There’s a famous (apocryphal?) story about Cato the Elder, one of the leaders of ancient Rome. Cato was obsessed with destroying Carthage (now Tunis), the Roman Empire’s rival. He would end every speech (and apparently most conversations) with “Carthago delenda est” – Carthage must be destroyed. The story goes that when Demosthenes (a prominent Greek
ambiguous
Why are insurance policies so confusing?
By Gene Killian on
Posted in Contract construction
Massachusetts coverage attorney Nina Kallen has taken me to task on the question of why most insurance policies are an abominable mess to read. (My original post dealt with business interruption coverage). You can read her piece by clicking here. Can’t say I disagree.
“Newly Acquired Premises” and The Rule of Ambiguity
By Gene Killian on
Posted in Contract construction, Property insurance
Insurance company claims personnel tend to view the concept of “ambiguity” as the last refuge of a scoundrel. That’s because unhappy policyholders often reflexively argue that a particular term in dispute is “ambiguous.” On the other hand, miserly insurance companies often argue that the term is perfectly clear. Neither side usually understands what the term…