Recent Publications


Strober’s “New York Lead-Paint Case Update” in Environmental Claims Journal
May 10, 2017 | Complex Torts & Product Liability

This article examines a variety of recent lead-paint decisions issued by New York courts, from trial level, to appellate, to the state’s highest court.

As these cases suggest, lead-paint complaints against landlords and property owners are likely to continue to be filed in New York courts for some time to come.

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Employee Benefit Plan Review – From the Courts
May 9, 2017 | Insurance Coverage | Labor & Employment

Employee Who Left Job Due to Terminal Illness Was Entitled to Severance Pay, Ninth Circuit Rules

The wife of the plaintiff in this case was employed by the American Society for Technion-Israel Institute of Technology (ATS) until her terminal illness forced her to leave her job. The plaintiff contended that his wife was entitled to severance

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U.S. House of Representatives Passes the Working Families Flexibility Act
May 9, 2017 | Labor & Employment

Last week, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Working Families Flexibility Act— a bill that if enacted, would allow private-sector employees to receive “compensatory time” off in lieu of traditional overtime pay. The bill, H.R.1180, passed 229 to 197, largely along party lines, with all the Democrats and just six Republicans voting against it. Employers

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Rulings Obtained by Preet Bharara Highlighted Insurance Fraud Problem
May 4, 2017 | Appeals

Over nearly eight years as U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Preet Bharara became recognized as a powerful prosecutor in many areas, including government corruption and white-collar crime. Another subject for which he certainly deserves mention is his strong record helping to fight insurance fraud in New York.

Much can be learned

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New York Insurance Coverage Law Update
April 28, 2017 | Insurance Coverage

Court Holds Insurer Did Not Establish Insured’s Failure To Cooperate

An insurer’s disclaimer based on the insured’s lack of cooperation was challenged in court. The Appellate Division, Second Department, found that the insurer made diligent efforts that were reasonably calculated to obtain its insured’s cooperation. However, the court ruled that the

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Trump Administration Reverses Broadband Provider Privacy Protections
April 24, 2017 | Privacy, Data & Cyber Law

On April 3, 2017, President Donald J. Trump signed into law S.J. Resolution 34, a partisan-enacted joint congressional resolution disapproving of (and thus negating) a rule submitted in 2016 by the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”), which provided additional protections to consumers when using broadband services.  The result is a reversal in privacy provisions that were

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Second Circuit Rejects Secret-Cookie Suit
April 21, 2017 | Privacy, Data & Cyber Law | Complex Torts & Product Liability | Professional Liability

By now, anyone who uses a cell phone or other method to access the Internet—virtually everyone—has heard of “cookies” intended to track their online activities. Many individuals who object to tracking take steps to block cookies through privacy settings on their web browsers and other technologies. However, in a decision with important implications for those

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Multiple Sales of Tabletop Torches Were Multiple Occurrences
April 21, 2017 | Insurance Coverage | Complex Torts & Product Liability

The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio has ruled that multiple sales of tabletop torches amounted to separate occurrences for purposes of triggering the torch seller’s excess insurance policy.

The Case

Several lawsuits were filed against Big Lots Stores, Inc., by plaintiffs in Illinois, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Texas alleging that they had

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Losses Allegedly Caused by Debit Card Holders’ Use of Phones Rather Than Computers Were Not Covered by Policy’s Computer Fraud Provisions
April 21, 2017 | Insurance Coverage

The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia has ruled that a company that claimed it suffered losses resulting from the use of telephones to access its processing system could not recover from its insurer for “computer fraud.”

The Case

InComm Holdings, Inc., and Interactive Communications International, Inc. (together, “InComm”) provided a service

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Absence of Allegations That Insured Disparaged Underlying Plaintiff Doomed Its Bid for Coverage of Lawsuit
April 21, 2017 | Insurance Coverage

A federal district court in Maryland has ruled that an insured was not entitled to “personal and advertising injury” coverage of a lawsuit that did not allege that it had disparaged the underlying plaintiff.

The Case

Sprint Solutions, Inc., and Sprint Communications Company (together, “Sprint”) sued Unwired Solutions, Inc., d/b/a Linq Services, Inc. (“Linq”) and

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Pollution Exclusion Precluded Coverage for Suit Alleging Harm from Carbon Monoxide
April 21, 2017 | General Liability

The U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon has ruled that a pollution exclusion in a commercial general liability insurance policy excluded coverage for claims arising from alleged carbon monoxide poisoning.

The Case

Plaintiffs sued Victory Construction LLC, d/b/a Premier Pools and Spas of Oregon, alleging negligence in the installation and ventilation of a

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Pollution Exclusion Precluded Coverage for Suits Alleging Violation of Environmental Laws
April 21, 2017 | Insurance Coverage

The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio has ruled that the absolute pollution exclusion precluded coverage for lawsuits against a construction company alleging that it had violated federal and state environmental laws by discharging dredged or fill materials into protected wetlands.

The Case

JTO, Inc., an Ohio-based construction company, was sued by

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Exclusions Precluded Coverage for Construction Defect Lawsuit against General Contractor, Ninth Circuit Decides
April 21, 2017 | Insurance Coverage

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit has affirmed a decision by a federal district court in California that two policy exclusions precluded coverage for a construction defect lawsuit brought against the insured general contractor.

The Case

Archer Western Contractors, Ltd., was the general contractor for the San Diego County Water Authority’s emergency water

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“Your Work” Exclusion Precluded Coverage for Breach of Warranty of Habitability Claim Against Subcontractor, Seventh Circuit Says
April 21, 2017 | Insurance Coverage | General Liability

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit has affirmed a decision by a federal district court in Illinois that the “your work” exclusion in a commercial general liability insurance policy precluded coverage for a lawsuit against the insured subcontractor stemming from its allegedly defective installation of windows.

The Case

Metro North Condominium Association

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Neither Crime Nor Commercial Property Policy Covered Consultant’s Theft, Seventh Circuit Rules
April 21, 2017 | Insurance Coverage

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit has affirmed a decision by a federal district court in Indiana that theft by a company’s consultant was not covered by either a crime insurance policy or a commercial property insurance policy.

The Case

Telamon Corporation, an Indiana telecommunications firm, engaged Juanita Berry – through a

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