Insurance Coverage
Folger Levin & Kahn LLP has a long record of successfully negotiating and litigating coverage disputes for clients. We have represented policyholders in insurance matters arising out of securities, intellectual property, unfair trade practices, asbestos cases, and construction and environmental claims. We are often involved in tendering and pursuing claims to insurance carriers for defense costs as well as any losses that might be sustained by the clients. FLK is also often specifically retained to pursue insurance claims for clients.
- We represented Enterprise Rent-A-Car Company in a dispute with its carrier, Fireman’s Fund, yielding a recovery of tens of millions of dollars.
- We represented AFC, a manufacturer of telecommunications equipment,
in pursuing insurance coverage from National Union, which refused to
pay approximately $5 million with respect to an underlying class action
securities fraud case against AFC. Following a lengthy arbitration,
we obtained full recovery, including interest, plus a bad faith finding
entitling AFC to attorneys’ fees and costs, for a total award of over
$6 million.
- FLK obtained a unanimous jury verdict for bad faith in insurance litigation
to recover defense costs arising out of the environmental clean-up of
the Stringfellow hazardous waste site and a related multi-party personal
injury action. After Great American settled, Chubb was found obligated
to defend our client, The Deutsch Company, and required to pay all of
our remaining legal fees, without any reduction.
- We prosecuted an insurance coverage claim in arbitration on behalf of Rodenstock North America, a manufacturer of technologically advanced eyeglass lenses and frames. The insurer had completely denied our client’s claim, then sued for declaratory relief in federal court. We established on summary judgment that the denial of coverage was wrong. The parties agreed to submit the amount of damages and interest to arbitration. The arbitration, conducted in Atlanta before the Henning Mediation & Arbitration Service, resulted in a complete victory for our client, winning 100% of the claimed defense costs plus the maximum amount of prejudgment interest allowed.
- We represented Bechtel in connection with insurance disputes concerning over 15,000 lawsuits against Bechtel for alleged bodily injuries stemming from exposure to asbestos on construction and engineering projects.
- In litigation stemming from Hilton Hotels’ $200 million renovation of the San Francisco Hilton, we obtained summary judgment against National Union, requiring it to both defend and indemnify Hilton thereby resulting in a full recovery.
- We pursued Louisiana-Pacific’s carriers for coverage of environmental claims, including defense and indemnity obligations stemming from operations at numerous pulp mills, logging sites and manufacturing facilities throughout the United States. After only three depositions, the case settled with the carriers paying more than their policy limits in indemnity as well as reimbursing the company for defense costs.
Representative Clients: Louisiana-Pacific Corporation; Bechtel Corporation; Hilton Hotels; AFC (now Tellabs, Inc.); Intersil, Inc. (General Electric); Eastman Kodak Company; Amfac Distribution Corporation; JMB Realty Corporation; Lone Star Industries, Inc.; DPR Construction, Inc.
For more information, contact:
Gregory D. Call, Chair of Litigation Department, gcall@flk.com
Douglas W. Sullivan, dsullivan@flk.com
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