Like other contract rights, the right to insurance proceeds can be assigned, giving the assignee the right to recover under the policy. This issue is discussed in the 1968, Texas Supreme Court opinion styled, McAllen State Bank v. Texas Bank & Trust Company, Trustee. Texas Bank claimed proceeds of a…
If a person or entity is not a named beneficiary, can they be an intended beneficiary? Other persons who may sue for benefits under an insurance contract are “intended beneficiaries” also known as “third party beneficiaries.” A third party for whose benefit an insurance contract is made may enforce the…
An additional insured is a party protected under an insurance policy, but who is not named within the policy. A common example of an additional insured is a person who, although not specifically named, is covered under a liability policy by a definition of “insured” that extends protection to interests,…
Insurance attorneys always have to answer the above question when looking at an insurance policy case. This issue is discussed in the 1972 case from the Texarkana Court of Appeals styled, Doss v. Roberts. This suit involves the division of monies received from the sale of land found not to…
Seeing if there is liability on the insurance policy is one of the first things an insurance attorney needs to do when meeting with a prospective client. In 1996, the Texas Supreme Court stated in Liberty Nat’l Fire Ins. Co. v. Akin, that insurance coverage claims and bad faith claims…
For lawyers who handle claims related to the denial of disability policies, there is some law that they have to know to effectively represent their clients. Probably 90 percent of disability policies involve payments spread out over a period of time. When a claim for disability benefits is denied it…
Whether you are an insurance lawyer in Grand Prairie, or Dallas, or Fort Worth, or anywhere else in Texas, Texas insurance law is the same. And one good part of that law is that there are situations where an oral insurance contract is enforceable. This is seen in the 1949,…
One very important aspect of suing an insurance company for bad faith in their claims handling process is that first, with extremely rare exception, you have to prove a breach of the insurance contract. Insurance policies are contracts, and as such are subject to rules applicable to contracts generally. A…
Here is something almost any insurance law attorney can tell you: One of the most common bases for an insurance dispute is the complaint that someone misrepresented something. After a claim arises, the insured may feel that the coverage accepted by the insurer is less than the coverage promised at…
It’s probably not right to pick only on State Farm. Most if not all, of the insurance companies or their individual employees will break the rules for their own gain. This is illustrated in a Chicago Tribune story titled, State Farm Pays $250 Million, Ducks Trial Over Allegations It Tried…