California Panel: Insured’s Failure To Submit To EUO Dooms Coverage Lawsuit
LOS ANGELES — A California appellate panel on July 20 affirmed a lower court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of an insurer in an insured’s breach of contract and breach of the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing lawsuit seeking coverage for theft by conversion of three African art pieces, agreeing with the lower court that the insured’s refusal to submit to an examination under oath as required by the personal articles insurance policy doomed his lawsuit.
3rd Circuit Affirms Dismissal Of Patent Licensing Dispute Over Contract Terms
PHILADELPHIA — A Third Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel on July 20 affirmed a Delaware federal judge’s dismissal with prejudice of a breach of contract suit involving a licensing agreement for patented hand sanitizer and other skin-care products; the panel agreed with the judge that the plaintiff-appellant entity never received a required affirmative written communication that would allow it to bring infringement suits regarding the patents.
4th Circuit Remands Mootness Issue Raised By Insurer For 1st Time On Appeal
RICHMOND, Va. — The Fourth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on July 20 remanded for the district court to consider a commercial general liability insurer’s argument that its declaratory relief action was rendered moot by the settlement of an underlying lawsuit alleging that a nightclub insured misappropriated professional models’ likenesses and injured their professional reputations by posting their images online without their consent, noting that the question of mootness was raised by the insurer for the first time on appeal.
Judge: D.C. Circuit Petition Filing Stops Review Of New Drug Application Challenge
WASHINGTON, D.C. — A pharmaceutical company’s filing of a petition with the District of Columbia Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals to review the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s denial of a new drug application (NDA) deprived the district court of jurisdiction to hear the company’s argument that the FDA erred or to consider whether the employee who made the decision was improperly appointed, a federal judge in the District of Columbia held.
Judge Says Record Is Unclear On Whether Water, Vermin Caused Insured’s Damages
SEATTLE — A Washington federal judge on July 20 partially granted an insured’s motion for summary judgment on an insurer’s application of a policy exclusion in a dispute over coverage for water, mold and vermin damage to the insured’s personal items; however, the judge partially denied the motion as it applied to the cause of the damage because the record is not clear as to what actually caused the damage.
6th Circuit Affirms Dismissal Of COVID Rental Assistance Suit For Lack Of Standing
CINCINNATI — The Sixth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals affirmed dismissal for lack of standing of a landlord’s putative class action that alleged constitutional violations against the city of Detroit for purportedly unlawfully conditioning COVID-19 emergency rental assistance on compliance with the city’s municipal code, finding that the lower court correctly held that the landlord lacked standing because he applied for funding under the state’s control “and the State’s voluntary choice to apply the City’s policies severed the causal chain” between the city and the landlord.
8th Circuit Vacates Class Certification, Orders Dismissal Of Light Trigger Lawsuit
ST. LOUIS — A Missouri gun owner lacks standing to sue over a pistol’s alleged defective features that can cause it to be inadvertently discharged because he admitted he has never experienced that or any other issues, an Eighth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel ruled, vacating a trial court’s class certification order and remanding with instructions to dismiss the case.
Federal Circuit Vacates $12.7M Copyright Judgment Against U.S. Government
WASHINGTON, D.C. — A Federal Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel vacated a nearly $12.7 million award to software entities by a judge in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims, holding that the judge improperly used unforeseeable hindsight when assessing the value of a company’s copyrighted software that was infringed by the United States.
7th Circuit Affirms Ruling Against Class In Case Over $265M ESOP Deal
CHICAGO — Affirming judgment against a class of employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) participants who challenged a $265 million deal, the Seventh Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on July 17 explained that it found no clear error in the ruling that followed a 14-day bench trial.
Indiana Panel Reverses No Coverage Ruling In Suit Over 4-H Fair Injury
INDIANAPOLIS — An Indiana appeals panel reversed a lower court’s grant of a commercial general liability insurer and claims administrator’s motion for judgment on the pleadings in a coverage dispute arising from an alleged injury at the insured’s 4-H Fair, concluding that it cannot determine on the pleadings that the defendants have no duty to defend or indemnify.
Insured Failed To Show Auto Insurer Acted Unreasonably, Federal Judge Says
PHILADELPHIA — A Pennsylvania federal judge on July 17 dismissed an insured’s bad faith claim against an auto insurer without prejudice after determining that the insured failed to show that the insurer lacked a reasonable basis for its actions in attempting to settle the insured’s underinsured motorist (UIM) benefits claim.