Physicians Liability Insurance Company (“PLICO”), issued a “claims made“ medical malpractice insurance policy to Defendant Mark Valentine. As a result of Valentine’s negligence during a surgical procedure, David Wurtz died. The Oklahoma Board of Medical Licensure reviewed the situation and revoked Valentine’s medical license.
Shortly thereafter, Valentine sent a letter to his insurance…
The Plaintiffs Walker Bark and Debra Yahquo were parties to two contracts with Lake Country Chevrolet for the purchase of automobiles. The Plaintiffs then brought a lawsuit which sought to have the contracts rescinded (or set aside) and to recover damages for fraud on the part of the car dealer. The car dealership filed a…
As part of the tort reform law passed in 2009, 12 O.S. § 990.4(I),‘exempted punitive damages from the obligation to post a bond on appeal as a means to stay execution of a judgment. The legislation was declared unconstitutional by the Oklahoma Supreme Court citing Douglas v. Cox Retirement Properties, 2013 OK 37…
Unnecessary damages which could have been avoided by the insured cannot be recovered in a lawsuit for breach of contract as every Oklahoma insurance lawyer well knows. A party who asserts a claim for breach of contract against an insurance company has a duty to use reasonable efforts to mitigate his damages. Hidalgo Properties, …
Property damage that results from a continuous and ongoing process over an extended period of time rather than from a defined, identifiable event such as a tornado or hail damage creates disagreements and disputes as to when property damage "occurred." Coverage under most insurance policies is triggered by an "occurrence." As Dana Ferestien commented, insurers and insureds continue to litigate…
Oklahoma attorneys defending lawsuits brought by policyholders against insurance companies regularly use the defense of forseeability to limit special damages which are claimed in the lawsuit. Special damages for failure to pay under an insurance policy must be the kind of damages that would ordinarily result from breach of contract. The concept comes under the…
