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Course Details

Course Information
  • smart_display Format

    On-Demand

  • signal_cellular_alt Difficulty Level

    Intermediate

  • work Practice Area

    Insurance

Date & Time
  • event Date

    Tuesday, June 4, 2024

  • 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 provide policyholders, insurers, and their counsel with an understanding of the critical issues that affect the insurer's right to control the defense when defending under a reservation of rights (ROR), how the issues are addressed by different state laws and courts, and strategies and best practices for both policyholder and insurer.

Faculty

Charles P. Edwards
Partner
Barnes & Thornburg

Mr. Edwards is a seasoned trial lawyer and insurance claim advocate who is co-chair of the firm’s Insurance Recovery and Counseling practice. He has helped a wide range of businesses and individuals obtain hundreds of millions of dollars of insurance proceeds in his career. Mr. Edwards has secured insurance coverage for lawsuits, construction defects, natural disasters, thefts and other types of losses.

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Scott F. Bertschi
Partner
Clyde & Co US, LLP

Mr. Bertschi focuses his practice on insurance coverage, professional liability defense and data breach response. He represents insurance companies in litigating coverage disputes, including the institution of declaratory judgment actions and actions to rescind insurance policies, the defense of breach of contract actions and actions in which the insured alleges bad faith or extra-contractual damages, and actions between insurance companies to resolve allocation and relative priority issues. He also advises insurance companies on all aspects of the claims-resolution process, including the provision of coverage opinions, advice on the allocation of indemnity payments, strategies to minimize the risk of bad faith suits and suits to collect consent judgments, and advice as monitoring counsel.

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Colin M. Bruns
Shareholder
Fabyanske, Westra, Hart

Mr. Bruns practice areas include Construction, Commercial Litigation, Mechanic’s Lien and Bond Claims, Insurance Coverage Disputes Mediation, Arbitration and Litigation of Disputes, Contract Drafting, Review and Negotiation and Real Estate Litigation.

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Description

If the duty to defend is triggered, the insurance company has both the “right and duty” to defend, but what does that mean when the insurer issues a ROR? Defense of a lawsuit requires selection of counsel and then making all the strategic and practical decisions about what defenses to assert, how much to spend at every stage of the case, and when and how to settle or try the case. Under some circumstances, however, the insurance company can waive or lose its right to control the defense.

When the insurance company defends under an ROR, the insurer's right to control the defense may be lost in whole or in part. Even if the policyholder is allowed to choose its own counsel, the policy may impose limits on fees. Before issuing an ROR, the insurance company must consider whether the right to control the defense and the related costs is more important than defending non-covered claims.

Listen as our panel of policyholder and insurer counsel discusses the critical issues that counsel must consider when the insurer agrees to provide a defense under an ROR, how different state laws and courts treat the issue, and best practices for both parties to protect their rights and resolve disputes.

Outline

  1. Insurer's right to control defense
  2. Policyholder rights when faced with a defense under ROR
  3. Insurer duties when defending under a ROR
  4. Strategies for insurers
  5. Strategies for policyholders

Benefits

The panel will review these and other key issues:

  • What is the difference between the duty to defend and the duty to advance?
  • Does an insurer lose its right to control the defense of its insured if it fails to provide the insured with a defense immediately after its duty to defend is triggered?
  • What happens if the insurance company denies a defense and then changes its mind after separate counsel is selected?
  • When does the policyholder have a right to independent counsel and what does that mean?