In an interview with Law360, Goldberg Segalla’s Jeffrey L. Kingsley provides an insurer-side counterpoint after policyholder attorneys said courts are in error when ruling that physical loss or damage requires a demonstrable, physical alteration of property in coronavirus business-interruption lawsuits.

Jeff, co-chair of the firm’s Global Insurance Services practice, maintains that policy language itself defines physical loss or damage, and there would be a negative ripple effect across the property insurance landscape if policyholders can successfully obtain coverage without physical alteration to property.

“It becomes a bit unsettling in light of natural catastrophes, when we’re now changing definitions in well-established positions, not because the contract is unclear, but simply because of unanticipated damages,” he said. “Policyholders are always looking to the carriers to absorb these costs.”

READ THE FULL ARTICLE:

“Policyholder Attorneys Decry Treatise’s Impact on Pandemic Suits,” Law 360, September 17, 2021

MORE ABOUT GOLDBERG SEGALLA’S JEFFREY L. KINGSLEY:

Jeffrey L. Kingsley is the co-chair of the firm’s Global Insurance Services practice and oversees a team of 65 attorneys, handling matters from cybersecurity to extra-contractual bad faith litigation. Jeff handles a wide range of complex insurance and reinsurance coverage, environmental claims, commercial and regulatory issues, and extra-contractual liability arbitration and litigation. He has extensive experience handling and consulting clients on complex allocation issues, regulatory issues, arbitrations, transactional issues, and disputes involving the eco bad faith exposure across the country.