New York Liability Coverage Protocols: Doing it Right to Prevent Disaster – Protecting the Disclaimer, Preserving Coverage Defenses

Join Insurance Coverage Co-Chair Dan D. Kohane for a practical and essential webinar on navigating New York’s unique and unforgiving liability coverage landscape. Unlike most jurisdictions, a reservation of rights letter may not be enough to preserve coverage defenses where Insurance Law § 3420(d)(2) applies—making precision and timing critical.

This session will walk through when a carrier must issue a prompt and specific disclaimer, why delay can result in waiver of key defenses, and how New York’s statutory framework governs bodily injury and wrongful death claims. The program will also address who must receive a disclaimer, including insureds, injured parties, and potential claimants, and clarify the important distinctions between lack of coverage, policy exclusions, and breaches of policy conditions. We will also touch on the indirect impact on horizontal exhaustion claims as a result of the recent adoption of the AVOID Act, which has altered timing of third-party lawsuits for contribution and indemnity.

Attendees will gain practical guidance on drafting effective disclaimers, understanding the limits of reservation of rights letters, handling partial disclaimers, and navigating related issues such as independent counsel and recoupment of defense costs—helping avoid costly and irreversible coverage missteps.

For more information and to register, click here.