American Home Assurance Co. v. International Insurance

OPINION OF THE COURT

Titone, J.

In Unigard Sec. Ins. Co. v North Riv. Ins. Co. (79 NY2d 576), we held that, in contrast to situations involving primary liability insurance policies, the breach of the prompt-notice provisions in a reinsurance policy is not a ground for disclaiming coverage unless the reinsurer can show that it was actually prejudiced by the delay. The issue in this case is whether the analysis in Unigard should be applied to a breach of the prompt-notice clause in a policy providing excess liability coverage. Concluding that the rights and obligations of excess insurers are more…