Practice
Insurance Coverage & Claims
Coverage questions can determine far more than whether a claim gets paid. They can affect who controls a defense, which parties bear a loss, how contractual obligations operate and what options remain available in the larger dispute.
What may shape the coverage analysis
The policy language is one part of the record. The claimed loss, notices, tenders, reservation-of-rights correspondence, underlying pleadings and the way the parties describe their relationships can also matter. In third-party matters, additional-insured status, contractual indemnity, risk transfer and priority of coverage may need to be considered together rather than in isolation.
First-party property and business-interruption matters can likewise turn on both the insurance program and the factual record supporting the claimed damage or interruption. Developing that record early can help identify what is agreed, what remains disputed and which questions require closer attention.
Records worth gathering
A focused review usually begins with the complete insurance and claim record, not a single policy excerpt or letter.
- Policies, endorsements, declarations and schedules
- Claim notices, tenders, acknowledgments, coverage letters and reservation-of-rights correspondence
- Underlying complaints, demands, contracts and indemnification provisions
- Damage estimates, proofs of loss, invoices and business-interruption support
- A chronology of the loss, notice, investigation and material communications
How related issues overlap
A coverage dispute may be inseparable from a construction contract, a commercial agreement or the underlying litigation. Addressing those connections can clarify whether the immediate question is payment, defense, allocation, risk transfer, preservation of a position or some combination of them.
Discuss a matter
Share the basic facts and documents you believe matter. The firm will review the information before determining whether it can assist.
Contact Seltzer Counsel