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Professional Liability Blog

We explore and analyze current issues and relevant topics to help accountants, attorneys, architects and engineers, insurance agents and real estate brokers avoid a professional liability case.

Professional Liability Blog
April 27, 2023

Honesty is the Best Policy

Many professionals know their liability insurance policies are written on a “claims-made” basis, meaning the policies provide coverage for claims made within the policy period and not when the event occurs. Due to the nature of these policies, those seeking coverage are required to report all known pending or potential claims when submitting applications for new policies or renewing existing ones. A recent ruling from the United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri highlights the importance of honest reporting of all pending and potential claims. See N. Am. Capacity Ins. Co. v. KM Teh Realty 5, LLC.

Professional Liability Blog
April 26, 2021

Insurance Applications Matter – Montana Supreme Court holds one attorney’s failure to disclose potential malpractice claim precluded coverage for claim against entire law firm

This article discusses the Supreme Court of Montana’s opinion in ALPS Property & Casualty Insurance Company v. Keller, Reynolds, Drake, Johnson & Gillespie, P.C. (“ALPS Property”), in which the supreme court decided that Professional Liability insurance coverage was precluded for an entire law firm and three of its attorneys based on the failure of one attorney to disclose a potential legal malpractice claim on an insurance application.  The court found no coverage based on the common law known loss doctrine and based on a prior knowledge provision in the claims-made professional liability policy.