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Actions by Insureds Against Brokers: 'Special Relationships'

By Lisa Bentley
May 01, 2016

Two years ago, the New York Court of Appeals issued its seminal decision in Voss v. The Netherlands Insurance Company, 22 N.Y.3d 728 (N.Y. 2014), which put some teeth into the concept of a “special relationship” between an insurance broker and an insured. (While it has at times been said that a “broker” represents an insured and an “agent” represents an insurer, this article uses the terms “broker” and “agent” interchangeably.) The Voss court held that a broker could be subject to liability for negligence or other tort claims where such liability would be unattainable in the typical broker-insured relationship.

Since the Voss decision, courts in New York have considered the “special relationship” concept enunciated in Voss a number of times. This article examines the state of the law on the “special relationship” between brokers and their clients following the two-year anniversary of Voss .

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