Liability

The LIABILITY PROGRAM examines in detail the basis for liability in specific substantive and procedural areas of law. Knowledge of these selected course topics is essential to any claims professional, whether he or she specializes in casualty claims or has only occasional contact with these claims. The Program also addresses the interaction between these principles and the most common coverages, e.g. automobile and general liability. The student will learn how legal liability and coverage disputes have been and are likely to be resolved in the courts.

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NOTE: For Program completion all required courses and three electives must be taken

210 LIABILITY INSURANCE PRINCIPLES
(Required) (Course Textbook Consists of 178 Pages)
This course will enable the student to analyze fundamental principles of liability insurance and the insurance contract to determine the coverage and understand basic concepts of insurance law for liability coverages as they have been interpreted in the courts. Included are discussions of policy conditions, the duties of both insured and insurer once a loss has occurred, the insurer's duty to investigate, defend and settle and ways to avoid allegations of bad faith.

Course Index
1. Introduction to Liability Insurance Principles
2. The Liability Insurance Policy Contract
3. Liability Insurance Policy Conditions
4. Insurer's Duties

211 COMPARATIVE NEGLIGENCE, CONTRIBUTION AND SETTLEMENTS
(Required) (Course Textbook Consists of 144 Pages)
This course will enable the student to analyze the various forms of comparative negligence and to apply comparative negligence principles on a state by state basis; understand the three theories of comparative negligence and their application to a dollar and cents evaluation of claims; and give consideration to the relationship of comparative negligence to strict liability, joint and several liability, contribution among joint tortfeasors, products liability, subrogation and other areas.

Course Index
1. Contributory and Comparative Negligence
2. Comparative Negligence applied to Specific Types of Claims
3. Multiple Tortfeasors
4. Contribution, Indemnification, Judgments, and Settlements

NOTE: Credit will be given for course #211 if completed as part of the Automobile Program.

212 LAW OF EVIDENCE
(Required) (Course Textbook Consists of 152 Pages)
This course will enable the student to understand rules governing admissibility of evidence at trial. By reviewing the common law and the Federal Rules of Evidence, students will become aware of the possibilities inherent in any evidence situation for the purposes of better guiding the claims investigation.

Course Index
1. Fundamental Principles of Evidence
2. Methods of Proof
3. Witnesses
4. Hearsay Evidence and Hearsay Exceptions

213 PLEADINGS AND PRACTICE
(Required) (Course Textbook Consists of 200 Pages)
This course will enable the student to understand legal procedures and their role in the litigation process, the various time periods within which actions must be brought, and the jurisdictional basis for bringing actions in the state and federal courts. The practical aspects of court procedures are emphasized to promote more effective interaction between the claims professional and defense counsel.

Course Index
1. Jurisdiction
2. Pleadings and Procedure
3. Discovery
4. Trial, Judgment, and Appeal

217 LAW OF INSURANCE: GENERAL LIABILITY
(Elective) (Course Textbook Consists of 178 Pages)
This course will enable the student to understand the commercial general liability policy and how it has been interpreted in the courts. The student will be able to apply this knowledge to more effectively handle these claims from investigation through settlement. The course covers the insuring agreements for bodily injury and property damage and for personal and advertising injury liability. The student will study important issues such as whether defective construction work is an occurrence, when a loss is triggered for coverage purposes, and whether punitive damages are covered, and will learn how courts have interpreted these issues. The student will also learn to analyze the applicability of important policy exclusions such as the expected or intended injury exclusion, the business risk exclusions, and the absolute pollution exclusion.

Course Index
1. Introduction to General Liability Insurance
2. Coverage
3. Coverage A Exclusion
4. Coverage B Exclusions

218 MEDICAL MALPRACTICE
(Elective) (Course Textbook Consists of 180 Pages)
This course will enable the student to understand the exposure in various areas of health care such as physicians, nurses, hospitals, nursing homes, and pharmacists. Their rights and liabilities are analyzed not only with respect to patients and customers but also as to third parties who might be affected by their actions. The standard of care is examined as to each health care provider as well as methods of proving deviation from that standard. Defenses such as statute of limitations, contributory negligence, and assumption of risk that may be raised on behalf of the medical professional are also discussed.

Course Index
1. Physicians
2. Theories of Liability
3. Other Medical Providers
4. Defenses and Recovery Limitations

219 PROFESSIONAL LIABILITY
(Elective) (Course Textbook Consists of 182 Pages)
This course will enable the student to understand duties, liabilities, and defenses of those rendering non-medical professional services; and to focus attention on those factors constituting negligence, giving rise to appropriate defenses and better directing investigation to avoid unwarranted expense and unnecessary claim payments.

Course Index
1. Introduction
2. Duties and Liability of Attorneys
3. Duties and Liability of Insurance Professionals
4. Duties and Liability of a Public Accountant
5. Duties and Liability of Directors and Officers

220 PRODUCTS LIABILITY
(Elective) (Course Textbook Consists of 148 Pages)
This course will enable the student to understand common law and statutory law with regard to defective products and to know the differences in the common law and statutory approaches to the liability questions that arise when defective products cause injury or damage.

Course Index
1. Negligence
2. Warranty Liability
3. Strict Liability In Tort
4. Defenses

222 ALTERNATIVE DISPUTE RESOLUTION
(Elective) (Course Textbook Consists of 168 Pages)
This course will enable the student to understand the various methods of ADR available as alternatives to expensive and time consuming litigation. The student will learn how to evaluate the appropriateness of a particular ADR method to any given claim; as well as the procedures required, the legal implications of that method and whether it's binding on the parties or whether an appeal is available.

Course Index
1. Introduction
2. Negotiation
3. Mediation
4. Arbitration

223 EMPLOYMENT PRACTICES LIABILITY
(Elective) (Course Textbook Consists of 204 Pages)
This course will enable the student to understand the law relating to employment practices claims. State and federal statutes as well as common law claims will be considered. The student will also learn which policies provide coverage for employment practices claims, with special emphasis on CGL and EPLI.

Course Index
1. Introduction
2. The Statutes
3. Common Law Employment Issues
4. Insurance Coverage

225 GOOD FAITH CLAIMS HANDLING
(Elective) (Course Textbook Consist of 182 pages)
This course will enable the student to understand how to handle claims while discharging the duty of good faith and fair dealing that the insurer owes to its insureds. The student will learn: how courts have defined good faith in first party and third party claims; how to determine the applicable limitations period in bad faith actions; how to meet the requirements of unfair claims settlement practices acts and other statutes; the scope of the insurer's duty to defend and duty to settle; what damages are recoverable in bad faith actions.

Course Index
1. General Principles of Good Faith Claims Handling
2. Bad Faith Causes of Action
3. First Party Bad Faith
4. Third Party Bad Faith

226 RESERVATION OF RIGHTS
(Elective) (Course Textbook Consist of 140 pages)
This course will enable the student to understand the scope of an insurer's duty to defend and the benefit to the insurer of reserving its rights when it is unsure of its duty to defend. The student will study the elements of nonwaiver agreements and reservation of rights letters, the effect of waiver and estoppel, and the assumption-of-defense exception. The student will learn when a reservation of rights letter should be issued and what it should contain, the effect of a true conflict of interest with its insured, when the insurer is entitled to reimbursement of defense costs, and the purpose and effectiveness of declaratory judgment actions.

Course Index
1. The Duty to Defend
2. Nonwaiver and Reservation of Rights
3. Conflict of Interest and Appointment of Independent Counsel
4. Insurer's Right to Reimbursement
5. Declaratory Judgments