Defense Lawyers' Professional Responsibilites: Part II-Contested Coverage Cases
Georgetown Journal of Legal Ethics, Vol. 15, p. 29, 2001
66 Pages Posted: 18 May 2001 Last revised: 3 Aug 2010
Date Written: 2001
Abstract
Having previously examined the professional responsibilities of insurance defense lawyers in full coverage and excess exposure situations, this article completes our analysis of the field by focusing on situations in which insurance carriers deny that claims against policyholders are covered at all.
In keeping with our prior works, defense lawyers' duties are grounded in the economic and legal structure of the tripartite relationship involving the insurance company, the policyholder, and the defense lawyer. The topics considered include some that are entirely new, such as whether a defense lawyer has a duty to know about coverage law and facts, and some that are others have considered previously, such as whether a conflict of interests necessarily exists at the start of a disputed coverage representation.
Keywords: professional responsibility, legal ethics, liability insurance, insurance defense
JEL Classification: K4
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation