D&O and Professional Liability 2008 | A Year in Review
2008 proved to be another active year for courts facing issues that affect directors and officers and other professional liability insurers, with at least ten federal courts of appeals, nine state supreme courts and numerous other courts issuing decisions of note. Notice issues, including those involving timeliness, prior notice/prior litigation exclusions and rescission resulted in a large number of decisions in a wide range of fact patterns. Assessment of whether claims and acts are interrelated continued to be the focus in a number of coverage cases. Insured-versus-insured and dishonesty exclusions resulted in several decisions and are sure to be of continuing interest in cases brought during the economic downturn. The ability of an insurer to recoup defense costs after a finding of no coverage has been addressed in a number of jurisdictions this year, as has the need for an insured to receive consent from its insurer before settling a claim. The Troutman Sanders D&O and Professional Liability practice group has summarized a selection of the notable cases here and expect that these issues will continue to be important in the directors and officers and professional liability arena in 2009 and beyond.
Read the D&O and Professional Liability Update 2008: A Year in Review.