Pennsylvania National Mutual Casualty Insurance Co. v. Doscher’s Super Markets In a dispute over a personal relationship, a co-worker shot the defendant-employee while they were in the defendant-employer’s break room. When the injured employee sued the employer for negligence, the “employer’s liability” exclusion in the plaintiff-insurer’s commercial general liability policy did not relieve the insurer of its duty to defend and indemnify the employer.

Tagged with: CGL Insurance

Builders Mutual Insurance Co. v. Lacey Construction Co. A builder’s commercial general liability insurance policy may cover the cost of repairing sink holes in a resident’s yard if the builder’s faulty construction of a retaining wall led to the sink holes, but the policy does not cover any defects in the wall itself.

Tagged with: CGL Construction Insurance

Builders Mutual Insurance Co. v. Donald A. Gardner Architects, Inc. The commercial general liability policy that the plaintiff-insurer provided to its insured contractor afforded coverage for copyright infringement in the contractor’s advertisements; however, the underlying action between the defendant-architect and the insured contractor was based on copyright infringement through the contractor’s construction of a house. 17 U.S.C. § 120 exempts photographs of copyrighted architectural works, such as the photograph of the completed building on the contractor’s website.

Tagged with: CGL Copyright Infringement Insurance Intellectual Property

Crossmann Communities of North Carolina, Inc. v. Harleysville Mutual Insurance Co. In condominiums built by the plaintiff-developer, the exterior components were negligently constructed, leading to water intrusion and damage to otherwise non-defective parts of the buildings. As one of several insurers which provided commercial general liability coverage to the developer, defendant’s liability is to be calculated based on its time on the risk. We affirm the trial court’s finding that coverage was triggered by an “occurrence.” We overrule Century Indemnity Co. v. Golden Hills Builders, Inc., 348 S.C. 559, 561 S.E.2d 355 (2002), and reverse the trial court’s application of Century. We remand for application of the “time on the risk” approach.

Tagged with: CGL Insurance Property Damage

The recent Supreme Court case Crossmannn Communities v. Harleysville Mutual Insurance has created a stir in the construction litigation world. Crossmann appears to be an attempt to finally settle the issue of coverage under a CGL policy for damages resulting from faulty workmanship. In addition to explaining the basic holding and reasoning of the court, this article examines the connection between the court's coverage determination and the legal doctrine that separates tort and contract recovery in construction defect litigation.

Tagged with: CGL Insurance

One word stopped Myrtle Beach condo developers from getting an insurance company to pay their commercial general liability claim for damages arising from a multi-million-dollar settlement in a construction-defects suit. It was the policy term "occurrence." But it was how the state Supreme Court's interpreted "occurrence" that really bothered David Miller, a lawyer for development company Crossmann/Beazer Homes.

Tagged with: CGL Insurance

Crossman Communities of North Carolina, Inc. v. Harleysville Mutual Insurance Co. A standard commercial general liability policy can cover faulty workmanship, but only if the claim is premised on an "occurrence." If a claim arises naturally out of faulty . . .

Tagged with: CGL Horry County Insurance