Royal Insurance Company of America American Employers Insurance Co. v. Kirksville College of Osteopathic Medicine, Inc.

I agree Royal breached its duty to defend Kirksville. Royal abandoned the defense soon after the district court held it had no duty to defend, even though Kirks-ville had appealed the erroneous ruling. If an insured appeals a trial court’s adverse ruling on a duty-to-defend claim, the insurer should continue to defend under a reservation of rights pending final resolution in the appellate court. See, e.g., Detroit Edison Co. v. Mich. Mut. Ins. Co., 102 Mich.App. 136, 301 N.W.2d 832, 836 (Mich. Ct.App.1981) (“When an insurer relies on a lower court ruling that it has no duty to defend, it…