

NFPA Bans Use of Antifreeze in Sprinkler Systems - Subrogation and Recovery Alert! - In an incredibly ironic turn of events, the National Fire Protection Association has determined that the use of antifreeze within wet pipe sprinkler systems-to avoid freeze-ups-actually creates a fire hazard by virtue of the extreme flammability of the antifreeze solution. Consequently, the NFPA now has issued a safety alert recommending that residential wet pipe fire systems should be drained of antifreeze and filled with plain old water.

H. Robert Fiebach Appointed to American Bar Association’s Advisory Committee

Press Release

H. Robert Fiebach, a senior attorney in Cozen O’Connor’s Commercial Litigation Department, was appointed to the Advisory Committee of the American Bar Association’s Standing Committee on Substance Abuse after completing a three year term as a member of the Committee, during which he served as Chair of the Committee for two and a half years.

Cozen O’Connor Adds Former Assistant U.S. Attorney, Supreme Court Clerk Stephen A. Miller

Press Release - White Collar Defense & Investigations

Cozen O’Connor Adds Former Assistant U.S. Attorney, Supreme Court Clerk Stephen A. Miller

Big Brother in the Big Apple: Subtle Erosion of Employment at Will? [New York Law Journal]

Publication - Labor & Employment

Employers in New York have taken great comfort over the years in citing the ''at will'' nature of an employee's job status when taking virtually any action ranging from discipline, to a diminution of salary or job responsibilities to outright termination. New York has generally been considered a pro-employer jurisdiction, with employees often having to clear high hurdles before circumventing the cornucopia of legal precedent.

Pennsylvania Supreme Court Rejects Reimbursement of Defense Costs While Tenth Circuit Finds Support Under Colorado Law [Insurance Coverage Alert!]

Publication - Insurance Coverage - Insurance

Pennsylvania Supreme Court Rejects Reimbursement of Defense Costs While Tenth Circuit Finds Support Under Colorado Law - Insurance Coverage Alert! - Two cases decided only one day apart illustrate the growing divide over whether an insurer is entitled to recover the costs of defending a claim that is ultimately determined not to be covered. In both cases, the policies at issue did not specifically address the reimbursement of defense costs, but the insurers asserted the right in their reservation of rights letters. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court rejected the right to do so,

Cozen O’Connor Ranked Number One In Philadelphia by Associates

Press Release

Cozen O’Connor Ranked Number One In Philadelphia by Associates

If it is Not Clearly Excluded, it Must be Included: "Fair Market Value" Includes Unpaid Sales Tax in Washington State [Insurance Coverage Alert!]

Publication - Insurance Coverage - Insurance

If it is Not Clearly Excluded, it Must be Included: "Fair Market Value" Includes Unpaid Sales Tax in Washington State - Insurance Coverage Alert! - On September 9, 2010, the Washington Supreme Court once again proved it will go to great lengths to protect policyholders in disputes with their insurers. In Holden v. Farmers Ins. Co. of Washington, — P.3d — (Sept. 9, 2010), the court deemed ambiguous the actual cash value (“ACV”) provision in a renters policy. The court concluded that because the definition of ACV “does not clearly exclude sales tax” then sales tax must be included in ACV calculations.

It’s Not Easy Being Green: New York City Adopts New Requirements Concerning Energy and Water Use Benchmarking, Energy Audits, Energy Use Retro-Commissioning, Lighting System Retrofitting and Electricity Submetering for Covered Buildings [Real Estate Alert!]

Publication - Real Estate Litigation - Real Estate & Construction

It’s Not Easy Being Green: New York City Adopts New Requirements Concerning Energy and Water Use Benchmarking, Energy Audits, Energy Use Retro-Commissioning, Lighting System Retrofitting and Electricity Submetering for Covered Buildings - Real Estate Alert! - This Alert addresses three local laws requiring energy conservation measures by owners of New York City residential and non-residential buildings containing more than 50,000 square feet of area. Although two of these local laws have compliance deadlines that are far in the future, some as early as 2013 and some as late as 2025, there are real advantages for those owners who elect to perform the work immediately.

Cozen O’Connor Member Elected Trustee of the Chubb Foundation

Press Release

Cozen O’Connor Member Elected Trustee of the Chubb Foundation

Maryland High Court Interprets AIA Waiver of Subrogation [Subrogation and Recovery Alert!]

Publication - Subrogation & Recovery - Insurance

Maryland High Court Interprets AIA Waiver of Subrogation - Subrogation and Recovery Alert! - Reviewing an American Institute of Architects (AIA) contract with a waiver of subrogation? Is that waiver enforceable? Is there a colorable argument to defeat the AIA waiver provision? This alert analyzes a recent Maryland Court of Appeals opinion finding an AIA contract ambiguous permitting suit to proceed even though there was a waiver of subrogation in the contract.

Cozen O’Connor Member Named Among “Most Powerful & Influential Women” in Pennsylvania

Press Release - Public & Project Finance

Cozen O’Connor Member Named Among “Most Powerful & Influential Women” in Pennsylvania

Suzanne Mayes Honored at Inaugural Diversity Conference

News

Suzanne Mayes Honored at Inaugural Diversity Conference

Stephen Cozen Featured in Jewish Exponent

News

Stephen Cozen Featured in Jewish Exponent