Employment Law For The Real World

Always Check for Insurance

On Behalf of | Oct 28, 2022 | Firm News |

Interesting article on the Harvard affirmative action case in the New York Times. I will leave it to others to opine on the merits of the underlying case, with is being argued before SCOTUS next week. But there is a related case brought by Harvard in the District of Massachusetts against its excess insurer Zurich for disclaiming coverage. Harvard put its primary insurance carrier on notice, but allegedly failed to give timely notice to Zurich of the claim. The case is a good reminder to folks that whenever you learn of a potential claim, immediately review all of insurance policies to see where there might be coverage. Don’t just stop at the first and most obvious policy. Maybe there is a EPL rider on a GL policy, or D&O coverage might apply. The point is if you don’t perform that review, and do so right away, there is a chance that you might not be able to access coverage that might otherwise have been available. I have seen this a few times over the years and while these disputes typically settle, they take the focus away from the underlying dispute and generate needless litigation expenses. https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/23/us/harvard-affirmative-action-litigation-cost.html