The Delaware Supreme Court has held that Delaware law, rather than Montana law, applies in a dispute over D&O coverage for defense costs incurred in a stockholder appraisal action.
In Short
The Situation: Corporate policyholders, and
their individual officers and directors, often incur significant
fees and costs when forced to respond to government subpoenas that
may require extensive document productions and testimony.When
responding to subpoenas, policyholders too often overlook whether
their directors and officers ( D&O )
coverage may cover costs associated with those responses.
The Result: Many courts have held that a
subpoena constitutes a claim as defined in most
traditional D&O insurance policies, and similarly have held
that the subpoena need not allege an express wrongful
act to trigger coverage for defense costs.
Looking Ahead: Policyholders should carefully