2012

Far from being “ho hum” as my colleague writes, the case of U. S. Bank, N.A. as servicer for the Tennessee Housing Development Agency v. Tennessee Farmers Mutual Insurance Company, No. W2012-00053-COA-R3-CV, filed November 29, 2012, the did establish some important points of law – but from the insurer’s perspective, in limiting bad…

I recently learned that Tennessee Farmers Mutual Insurance Company (Farm Bureau) has changed the way it will pay roof claims.  Specifically, a recent endorsement changes roof coverage to actual cash value for roofing materials instead of replacement cost.  This means that roof materials will be depreciated in the event of a roof claim.  For example…

I represented a Memphis homeowner a couple of years ago whose residential rental property was destroyed by fire. The policy provided coverage for fire loss, but contained an exclusion for "vandalism and malicious mischief  . . . if the dwelling has been vacant for more than 30 days immediately before the loss."  In our case, it was undisputed that the…

In response to a couple of cases rendered earlier this year, the Tennessee legislature has adopted Senate Bill 2271, which has two important impacts. The statute was signed into law by Governor Haslam on May 10, 2012. For a PDF copy, click here. 

The new law provides that the signature of an applicant for or party …

In March 2012, the Tennessee Supreme Court issued a landmark opinion concerning the liabilty of insurers and insurance agents in cases involving failure to procure and maintain appropriate insurance coverage.  The case is Allstate Ins. Co. v. Tarrant.  The case is a "must read" for insurance practitioners, and is full of good nuggets.  Today I’ll…

The Tennessee Court of Appeals rendered another decision yesterday concerning the limitations period that is applicable to lawsuits to enforce an insurance policy.  The court upheld the dismissal of the lawsuit, ruling that the lawsuit was filed outside the time period allowed in the insurance policy.  A copy of the case, Gagne v. State Farm. can be downloaded here…