Legal Opinion
Freedom Trust v. Chubb Group of Ins. Companies
District Court, C.D. California
Decided March 26, 1999No. CV 97-1501 DDP (SHx)PublishedCited by 9 opinions
1Opinion of the Court
AMENDED ORDER DENYING PLAINTIFFS’ MOTION TO COMPEL PRODUCTION
PREGERSON, District Judge.
This matter comes before the Court on a discovery motion by the plaintiffs. The motion presents a question of first impression in California: whether a law firm’s participation in an insurer’s bad faith denial of a claim falls within the crime-fraud exception to the lawyer-client privilege. The Court holds that it does not.
I. Background
Among other claims, the plaintiffs sued Chubb for bad faith denial of insurance coverage. Chubb moved for summary judgment on this issue but the Court de nied the motion. The…
2Cases cited16 opinions
- Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, Administratrix of the Estate of CatrettSupreme Court of the United States · 1986
- Commissioner v. Estate of BoschSupreme Court of the United States · 1967
- Neal v. Farmers Insurance ExchangeCalifornia Supreme Court · 1978
- People v. ClarkCalifornia Supreme Court · 1990
- BP Alaska Exploration, Inc. v. Superior CourtCalifornia Court of Appeal · 1988
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3Cited by9 opinions
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- ACTION PERFORMANCE COMPANIES, INC. v. BohbotDistrict Court, C.D. California · 2006
- Boone v. Vanliner InsuranceOhio Supreme Court · 2001
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