Kimberly Blair (Partner-Chicago), Joseph Stafford (Partner-Chicago), and Thomas Duff (Associate-Chicago) secured an affirmance of a summary judgment from the Appellate Court of Illinois, First District, in a coverage dispute brought against Wilson Elser’s client, an insurance company. The case centers on our client’s denial of coverage for two medical malpractice suits against the plaintiff, a hospital facility, due to its failure to report the lawsuits as required in its professional liability insurance policy.

In the underlying matter, Wilson Elser maintained that although an existing SIR Endorsement’s notice requirement replaced the plaintiffs’ obligation to give notice of claims to our client “as soon as practicable,” it did not supersede the plaintiff hospital’s separate obligation to report claims within the policy period. The circuit court agreed with Wilson Elser’s reading of the policy and granted summary judgment for the insurance company. The appellate court affirmed, concurring with Kim, Joe, and Thomas’s assessment that the policy was a “claims made and reported policy,” that this interpretation is not at odds with the language of the SIR Endorsement, and that their arguments presented the only reasonable interpretation of the unambiguous policy language.