Insurer’s Duty to Settle for Policy Limits When Defending Non-Covered Claims Under Reservation of Rights

Craig Hirsch is a presenter and co-panelist for a Strafford Webinar discussing the “Insurer’s Duty to Settle for Policy Limits When Defending Non-Covered Claims Under Reservation of Rights.” The panel shared the insurance company’s and policyholder’s perspective on the legal requirements for liability insurers when defending a potentially non-covered claim, but faced with a reasonable settlement offer within policy limits.  Craig specifically addressed the recent Tenth Circuit decision Owner’s Ins. Co. v. Dockstader, No. 19-4156 (June 29, 2021), which held under Utah law that insurers generally must accept settlement offers within the policy’s limits when defending their insureds, but the “requirement to settle is not absolute.”