Coverage Advice & Counseling
Sonnenschein has played a leading role in handling insurance coverage disputes involving virtually every type of insurance policy, and the breadth of our experience has allowed us to develop creative arguments that have not been used in other contexts. As such, we have been successful in developing new and favorable legal precedent from the standpoint of our insurance clients.
Sonnenschein lawyers have handled numerous important cases involving property and automobile coverage for Allstate, as well as a wide array of sophisticated coverage problems for Allstate, Country Companies, Crum & Forster, Fireman's Fund, and other insurers. These problems range from coverage issues related to financial institutions to coverage for hate crimes, child molestation, defamation, wrongful termination, patent infringement, theft of trade secrets, "advertising injuries," construction defects, and virtually every other claim imaginable. We also have been selected to coordinate responses to major incidents involving Allstate policies (including the San Francisco earthquake of 1989, the Oakland, California firestorm of 1991, the Los Angeles earthquake and spate of Southern California fires in 1995) and to handle major coverage issues (such as liability coverage under homeowners' policies, for sexual misconduct in the home or misrepresentations associated with home sales).
Many insurers have turned to Sonnenschein to handle significant coverage cases of national prominence. For example, we have represented Allstate and the AIG Companies in major litigation involving environmental insurance coverage (affecting liability or cleanups at numerous "Superfund" sites), landmark litigation dealing with coverage for bipolar disorder and related conditions, and key disputes among insurers of asbestos manufacturers. In addition, Sonnenschein lawyers have represented several insurance companies in the American International Group in a $150 million environmental coverage dispute for the cleanup and settlement costs arising out of the extensive dioxin contamination of Missouri during the early 1970s. In that multi-party case, which is entitled Hartford v. Wausau and considered one of the largest and most complex in California, our insurance and environmental lawyers joined forces to secure a favorable settlement for AIG despite significant exposure. All of Sonnenschein's domestic offices were involved in one or more aspects of this important case.
Our San Francisco lawyers represented a major domestic insurer and Aetna Casualty and Surety Company in what may be the largest environmental coverage action ever filed in the U.S. In that lawsuit, entitled Exxon Corporation v. Insurance Company of North America, Exxon sought more than $1 billion in coverage for contamination occurring over the course of 40 years at nearly 5,000 sites in the U.S. and Canada.
