East News

Risk Strategies Acquires Castle Rock Capacity in New York

National specialty insurance broker Risk Strategies has acquired Castle Rock Capacity, a property/casualty insurance broker with a specialty in the construction, real estate and development industries. Headquartered in New York City, Castle Rock was co-founded in 2006 by Jon Lipton, …

Starbucks Illegally Fired Manhattan Supervisor Over Union Activities, Labor Judge Rules

Starbucks violated U.S. labor law by firing a Manhattan store supervisor who had organized workers to join a union, a federal labor board judge ruled on Monday. The National Labor Relations Board established “striking and strong evidence of animus” behind …

New Jersey High Court to Hear Insurers’ Appeal Over War Exclusion in NotPetya Attack

The New Jersey Supreme Court has agreed to decide whether a hostile/warlike action exclusion in an all risks property insurance policy applies in a case involving insurance coverage for a 2017 Russian cyberattack. The state’s high court will hear an …

Pennsylvania High Court Rejects Damages Cap in Insurance Agency Poaching Case

A jury’s $2.8 million punitive damage award against an insurance agency and broker that tried to poach a competitor’s staff and book of business was not excessive even though it was more than 10 times the amount of compensatory damages, …

OSHA Fines Boston’s Dumpling Maker Chinese Spaghetti Factory $190K

When federal workplace safety inspectors returned to a Boston food plant in March 2023, they said they discovered the plant’s operator — Chinese Spaghetti Factory Inc. — still had not installed required safety guards on a dumpling machine’s rotating shafts, …

Brown & Brown to Acquire Wholesale Broker New England Excess Exchange

Florida-based global insurance broker Brown & Brown, Inc. has agreed to acquire Vermont-based wholesale broker New England Excess Exchange (NEEE). The acquisition will be through Bridge Specialty Group, the wholesale insurance division of Brown & Brown with more than 25 …

Connecticut Seeks Agriculture Disaster Declaration Due To Severe Flooding of Farms

Governor Ned Lamont has submitted a request to the U.S. Department of Agriculture for a federal agriculture disaster declaration for all eight counties in Connecticut due to the significant damage that occurred to farms and crops statewide from flooding, particularly …

Pastor to Go to Jail, Repay Church and Insurer for Stealing $130K to Cover Gambling

A New Hampshire executive pastor has been sentenced to 18 months in prison for stealing about $130,000 from his church to pay off gambling debts and make purchases. Gregory Neal, of Barrington, 45, was sentenced in federal court Wednesday and …

Massachusetts High Court Revives Contractor Liability Claim Over ‘Half Inch’ Defect

Whether a half-inch granite protrusion on a crosswalk under repair is sufficient to support a negligent claim is a matter for a jury to decide, not a court granting summary judgment for a contractor doing work for a municipality. Furthermore, …

Landlord’s Insurer Denied Recovery for Damage Caused by Tenant’s Drone

Sathiyaselvam Thangavel’s hijinks with a drone caused more than $77,000 in damage to the apartment building where he lived, but his landlord’s insurer can’t recover that money from Thangavel even though he signed a lease saying he is solely responsible …

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