David F. Cutter and his team achieved significant victories in three matters – two in the Northern District of Illinois and one in the First Department Appellate Division of the New York Supreme Court – in March and April.

In mid-March, David and Ryan M. Henderson secured a ruling in favor of an international specialty insurance company in the Northern District of Illinois. The court found that there was no coverage for an amended complaint filed during the second of two consecutive D&O policies. The court found that the claim was first made under the first policy, when the original complaint was filed, but not timely reported. The court rejected the insureds’ argument that the amended complaint constituted a new, unrelated claim under the second policy based on the addition of new claims against new defendants in the amended complaint.

Later in March, David, Le G. Trieu and Emily R. Tripicchio successfully represented an international insurance company client in a $225 million coverage dispute before the First Department Appellate Division of the New York Supreme Court. The BatesCarey team argued on behalf of the entire insurance tower to dismiss a coverage action that was filed in Delaware the day after it was filed in New York, arguing that the New York claim had a more substantial connection to the parties and the dispute was more comprehensive than the Delaware action. 

A few weeks later, returning to the Northern District of Illinois, David and Sarah M. Kitlinski secured a significant victory for an international specialty insurance company. Their client agreed to defend a civil rights lawsuit filed against a local municipality; however, after pressing the Insureds for information about the claim, they learned that the claimant had filed an EEOC charge in an earlier Policy Period.

BatesCarey argued that the policy’s Prior and Pending Litigation Exclusion barred coverage. The parties filed cross-motions for judgment on the pleadings on the issue, which the judge granted. The judge agreed the exclusion did bar coverage and rejected the Insureds’ argument that the policy was ambiguous.

David is a partner at BatesCarey who focuses his practice on litigating both third and first-party insurance coverage matters across the country. He has experience managing a wide spectrum of management liability and commercial general liability products as well as litigating property claims. He also advises those with claims involving complex underlying and coverage issues. 

As special counsel to the firm, Ryan offers coverage and litigation counsel to domestic and international insurers in state and federal courts throughout the country. He serves his clients in a variety of general and professional liability matters including D&O, E&O and EPL coverage as well as in environmental, toxic tort, and product liability areas.

Also as special counsel, Le advises and represents insurers on a multitude of complex insurance coverage matters, including employment practices and various policies including D&O, professional liability and commercial general liability. 

Emily, an associate, counsels and represents domestic and international insurers nationwide in bad faith matters and both third and first-party complex insurance coverage including construction defect, property, products liability and environmental claims, as well as various type of policies.

Also an associate, Sarah advises domestic and international insurers in pre-litigation insurance coverage analysis and litigation of complex insurance coverage disputes. She focuses her practice on professional liability coverage, specializing in cyber liability and privacy issues.