Robert Mintz and Steven Weisman obtained a dismissal of all claims against our insurance broker client, Willis of New Jersey Inc. and Willis of Pennsylvania, Inc., in a matter in which Willis was named as a third-party defendant in a wrongful death case (Gemini Insurance Co. v. 33 East Maintenance Inc. et al., 3:17-cv-07393, D.N.J.)
The insurance carrier, Gemini Insurance Co., filed a coverage action and sought a ruling in federal court that a “Named Insured v. Named Insured” policy exclusion applied and Gemini therefore had no duty to cover the policyholder’s defense or pay $2.7 million towards the settlement of the underlying action that had been brought by the estate and the widow of an employee who was killed on the job. The policyholder, the estate and the widow subsequently filed a third-party complaint against Willis alleging that the broker is responsible for Gemini’s coverage denial because it procured the excess policy. In his decision, Judge Martinotti denied Gemini’s motion for summary judgment and granted motions filed by Willis, wholesale broker CRC, and the policyholder ruling that the exclusion relied on by Gemini to deny coverage was inapplicable.