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Trial starts in deadly dive boat fire
LOS ANGELES — By the time the scuba dive boat sank off the Southern California coast after catching fire, 34 people had been killed in the deadliest maritime disaster in recent U.S. history. The Labor Day tragedy in 2019 spurred changes to maritime regulations, congressional reform and civil lawsuits. Four years later, a federal trial […]
Wolf Ridge Ski lodge resort burns; no injuries
MARS HILL (AP) — The State Bureau of Investigation is looking into a fire that burned the lodge at the Wolf Ridge Ski Resort to the ground. No one was in the building and no one was hurt in the fire that was reported around 1:30 a.m. Wednesday. Madison County Chief Deputy Michael Garrison said […]
Insurer fails in attempt to hold son responsible for fire
A Statesville jury spent less than 30 minutes deliberating before returning a verdict in favor of a defendant in a negligence suit filed by his father’s insurance company.
1 dead, 3 injured in Durham hospital fire
Authorities say one patient has been killed and three employees injured in a fire at a long-term care unit at a North Carolina hospital.
Insurance – Fire – Tort/Negligence – Bad Faith Refusal to Settle Claim – Unfair Trade Practices – Breach of Contract
Kielbania v. Indian Harbor Insurance Co. Based on a drawn-out appraisal process that ignored some losses and changed the value of others without explanation, plaintiffs have presented a jury question as to their claims of unfair insurance settlement practices and bad faith refusal to settle a claim.
Insurance – Fire – Binding Appraisal
Glendale LLC v. Amco Insurance Co. Where the appraisal provision in the parties’ insurance policy was followed, the appraisers’ award is binding absent proof of impeaching circumstances.
Insurance – Fire – Loss Compensation – Motel – Valuation – Appraisal Process
Patel v. Scottsdale Insurance Co. The parties’ insurance policy gives the defendant-insurer the option of paying either fair market value or replacement value for the plaintiff’s hotel, which was destroyed by fire. However, instead of granting summary judgment for the insurer, the trial court should have stayed this action until the parties completed the appraisal process set out in t[...]
Insurance – Fire – Application Misrepresentations – Inspection Results – Real Property – Mortgages – First Impression – Bank as Mortgagee & Loss Payee
Colony Insurance Co. v. Peterson A separate agreement existed between the plaintiff-insurer and the defendant-bank as a mortgagee. Accordingly, even if the insurer may rescind its policy with the property owner (and thus the bank as a loss payee) pursuant to G.S. § 58-3-10 due to material misrepresentations in the insurance application, the bank’s rights as a mortgagee would survive.
Defense verdict in products liability suit over wheelchair fire
This was a wrongful-death claim grounded in products liability. Plaintiff claimed that his 70-year-old mother burned to death as a result of an alleged wiring defect and resulting short circuit in an electric self-propelled wheelchair. Alternatively, plaintiff claimed that the wheelchair lacked sufficient flame retardancy in its component parts, and that the chair therefore burned […]
$4M settlement for tenants forced to jump in apartment fire
Plaintiffs were two young women who were permanently injured as a result of an apartment fire. At the time of the fire, both plaintiffs were approximately 25 years old. One was a graduate student, and the other was a high school teacher. Plaintiffs alleged that, when fire broke out in their apartment building, the smoke […]
Apartment fire fatality case settles for $1 million
The decedent was killed when a raging fire consumed her apartment building. Plaintiff alleged that the smoke detectors failed to operate during the fire, depriving the decedent of the opportunity to escape the fire. Plaintiff further alleged that the owner and manager of the apartment complex failed to maintain the building adequately, causing an increased […]
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Commentary
- Name game can end up being blame game
- Stericycle decision forces evaluation of policies, practices
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- Amotion sees resurgence after almost a decade
- The flip side of generative AI in law and how to address it
- The fight for equal educational opportunity continues
- Court’s term was rough on big business
- Ex-president, bar association have made their choice
- Ruling sharpens boundaries in attorney-client privilege
- Lawyers Weekly debuts new and improved web experience
- US Supreme Court bites back at parody’s use of the First Amendment
