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Many insurance policies contain exclusions for damages associated with “civil unrest,” “riot or civil commotion,” “vandalism or malicious mischief,” or other terms meant to exclude the type of damages many Minneapolis property owners experienced as a result of rioting shortly after the death of George Floyd.  With, the trial of former Minneapolis Police Office Derek Chauvin’s underway, many local business…

Discovery disputes in litigation are usually the result of unresolved misunderstandings between the parties over the nature of the issues in dispute. Most often, discovery disputes are and should be resolved without court intervention.  Occasionally, there are bonafide discovery disputes that must be presented to the court for resolution. SJJ recently won a Motion to Compel Discovery ordering an insurer…

In prior posts, we have commented on the standard two-year time limit for suit found in many Minnesota homeowners policies that effectively serves to shorten the time in which you may make a claim for insurance proceeds. The two-year time limit for suit is generally enforceable and acts as a contractual statute of limitation. But, there are other deadlines tucked…

SJJ attorneys already established a policyholder’s ability to recover interest on an underpaid insurance claim when the policyholder is forced to resolve it through the appraisal process in 2017 before the Minnesota Supreme Court.  Since then, some insurance companies have tried to alter their policies in an attempt to prevent policyholders from receiving interest on these underpaid claims.  

Smith Jadin Johnson, PLLC recently won a decision in the Federal District of Minnesota compelling a reluctant insurer to participate in an appraisal of a disputed insurance claim. After the insured demanded an appraisal, the insurer commenced litigation seeking to avoid coverage for the claimed loss and refused to participate in appraisal.