openPR Logo
Press release

Texas Supreme Court Affirms $6M Verdict for Gardere Client Lennar Corp.

09-03-2013 09:26 AM CET | Politics, Law & Society

Press release from: Gardere Wynne Sewell

/ PR Agency: Androvett Legal Media & Marketing
HOUSTON - The Supreme Court of Texas has ruled in favor of Gardere Wynne Sewell LLP client Lennar Corp. in a closely watched insurance dispute by affirming an earlier judgment of more than $6 million for Lennar, effectively ending 12 years of related litigation.

The case, Lennar Corp. v. Markel American Insurance Co., No. 11-0394, involved property damage to homes built with a synthetic stucco material known as EIFS that trapped water and caused rot and structural damage. Homebuilder Lennar stopped using the faulty product and undertook to repair the property damage on hundreds of homes that it had built.

Markel American Insurance Co., which had provided a $25 million commercial umbrella liability policy to Lennar, denied coverage for the repairs based on the argument that Lennar had improperly settled with the homeowners without Markel’s consent and that Lennar had not allocated its continuous property damage among various policy periods. At trial, a jury found that Markel was not prejudiced by the settlements and awarded Lennar more than $6 million in damages. That verdict was reversed by Houston’s 14th District Court of Appeals in April 2011.

In the opinion issued Aug. 23, the Texas Supreme Court reversed the Houston appeals court and reinstated the trial court verdict against Markel. Texas’ highest Court held that an insured’s failure to comply with a consent-to-settle provision in an insurance policy does not excuse the insurer’s liability under the policy unless it was prejudiced by the settlement.

The Court also confirmed that it is the insurer’s responsibility, not the insured’s, to allocate repair costs among other insurers when a continuing property damage loss extends over several policy periods. The Court found that Lennar’s “responsible efforts to correct defects in its home construction did not absolve Markel of responsibility for costs under its liability policy.”

Lennar was represented at trial and before the Texas Supreme Court by Gardere Partners James Cooper and Stacy R. Obenhaus and former Gardere Lawyers John Slates and Samantha Trahan.

Gardere Wynne Sewell LLP, an Am Law 200 firm founded in 1909 and one of the Southwest’s largest full-service law firms, has offices in Austin, Dallas, Houston and Mexico City. Gardere provides legal services to private and public companies and individuals in areas of corporate, private equity, litigation, energy, tax, real estate, financial services, government affairs, hospitality, intellectual property, labor and employment, and environmental.

Gardere Wynne Sewell LLP
Wells Fargo Plaza, Suite 3400
1000 Louisiana
Houston TX 77002
713.276.5500
Press Contact: Dorothy L. Seals, 214.999.4019, dseals@gardere.com.

This release was published on openPR.

Permanent link to this press release:

Copy
Please set a link in the press area of your homepage to this press release on openPR. openPR disclaims liability for any content contained in this release.

You can edit or delete your press release Texas Supreme Court Affirms $6M Verdict for Gardere Client Lennar Corp. here

News-ID: 268956 • Views:

More Releases from Gardere Wynne Sewell

Gardere Earns Highest Firm Score on Austin Law Firm Diversity Report Card
AUSTIN – Gardere Wynne Sewell LLP is pleased to announce that the Firm has received the highest composite score of all reporting firms in the 2015 Law Firm Diversity Report Card, issued by the Austin Minority Bar Associations and the Travis County Women Lawyers Association. For the third consecutive year, the Firm also earned an “A” grade for its exceptional diversity recruitment, hiring and retention efforts. “Diversity in the workplace, generally,
Gardere Partner Michelle Schulz Named Co-Chair of Firm’s International Practice
Gardere Partner Michelle Schulz Named Co-Chair of Firm’s International Practic …
DALLAS/HOUSTON – Gardere Wynne Sewell LLP is pleased to announce that Partner Michelle Schulz has been named co-chair of the Firm’s international practice, effective immediately. She will lead the group alongside co-chair and Partner Charles E. Meacham in Houston. Since joining Gardere in December 2013, Ms. Schulz has served as co-chair of the Firm’s international trade group and has been instrumental in its success. She will continue in that role in
Gardere Welcomes Litigator Sean Whyte to Dallas Office
Gardere Welcomes Litigator Sean Whyte to Dallas Office
DALLAS – Gardere Wynne Sewell LLP is pleased to welcome accomplished litigator Sean M. Whyte as a partner in the Firm’s Dallas office. He joins the Firm from Alston & Bird, where he has practiced since 2011. Mr. Whyte has a multifaceted litigation practice involving complex commercial litigation, consumer class actions and products liability. He has extensive trial experience before state and federal courts, with class-action experience that includes defending clients

More Releases for Lennar

Homebuyer Alleges Unethical Practices by Lennar Builders Over Unreturned $10,000 …
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE December 24, 2024 Homebuyer Alleges Unethical Practices by Lennar Builders Over Unreturned $10,000 Deposit Indio, California - A disabled retired homebuyer with decades of experience in the commercial collections industry has raised serious concerns about Lennar Builders' handling of a $10,000 deposit. The issue has caused significant financial and emotional stress for the individual and his wife, prompting questions about Lennar Builders' financial stability and ethical practices. According to the homeowner,
Residential Construction Market to Expand Robustly in 2024| Country Garden, DR H …
Advance Market Analytics published a new research publication on "Residential Construction Market Insights, to 2030" with 232 pages and enriched with self-explained Tables and charts in presentable format. In the Study you will find new evolving Trends, Drivers, Restraints, Opportunities generated by targeting market associated stakeholders. The growth of the Residential Construction market was mainly driven by the increasing R&D spending across the world. Get Free Exclusive PDF Sample Copy of
Building Construction Market to See Huge Growth by 2030: Skanska, Lennar, Vinci
As the Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Environmental, and Legal factors continue to change, business leaders across industries have shifted focus to strategic objectives to achieve market excellence. "Global Building Construction Market Size, Share Analysis with Forecast to 2030" report comes with comprehensive business strategies and plans have proven to propel business growth in such a scenario. For that purpose, companies require relevant information and market intelligence based insights to measure
Residential Construction Market Next Big Thing | Major Giants Lennar, DR Horton, …
Latest released the research study on Global Residential Construction Market, offers a detailed overview of the factors influencing the global business scope. Residential Construction Market research report shows the latest market insights, current situation analysis with upcoming trends and breakdown of the products and services. The report provides key statistics on the market status, size, share, growth factors of the Residential Construction The study covers emerging player's data, including: competitive
Smart Apartments Market Rewriting Long Term Growth Story | Metricon, Henley, Len …
2020-2025 Global Smart Apartments Market Report - Production and Consumption Professional Analysis (Impact of COVID-19) is latest research study released by HTF MI evaluating the market, highlighting opportunities, risk side analysis, and leveraged with strategic and tactical decision-making support. The influencing Factors of growth and regulations with respect to the usage of the information, availability of highly reliable products in the market, and increase in operational efficiency of Smart Apartments
Industrial Real Estate Market: Getting Back to Growth | PulteGroup, Lennar, Cono …
Global Industrial Real Estate Market Report from AMA Research highlights deep analysis on market characteristics, sizing, estimates and growth by segmentation, regional breakdowns& country along with competitive landscape, players market shares, and strategies that are key in the market. The exploration provides a 360° view and insights, highlighting major outcomes of the industry. These insights help the business decision-makers to formulate better business plans and make informed decisions to improved