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Sarah Abrams

As readers know, one aspect of President Trump’s exercise of his presidential powers has been his willingness to grant pardons to certain persons, including even, as it has turned out, corporations. In the following guest post, Sarah Abrams, Head of Claims Baleen Specialty, a division of Bowhead Specialty, takes a look at the possible D&O insurance implications for a policyholder that has been convicted of a crime but granted a pardon. I would like to thank Sarah for her willingness to allow 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: Pardon Me

Most D&O insurance policies preclude loss resulting from fraudulent or criminal misconduct. However, most policies specify that the exclusion applies only if there has been a judicial determination that the precluded misconduct has taken place. What specific judicial determination is required in order to trigger the exclusion is a matter of policy wording. In an interesting recent ruling, Southern District of New York Judge Denise Cote reaffirmed her prior conclusion that a credit union executive’s criminal conviction precluded coverage for the executive’s cost of appeal – even though his appeal remains pending and even though the applicable policy had the “final adjudication” language. A copy of Judge Cote’s October 18, 2022 opinion can be found here.
Continue Reading Court Holds Fraud Exclusion with “Final Adjudication” Language Precludes Coverage for Post-Conviction Appeal

In a unpublished August 30, 2017 opinion (here), the Ninth Circuit affirmed a district court ruling that a trial court verdict that a hospital system had violated the antitrust laws was not an adjudication sufficient to trigger the improper profit exclusion in the hospital system’s D&O insurance policy, and therefore that the hospital system was entitled to reimbursement of its expenses incurred in defending the antitrust suit. The decision provides a useful illustration of the way that the final adjudication provisions found in the conduct exclusions of most current D&O insurance policy operates. The Wiley Rein law firm’s Executive Summary Blog’s September 5, 2017 post discussing the Ninth Circuit opinion can be found here.
Continue Reading D&O Insurance: Antitrust Verdict Does Not Trigger Policy’s Improper Profit Exclusion

californiaMost D&O insurance policies have conduct exclusions precluding coverage for fraudulent, criminal, or willful misconduct. However, mere allegations are insufficient to trigger this exclusion. If allegations alone were enough, then many claims that would otherwise be covered under the policy would be precluded from coverage, because many D&O claims involve allegations of fraudulent, criminal, or willful misconduct. These days, the conduct exclusions in most D&O policies require a judicial determination in order for the exclusion’s preclusive effect to be triggered. Exactly what is constitutes a sufficient judicial determination is a matter of policy wording. A recent California intermediate appellate court considered a policy that required a “final adjudication” in order for the exclusion to be triggered and determined that the exclusion did not apply to preclude coverage while the insured person’s appeal remained pending, despite the insured person’s criminal securities fraud conviction. The opinion provides an interesting insight into operation of the conduct exclusion with wording of a type found these days in many D&O insurance policies.
Continue Reading D&O Insurance: Convictions, Appeals, and the Conduct Exclusion

delawareIn an August 27, 2015 post-trial opinion (discussed here), Delaware Vice-Chancellor Travis Laster found that Dole Foods CEO David Murdock, and the company’s General Counsel and Chief Operating Officer, C. Michael Carter, had committed “fraud” in connection with a November 2013 “going private” transaction. However, according to a December 21, 2016 Delaware Superior Court decision in the subsequent insurance coverage litigation, because Laster’s findings of fraud were not part of the subsequent post-settlement final judgment in the case, the fraud exclusion in Dole’s D&O insurance program did not preclude coverage for the settlement. Anyone interested in understanding how the fraud exclusion in a D&O policy operates will want to read this opinion. A copy of the Delaware Superior Court opinion can be found here.
Continue Reading D&O Insurance: Despite Trial Court “Fraud” Determination, Fraud Exclusion Not Triggered

nystateOne of the standard features of D&O insurance policy is the fraud exclusion, which these days typically provides that the exclusion is triggered only after a “final” judicial determination that the precluded conduct has occurred. But what is it that makes a determination “final”?

On June 23, 2015, in a decision that has a number of important implications, the New York (New York County) Supreme Court, Appellate Division, First Department, applying New York law, held that the imposition of a post-conviction criminal sentencing constitutes a “final judgment” that not only triggered the fraud exclusion in a D&O insurance policy but also required the convicted individual to reimburse the carrier for amounts it had already paid – even though the individual’s appeal of his criminal conviction was pending.

As discussed below, the court’s opinion has some important lessons for D&O insurance practitioners. A copy of the court’s opinion can be found here.
Continue Reading D&O Insurance: A “Final” Analysis