For many companies, one of the most challenging parts of the Directors and Officers (D&O) insurance procurement process is determining how much insurance to purchase. Against a backdrop of basic affordability, the company must consider complex issues such as limits adequacy – that is, how much insurance is enough?
Determining limits adequacy is even
One of the most closely followed recent case developments in the D&O insurance arena is the ruling in the CNL Hotels & Resorts case that a Section 11 settlement did not represent covered loss under a D&O insurance policy. As I noted in a recent post (here), on August 18, 2008, the CNL
In a statement issued on Tuesday evening (here), the Federal Reserve announced that it had authorized a loan of up to $85 billion to American International Group. This move is described in detail in a September 17, 2008 Wall Street Journal article entitled "U.S. to Take Over AIG in a $85 Billion Bailout"
Because of trees felled last night as Ike’s remnants swept through Ohio, I was unable to make it to the office today. I spent more or less the entire day on the telephone talking about AIG, looking out at my yard strewn with fallen tree limbs, branches, twigs and leaves – a visually suitable tableau
In what is, according to news reports (here), the largest settlement to date in a shareholders’ derivative lawsuit in Delaware Chancery Court, four former AIG executives and former AIG managing general agent C.V. Starr today reached a $115 million settlement in the 2002 AIG derivative lawsuit.
The lawsuit was filed by the
Each fall for the last two years, I have taken a look at the current trends and hot topics in the world of D&O. There are of course certain perennial topics that are always critical, but this overview is intended to focus on the issues the most significant current interest for D&O insurance professionals and
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A recurring D&O insurance coverage concern involves the question whether the standard pollution exclusion typically found in most D&O policies could preclude coverage for a securities lawsuit alleging pollution-related misrepresentations or omissions. An August 15, 2008 opinion (here) by a New Jersey intermediate appellate court addressed this issue squarely.
The New Jersey
In prior posts (here and here), I discussed two recent decisions in which courts held that D&O insurance coverage was precluded for settlements the insureds entered without first obtaining the insurers’ consent as required under the applicable policies. An August 19, 2008 Second Circuit opinion (here) addressed the related question of
Observers outside the D&O insurance industry frequently comment to me that with all the subprime-related litigation, D&O pricing must be skyrocketing. These observers are often puzzled when I respond that the D&O marketplace remains generally competitive and pricing advantageous to buyers. This same conversation recurs with sufficient frequency that if may be worth exploring in
In an unpublished August 18, 2008 per curiam opinion (here), the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit has affirmed the district court’s summary judgment ruling in the CNL Resorts case that a Section 11 settlement is not covered "loss" under a D&O insurance policy. The appeals court reversed and remanded