Insurance Law and Insurance Regulation

A federal court in Illinois ruled that a title insurance policy exception for city alley rights unambiguously barred coverage when the City of Chicago claimed ownership of a portion of insured property. The decision clarifies that specific Schedule B exceptions cannot be overridden by general exceptions endorsements and that the term "rights" encompasses all property interests, whether recorded or unrecorded.

The Sixth Circuit affirmed summary judgment for J.M. Smucker Company in a dispute over how many insurance retained limits applied to thousands of claims from a 2022 peanut-butter salmonella recall. ACE American Insurance argued each claimant's exposure was a separate occurrence, potentially requiring Smucker to satisfy up to $112.5 million in retained limits, while Smucker contended the contamination constituted a single occurrence under Ohio law's cause test.

A federal district court in New Jersey addressed whether an insurer could deny pollution liability coverage based on a missing Schedule of Insured Property endorsement, despite the policy declarations indicating the coverage had been purchased. The decision also examined notice requirements under a follow-form excess policy and whether factual disputes precluded summary judgment on the insurer's rescission counterclaim based on alleged application misrepresentations.