Last year, I discussed a California case where tort claims were brought in the reinsurance context and the court threw them out. A federal court in Alabama recently addressed a similar issue, where a municipal insurer brought bad faith tort claims against its reinsurer when the reinsurer failed to pay certain losses under a series of reinsurance contracts. Like California, the federal court in Alabama ruled that the tort of bad faith did not extend to reinsurance and dismissed the claims.
Continue reading “Tort of Bad Faith Does Not Apply to a Reinsurance Relationship”Tag: tort liability
Reinsurance Trials Set Back by Pandemic
One year into the pandemic I thought it might be a good time to reflect on how the shutdowns have affected reinsurance trials. What, you say? A reinsurance trial? Aren’t they all arbitrated? Well, yes, most are, but not every reinsurance contract has an arbitration clause and, moreover, not every case brought against a reinsurer is a breach of contract case.
Continue reading “Reinsurance Trials Set Back by Pandemic”No Tort Liability in Reinsurance Contract Dispute Under California Law
A typical reinsurance dispute is essentially a breach of contract dispute. A reinsurance agreement is a contract between two insurance companies. Tort liability rarely comes into play. Under California law, however, tort liability has been extended in certain disputes between insurers and policyholders. Recently, a California federal court had to address whether tort liability for breach of the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing was a valid cause of action under California law in a reinsurance dispute.
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