Does a finding of bad faith trigger entitlement to an award of attorney’s fees? In Nevada, the answer is no. This issue was addressed in the 2007 case of Merrick v. Paul Revere Life Ins. Co., 500 F.3d 1007 (9th Cir., 2007). Paul Revere Life and co-defendant Unum Provident denied Merrick’s disability insurance claim. Merrick filed suit alleging breach of contract and of the duty of good faith and fair dealing. Applying Nevada law under the doctrine of Erie Railroad v. Tompkins, 304 U.S. 64 … [Read more...]
A Finding Of Bad Faith Does Not Automatically Entitle The Policyholder To An Award Of Attorney’s Fees
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These posts on the Mills & Associates Nevada Coverage & Bad Faith Law blog are published to provide useful insights on Nevada insurance law to our clients and other subscribers. Many times the topics are suggested by recent case law, or issues raised by litigation. As part of our ongoing effort to provide both timely and helpful information, we invite all our readers to submit issues which they would like to see addressed in future blog posts. Likewise, please submit questions … [Read more...]
Plain Vanilla Nevada Bad Faith
Farmers Home Mutual Ins. v. Fiscus, 102 Nev. 371, 725 P.2d 234, (1986) is a text book example of a straightforward bad faith suit. It all started out simply enough. The Fiscus family used an evaporative cooler to keep their Boulder City home tolerable during the long, hot Nevada summers. The cooler’s water supply line hooked into the pipe under the kitchen sink and ran up to the roof. While the Fiscus family was away on a three-week summer vacation, the cooler’s supply line became … [Read more...]