Reinsurer And Third Party Claims Administrators Not Proper Defendants In Asbestos Coverage Action

On February 29, 2012, Judge Rita Novak, of the Circuit Court of Cook County, Ill., issued a ruling of major significance granting the Motion to Dismiss filed by Cozen O'Connor on behalf of its clients and holding that a policyholder could not hold a reinsurer or third-party claims administrators liable for allegedly assuming the direct insurer's insuring obligations or tortious interference. Navistar, Inc. (Navistar) filed a declaratory judgment action against 10 primary and excess level insurers seeking to recover losses allegedly incurred by thousands of plaintiffs who sued Navistar in underlying actions as a result of their alleged exposure to asbestos-containing products. Navistar later amended its complaint to assert claims against National Indemnity Company (NICO), the reinsurer of four of the underlying direct insurers, and Resolute Management, Inc. and Resolute Management Services Limited (collectively, Resolute), the claims handlers for those insurers.