The duty to defend and the duty to indemnify are separate and distinct. The duty to defend is determined by the "eight corners rule," where a court will look at the complaint and the policy and determine whether an insurer is obligated to defend an insured. (Credit: Nirat.pix/Shutterstock)
The judges of the Eleventh Circuit affirmed a decision of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida that Cincinnati Specialty Underwriters must defend a subcontractor in a construction suit, but agreed that it was too early to decide whether Cincinnati also had a duty to indemnify the subcontractor.
PPE Casino Resorts (PPE) hired general contractor Tutor Perini Building Corporation (Tutor Perini) to build a new casino in Maryland. Tutor Perini, in turn, contracted with GM&P Consulting and Glazing Contractors, Inc. (GM&P) for the building's exterior glazing, for which GM&P hired KNS Group, LLC (KNS). As part of its contract with GM&P, KNS obtained a commercial general liability (CGL) policy from Cincinnati Specialty Underwriters (Cincinnati) that named GM&P as an additional insured and would cover GM&P for damages caused, in whole or in part, by the work of KNS.
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