Policyholder's Duty to Cooperate: Advocating or Defending Against Loss of Coverage for Breach
Navigating Scope of the Duty, Privilege Issues, Settlement, and Consequences of Insured's Failure to Cooperate
Recording of a 90-minute CLE webinar with Q&A
This CLE course will discuss the scope of the insured’s duty to cooperate, the circumstances under which an insurer can disclaim coverage by alleging the insured breached that duty, the insurer’s burden of proof, and other issues that arise in this context such as attorney-client privilege and claim settlement.
Outline
- Application and scope of the insured’s duty to cooperate
- First vs. third-party claims
- Coverage issues impacting the duty to cooperate
- Attorney-client privilege and disclosure of confidential information
- Claim settlement
- Consent to settle clause
- Insurer’s requirement to demonstrate prejudice
- Prejudice arguments—successful and unsuccessful
Benefits
The panel will review these and other key issues:
- What is the insurer’s burden of proof for disclaiming liability due to the insured’s failure to cooperate?
- Under what circumstances might an insured be justified in refusing to cooperate with the insurer?
- Does a defense under reservation of rights change the scope of the insured’s duty to cooperate?
- How does the duty to cooperate impact the insured’s right to settle the claim?
- Are there circumstances under which the insurer will be estopped from raising the insured’s breach of the duty?
Faculty
Matthew L. Jacobs
Partner
Jenner & Block
Mr. Jacobs has been successfully litigating insurance coverage matters for more than 25 years. He is a member of the... | Read More
Mr. Jacobs has been successfully litigating insurance coverage matters for more than 25 years. He is a member of the firm’s Insurance Litigation and Counseling, Reinsurance, Antitrust and Competition Law, and International Arbitration Practices. Corporations seek his counsel on the availability of insurance coverage for a wide variety of claims, ranging from D&O liability to business interruption losses, product liability and regulatory investigations. He has published and lectured widely on insurance coverage topics.
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Eliot M. Harris
Member
Williams Kastner
Mr. Harris' practice focuses on commercial litigation with an emphasis on insurance coverage, including general... | Read More
Mr. Harris' practice focuses on commercial litigation with an emphasis on insurance coverage, including general liability coverage, intellectual property coverage, construction defect coverage, and professional liability coverage. He also is experienced defending lawsuits involving catastrophic personal injuries, environmental toxic tort, intellectual property and product liability matters. He wrote an article for the Business Litigation Committee Newsletter of the ABA, on insurer's duty to defend, The Duty to Defend: What Insurers, Insureds and Their Counsel Need to Know When Faced With a Liability Coverage Dispute.
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