LAKELAND, Fla. — A Florida appeals court panel ruled that an insurer’s payment of its policy limits following an appraisal process that complied with the policy terms did not constitute a “confession of judgment” that entitled the insured to recover his attorney fees under Florida Statutes Section 627.428(1), affirming a lower court’s summary judgment ruling in favor of the insurer in a breach of contract lawsuit arising from Hurricane Ian property damage.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Supreme Court heard oral argument on Oct. 6 in an Employee Retirement Income Security Act case concerning whether fund underperformance claims must allege a “meaningful benchmark” to survive dismissal, with retirement plan participants arguing that the Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals improperly imposed a categorical rule that prohibits a holistic analysis of the allegations and plan fiduciaries and amicus curiae the U.S. government contending that the Ninth Circuit correctly decided that an apples-to-apples comparison is necessary in such cases.

FORT WORTH, Texas — The Texas Supreme Court agreed to review an appellate panel’s ruling that an insurer has a continued duty to defend its insured against underlying asbestos bodily injury lawsuits because the underlying allegations fall within the policies’ premises-operations coverage and the insurer failed to show that its policies have been exhausted.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Supreme Court on Oct. 5 granted a motion filed by the solicitor general of the United States for leave to participate in oral argument as amicus curiae and for divided argument supporting the position of the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia and Georgia Tech Athletic Association (GTAA) in a case involving sex discrimination suits filed by two former university system employees.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Supreme Court on Oct. 5 invited the U.S. solicitor general to file a brief on behalf of the United States in a case in which a British Columbia lead-zinc smelter operator is seeking review of whether the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act “authorizes damages for the felt loss of a cultural connection to natural resources” in a dispute with the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation over claims seeking up to $538 million in damages in connection with the discharge of millions of tons of toxic waste into the Columbia River.

NEW YORK — Ruling on appeals of two summary judgment rulings in a coverage dispute over underlying lawsuits alleging that the National Football League negligently failed to protect former players from brain injuries purportedly caused by concussive head impacts, a New York appellate panel held that an excess insurer has no duty to indemnify the NFL and NFL Properties LLC in connection with an underlying multidistrict litigation settlement and found that NFL football does not constitute a “product” under the Products Completed Operations Hazard (PCOH) so the PCOH aggregate limits are not applicable.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Oil and gas companies and two Colorado municipalities debated Oct. 5 during oral argument before the U.S. Supreme Court whether federal law precludes state law claims seeking relief for alleged damage to infrastructure and resources caused by greenhouse gas emissions in a dispute over the companies’ alleged contribution to climate change and resulting global harms through their production and sale of fossil fuels.

CINCINNATI — The Ohio federal judge overseeing the national opioid multidistrict litigation failed to conduct the individualized diligence inquiry required by Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 16 and abused his discretion by allowing approximately 800 plaintiffs to belatedly amend their complaints to assert claims against pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs), a Sixth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel held Oct. 2 in granting mandamus relief.