Law.com Subscribers SAVE 30%

Call 855-808-4530 or email [email protected] to receive your discount on a new subscription.

Case Briefs

By ALM Staff | Law Journal Newsletters |
December 01, 2005

$2.4 Million Verdict Reinstated Against Corporation Retained to Perform Insurance Services

The Pennsylvania Superior Court reinstated a jury verdict of $2,431,000 for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Greensburg, PA, against Gallagher Bassett Services, Inc. The Superior Court decided that, contrary to the trial court's ruling, the Diocese properly pled and proved a breach of Gallagher Bassett's third-party administrator contract with the Diocese.

The action began as a declaratory judgment brought by several insurance companies related to severe property damage to the Queen of Angels School building in Westmoreland County, PA. The school was built on soil that contained pyrite, a mineral that unpredictably expands when exposed to air or water. On Feb. 23, 1999, a structural engineer determined that the school's structural integrity had failed due to earth movement caused by expanding pyrite. The Diocese immediately closed the school, which was later razed except for a small wing containing six classrooms.

Read These Next
Major Differences In UK, U.S. Copyright Laws Image

This article highlights how copyright law in the United Kingdom differs from U.S. copyright law, and points out differences that may be crucial to entertainment and media businesses familiar with U.S law that are interested in operating in the United Kingdom or under UK law. The article also briefly addresses contrasts in UK and U.S. trademark law.

The Article 8 Opt In Image

The Article 8 opt-in election adds an additional layer of complexity to the already labyrinthine rules governing perfection of security interests under the UCC. A lender that is unaware of the nuances created by the opt in (may find its security interest vulnerable to being primed by another party that has taken steps to perfect in a superior manner under the circumstances.

Strategy vs. Tactics: Two Sides of a Difficult Coin Image

With each successive large-scale cyber attack, it is slowly becoming clear that ransomware attacks are targeting the critical infrastructure of the most powerful country on the planet. Understanding the strategy, and tactics of our opponents, as well as the strategy and the tactics we implement as a response are vital to victory.

Legal Possession: What Does It Mean? Image

Possession of real property is a matter of physical fact. Having the right or legal entitlement to possession is not "possession," possession is "the fact of having or holding property in one's power." That power means having physical dominion and control over the property.

The Stranger to the Deed Rule Image

In 1987, a unanimous Court of Appeals reaffirmed the vitality of the "stranger to the deed" rule, which holds that if a grantor executes a deed to a grantee purporting to create an easement in a third party, the easement is invalid. Daniello v. Wagner, decided by the Second Department on November 29th, makes it clear that not all grantors (or their lawyers) have received the Court of Appeals' message, suggesting that the rule needs re-examination.