ROSELAND, N.J./March 10, 2009 -- Connell Foley’s appellate team of Richard D. Catenacci, Glenn T. Dyer, and M. Trevor Lyons recently obtained a reversal on appeal of a $5,551,518.47 judgment entered by the trial court against our client, IFA Insurance Company. The plaintiff had alleged that IFA acted in bad faith by failing to settle her personal injury claim against its insured. Since there were multiple claims against IFA’s $35,000 combined single limit policy, IFA offered the entire policy limit to settle all of the claims. When plaintiff refused to accept anything less than the entire limit for herself, IFA deposited the money into court. In its February 19, 2009 decision, the Appellate Division unanimously agreed that the plaintiff’s claim against IFA lacked the necessary factual and legal basis to establish bad faith. The Court not only reversed the summary judgment entered by the trial court, but remanded the case for entry of summary judgment in IFA’s favor.
Mr. Catenacci is a partner and member of the firm’s Commercial Litigation, Insurance Defense, Intellectual Property, and Product Liability and Tort Law practice groups.
Mr. Lyons is an asssociate and member of the firm’s Labor and Employment Law practice group.
For more information regarding the case, please contact Mr. Catenacci at rcatenacci@connellfoley.com
