D&O insurance claims can sometimes lead to intricate coverage disputes, often involving disagreements over the meaning of technical policy terms and provisions. A recent Delaware Supreme Court opinion illustrates the kinds of disputes that can arise. Among other things, the coverage issues the court considered involved disagreements over the meaning and application of the No Action Clause. The result of the court’s opinion is that there will be further proceedings in the court below on the No Action Clause issue. Among other things, the Court’s consideration of the extent to which a policyholder may bring an action against the insurer before the resolution of the underlying claim raises interesting and important issues.  A copy of the Delaware Supreme Court’s July 23, 2025, opinion can be found here.

Continue Reading Does the No Action Clause Bar a Policyholder’s Suit for Current Defense Costs?
Sarah Abrams

As illustrated by the lawsuit Donald Trump recently filed against the Wall Street Journal’s parent company Dow Jones and its owner Rupert Murdoch, defamation lawsuits are all the rage these days. In the following guest post, Sarah Abrams, Head of Claims Baleen Specialty, a division of Bowhead Specialty, takes a look at the recent proliferation of defamation lawsuits and considers the D&O insurance ramifications. I would like to thank Sarah for allowing me to publish her article as a guest post on this site. I welcome guest post submissions from responsible authors on topics of interest to this site’s readers. Please contact me directly if you would like to submit a guest post. Here is Sarah’s article.

Continue Reading Guest Post: What Did You Say?

In prior posts (most recently here), I have noted the risk to companies in the current global trade environment of governmental enforcement actions relating to the collection and payment of tariffs. Indeed, in a May 12, 2025, memo, Assistant Attorney General Matthew Galeotti identified “trade and customs fraud, including tariff evasion” as the Department of Justice’s number two corporate criminal enforcement priority.

In the latest sign that the Trump administration is ready to aggressively deploy its enforcement tools to ensure compliance with tariffs and other trade goals, the U.S. government has filed a complaint in intervention in a pending qui tam action against a South Carolina furniture company, alleging that the company used false documentation to underreport the price of furniture the company imported from China, resulting in tariff underpayment. The new case underscores the fact that as the current Trump rolls out and enforces its sweeping tariff program, companies will face significant scrutiny and potential claims risk.

Continue Reading Trump Administration Brings Tariff Evasion Claim
Sarah Abrams

I am sure that many readers followed with interest the recent litigation brought by college athletes against the NCAA and the top athletic conferences in which the athletes alleged that the defendants conspired to suppress athletes’ compensation. The lawsuit ended in a blockbuster settlement that may reshape the fundamental economics of college sports. Now, as discussed in the following guest post from Sarah Abrams, a group of professional tennis players, have filed a lawsuit in which they, too, allege their compensation has been suppressed, in this case by a “tennis cartel.” Sarah, who is Head of Claims Baleen Specialty, a division of Bowhead Specialty, takes a look at the new lawsuit and considers the D&O insurance implications. I would like to thank Sarah for allowing me to publish her article as a guest post on this site. I welcome guest post submissions from responsible authors on topics of interest to this site’s readers. Please contact me directly if you would like to submit a guest post. Here is Sarah’s article.

Continue Reading Guest Post: Antitrust is Love

In numerous public statements, Trump Administration officials have said the Administration intends to use the False Claims Act (FCA) to enforce certain policy priorities. For example, in connection with statements concerning the Administration’s intent to combat “illegal DEI,” officials have declared that corporate DEI policies or practices violating anti-discrimination laws could trigger FCA liability.  There are a number of levels on which potential FCA liability represents a serious corporate liability risk, not least because of the possibility of whistleblowers (including company employees or competitors) launching FCA whistleblower claims. In addition, as discussed below, a recent Southern District of New York ruling highlights how potentially massive FCA liability can be.

Continue Reading More About the Trump Administration and Potential False Claims Act Liability
Burkhard Fassbach

The increasing prevalence of artificial intelligence (AI) tools and processes present companies with a host of opportunities and risks. These opportunities and risks in turn create challenges for corporate boards as they try to navigate the changing environment. In the following guest post, Burkhard Fassbach, considers the corporate governance implications AI presents for companies and their boards. Burkhard is a D&O lawyer in private practice in Germany. I would like to thank Burkhard for allowing me to publish his article as a guest post on this site. I welcome guest post submissions from responsible authors on topics of interest to this site’s readers. Please contact me directly if you would like to submit a guest post. Here is Burkhard’s article.

Continue Reading Guest Post: Navigating AI Governance
Sarah Abrams

There is no doubt that under the current Trump administration, cryptocurrency is enjoying a more hospitable environment. The environment not only affords crypto firms increased business opportunities, such as, for example, with respect to exchange-traded digital assets, but the environment may lend itself to opportunities for D&O insurers as well. In the following guest post, Sarah Abrams, Head of Claims Baleen Specialty, a division of Bowhead Specialty, reviews some of the details about the current crypto environment, as well as the opportunities and risks that the environment may represent for D&O insurers. I would like to thank Sarah for allowing me to publish her article as a guest post on this site. I welcome guest post submissions from responsible authors on topics of interest to this site’s readers. Please contact me directly if you would like to submit a guest post. Here is Sarah’s article.

Continue Reading Guest Post:  Crypto-Verse D&O Opportunity

In recent months, a debate has raged about whether Delaware companies should up stakes and reincorporate elsewhere, particularly Nevada or Texas. While this debate has sparked a great deal of discussion, and while a few high-profile companies have made the move, by and large the number of companies actually moving remained small. But now in a potentially significant development for the whole DExit topic, Silicon Valley VC firm Andreesen Horowitz has announced that it is leaving Delaware for Nevada, and, perhaps event more significantly, encouraging its portfolio companies to incorporate in Nevada as well. As discussed below, this development could represent an inflection point in the DExit debate, with potential significance for the corporate litigation going forward.

Continue Reading Did the DExit Debate Just Hit an Inflection Point?
Sarah Abrams

The Trump administration, through the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), has made it clear that it will prioritize enforcement against false or misleading “Made in USA” claims. In the following guest post, Sarah Abrams, Head of Claims Baleen Specialty, a division of Bowhead Specialty, takes a look at the FTC’s Made in USA enforcement position, and considers the potential D&O insurance implications. I would like to thank Sarah for allowing me to publish her article as a guest post on this site. I welcome guest post submissions from responsible authors on topics of interest to the site’s readers. Please contact me directly if you would like to submit a guest post. Here is Sarah’s article.

Continue Reading Guest Post: Made in America

Insurance practitioners know that policy language matters. Insurance coverage advocates are also well aware that the application of the canons of construction can significantly affect contested coverage matters. These two considerations came together in a recent Fifth Circuit opinion, in which the placement of a single word — the word “the” — proved to be outcome determinative. The appellate court’s decision so clearly presents these fundamental policy interpretation issues, it should be mandatory reading for anyone involved in insurance policy wording issues. A copy of the Fifth Circuit’s opinion can be found here. A July 10, 2025 LinkedIn post about the decision by Geoffrey Fehling of the Hunton Andrews Kurth law firm can be found here.

Continue Reading Does the Word “The” Change an Exclusion’s Meaning?