On The Defensive: How COVID-19 Will Impact Insurance Litigation

The only thing that remains constant is change. Earlier in 2020, claims personnel might have been advising their clients of huge potential claims values in jurisdictions such as New York, Philadelphia, and Los Angeles. They might even have spoken about the danger of being “reptiled” at trial.

However, no one could have foreseen the entire world being placed on lockdown and commerce coming to a virtual halt.

Some businesses—such as grocery stores, trucking companies, and manufacturers of essential products—had to ramp up their goods and services. Other industries came to a complete standstill, including movie theaters, restaurants, and bars.

School buses stopped running, airlines were flying almost empty planes, and most hotels were vacant. Our world has changed dramatically in such a short period of time. In the short term, most people have been sheltering-in-place, some have been furloughed or laid off, and still others are working from home.

With all of this change and uncertainty, it’s important to address the impact of the pandemic to claims professionals and defense counsel in both the short term and long term.