Back in September 2013, we posted an article entitled “Do Liability Waivers Really Work?” The article served as a primer and cautionary tale regarding the enforceability of common liability waivers. These are the agreements required by gyms, martial arts facilities, climbing gyms, trampoline parks, and similar businesses geared toward physical activity that can be inherently…
The Wisconsin Supreme Court has recently had occasion to clarify the issue of whether extrinsic evidence can be considered in determining an insurer’s duty to defend in the case of Water Well Solutions Serv., Inc. v. Consolidated Ins. Co., 2016 WI 54 (2016). In this case, the Court refused to modify the longstanding “four-corners” rule…
The recent consolidated bellwether trial of the DePuy Pinnacle Hip Implant multi-district litigation concluded on Thursday, March 17, 2016, with a whopping $502 million verdict against defendants DePuy Orthopaedics, Inc. and Johnson & Johnson. Following months of trial in the Northern District of Texas, the jury found in favor of all eight plaintiffs — five…
In Moya v. Aurora Healthcare, Inc. and HealthPort Technologies, LLC, Appeal No. 2014AP2236, the Wisconsin Court of Appeals decided a case involving the construction and interpretation of Wis. Stats. §§ 146.81-146.83 to determine whether personal injury attorneys are exempt from the $8 certification and $20 retrieval fees under the health records statute § 146.83(3f) when an…
Allstate’s insured was involved in an automobile accident with a plaintiff in which it was alleged that Allstate’s insured was negligent causing injury to the plaintiff. Allstate had issued a policy of liability insurance to the driver and her husband, which was in full force and effect at the time of the accident. The vehicle…
Dealing with a situation that is annoying, if nothing else, to quite a few businesses, a Wisconsin Court of Appeals decision recently upheld an exclusion within an insurance policy that precluded coverage for allegations that it’s insured violated the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) by continually sending faxes (“blast faxes”) without the permission or consent…
Wisconsin’s so-called dog bite statute entitled “Owner’s Liability for Damage Caused by Dog” is currently set forth in Wis. Stat. § 174.02. Section 174.02(1)(a) deals with a “first bite” of a dog while § 174.02(1)(b) deals with a “second bite” of a dog with the owner or keeper of the dog being required to have…
In the case of Lyle and Carol Hird v. American Family Mutual Insurance Company, Appeal No. 2014AP2402, a 2015 Wisconsin Court of Appeals decision dealt with allegations of (1) bad faith; (2) Wis. Stat. § 628.46(1) statutory interest; and (3) Wisconsin’s Offer of Settlement Statute – Wis. Stat. § 807.01. Taking into account the very…
The Court in the case of Dilger v. Metropolitan Property and Casualty Insurance Company (“Metropolitan”), Appeal No. 2014AP1851, determined that a claimant, upon proper compliance with the statutory requirements, is entitled to interest pursuant to Wis. Stat. § 628.46(1). In this particular case, the plaintiff, Dilger, was a police officer for the City of Brookfield…
In a lawsuit setting forth a common factual scenario found in many civil cases, the court had an opportunity and did decide with specificity the applicable provisions in Chapter 814 of the Wisconsin Statutes. In the case of Weber v. Auto-Owners Insurance Company (“Auto-Owners”), Appeal No. 2014AP1953, the Appellate Court dealt with a situation wherein…