ACCC Pop-Up Dialogue: Latest Trends on Choice of Law and Jurisdictional Issues in D&O Litigation

Most D&O policies do not have choice of law provisions and are also silent on litigation jurisdiction and venue issues.  There is a perception that Delaware law is generally more favorable to the policyholder than the insurer, but much of that perception may be more jurisdictional than applicable law.  We will explore recent results at (1) the Delaware Commercial Court level, (2) the Delaware Supreme Court and (3) the federal court for the District of Delaware.  Federal jurisdiction is oftentimes difficult to obtain because of diversity requirements.  One advantage to the parties in Delaware is that there is no intermediate appellate court, thus streamlining the appellate process.

Increasingly, insurers are urged to consider placing choice of law provisions in their policies. There may be less resistance among policyholders if the law chosen is that where the policyholder has its principal place of business because many corporations, although incorporated in Delaware, have their headquarters somewhere else.  Also, it may not be overly burdensome on insurers to select the policyholder’s state of headquarters for jurisdictional purposes. Most insurers do business on a nationwide basis and can readily litigate in different states without much difficulty.

Presenters:
Joseph Monteleone, Weber Gallagher
Peter M. Gillon, Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP

Moderator:
Seth Lamden, Blank Rome, LLP

Please Note:
Attendance is restricted to ACCC Fellows.
Recording is not permitted.

To register for the program, press on this link.