EDRs or "black boxes" now are contained in a wide range of consumer products including copiers, household appliances, alarm systems and cars. "EDRs" can provide a final data picture of how a product was last operating before a failure happened. Technological advances include building EDRs with a read write tamper proof cabability. For example, an...

The Expedited Jury Trials Act (ETA) Assembly Bill 2284 became effective in California state trial courts.  Additional rules implementing the program are being prepared by the California Judicial Council.  AB 2284 provides for expedited jury trials in civil cases where both parties agree.   The trials scheduled pursuant to the ETA will be heard on a...

  The U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) called for a ban on cleaning out debris from gas piping using pressurized natural gas. “Gas blow” is an industry-wide practice and is now described as an “inherently unsafe activity.” CSB called for the ban after investigating a tragic explosion at Kleen Energy in Middleton, Connecticut, that killed six...

The fire loss involves your insured’s fireplace. The fire originally starts in the fireplace, but spreads to nearby combustibles, catching the structure on fire. Is there a subrogation case?  Once a fireplace loss comes in, thorough analysis of the fireplace system needs to take place. Generally, fireplaces are masonry built of bricks, blocks, or stone and mortar. The other...