The Northwest Policyholder
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Oregon Employer Liability Ruling Highlights Importance of Additional Insured Status
Earlier this year the Oregon Supreme Court expanded the potential liability of contractors and others for injury to employees of others on a job site, making it more critical than ever for contractors to ensure that they have additional insured prote...
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Additional Insured Promises Mean Companies May Pay Twice for Employee Injuries
Most business owners understand that in exchange for paying premiums for workers compensation insurance, they get immunity from suit from their own injured employees. This is usually referred to as the workers compensation "exclusive remedy": i...
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Montana: Insurer Breached Duty to Defend Even if Policyholder Was Defended by Another Insurer
The Montana Supreme Court issued a decision Thanksgiving week clarifying that when a
policyholder is owed a defense by multiple general liability insurers, all of those insurers must participate in the defense, or risk severe penalties for breaching...
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From the UP Blog: Portland Harbor Superfund Litigation Has "Super" Implications For Policyholders
I was privileged enough to be invited to write the following guest blog post on May 2, 2016 for the blog of United Policyholders, an advocacy organization for commercial and personal-lines policyholders. Our firm has had the privilege of writin...
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Different Approaches to the Duty to Defend in Oregon and Washington
May 23, 2016
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Oregon and Washington are often viewed as sister states, similar in their climates, policies and attitudes. Yet, while the two states share a border and a uniquely Pacific Northwest culture, their approaches to insurance law differ greatly. In pa...
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In Washington, Coverage for Sole Proprietorship Must Include Broad Definition of "Insured"
I ran across a cautionary tale recently in a new Washington federal-court decision in Staheli v. Chicago Insurance Company. The lesson: in Washington, or any other community-property state, a liability policy covering a sole proprietorship must...
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