Insurance Policy Consent to Settle Clauses | CLE Course

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Course Details

Course Information

smart_display Format
On-Demand
signal_cellular_alt Difficulty Level
work Practice Area
Insurance

Date & Time

event Date
Wednesday, April 29, 2020
schedule Time
1:00 p.m. ET./10:00 a.m. PT
timer Program Length
90 minutes

Credit Information

This 90-minute webinar is eligible in most states for 1.5 CLE credits.

$297.00

CLE

ALL

This CLE course will prepare both insured's and insurer's counsel for the legal quagmire of consent to settle clauses, including those paired with hammer clauses. Though an insured might desire the ability to prevent settling a perceived as groundless claim, under these clauses, an insurer may be able to later use that refusal as a defense to a failure to settle claim. Recent decisions, however, are eroding that protection.

Faculty

Steven P. Wright

Partner

K&L Gates, LLP

Mr. Wright is a partner in the Boston office of K&L Gates and has a broad-based commercial litigation practice. He has been actively involved in the trial and management of cases in federal and state courts in Massachusetts, New York, Rhode Island, Maine, North Carolina, Illinois and a variety of other jurisdictions around the country. Mr. Wright also has extensive experience representing corporate and individual clients in arbitration, mediation and other alternative dispute resolution settings.

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Robert Blumberg

Attorney

Deutsch Blumberg & Caballero, PA

Mr. Blumberg is a Partner with Deutsch, Blumberg, & Caballero P.A., where he practices personal injury, medical malpractice, and product liability law. He is admitted to practice in Florida and before the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida. Mr. Blumberg is a member of The Florida Bar (Rules of Judicial Administration Committee and Vice Chair of the Technology Committee), American Bar Association (Forum on Construction Young Lawyers Division) and the Dade County Bar Association (co-chair of the Lawyer Referral Service Committee). He earned his B.A. degree from the College of William and Mary and his J.D. degree from the William and Mary School of Law.

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Sara P. Jones

Attorney

Anderson & Kreiger LLP

Ms. Jones' practice includes insurance coverage issues, complex commercial disputes, and appeals. She has litigated insurance coverage and bad faith matters, and advises insureds and insurers on coverage positions. Ms. Jones has also represented clients in the private equity, biotechnology, and financial services industries on litigation matters.

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Description

Some view consent to settle clauses as a wolf in sheep's clothing. Insureds--especially in the realm of professional malpractice -- may think they have negotiated a key concession from the carrier. The carrier may have secured a powerful defense tool in a possible future bad faith action, a power, though, that courts are eroding. This webinar examines consent to settle clauses from both an insured and insurer perspective.

When an insured, under a consent to settle clause, instructs the insurer to reject a settlement offer, the insurer may acquire certain rights under the language of the insurance contract. Namely, the insurer may be able to cease payments under the policy and may become effectively immune to claims of bad faith failure to settle.

Some courts have taken a dim view of such clauses. Under a more insured-friendly view of consent to settle, these courts focus on the conduct of the insured and inquire whether the insured acted reasonably in refusing a consent to settle clause. Also relevant in these contexts is whether the defense is under a reservation of rights.

Listen as this panel, experienced in dealing with insureds and insurers alike, provides essential perspectives on the emerging legal principles concerning consent to settle clauses.