Bovis Lend Lease LMB, Inc. v Travelers Prop. Cas. Co. of Am.

Bovis Lend Lease LMB, Inc. v Travelers Prop. Cas. Co. of Am. 2010 NY Slip Op 07802 [78 AD3d 405] November 4, 2010 Appellate Division, First Department Published by New York State Law Reporting Bureau pursuant to Judiciary Law § 431. As corrected through Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Bovis Lend Lease LMB, Inc., et al., Appellants,
v
Travelers Property Casualty Company of America, Respondent.

—[*1] Newman Myers Kreines Gross Harris, P.C., New York (Olivia M. Gross and Howard Altman of counsel), for appellants.

Lazare Potter & Giacovas LLP, New York (Jeremy M. Sokop of counsel), for respondent.

Order, Supreme Court, New York County (Paul G. Feinman, J.), entered August 20, 2009, which, to the extent appealed from as limited by the briefs, granted defendant's cross motion for summary judgment declaring no duty to defend or indemnify plaintiff Bovis in an underlying personal injury action, unanimously affirmed, with costs.

As a purported additional insured under a commercial liability policy, Bovis was required to give defendant notice of the underlying claim as soon as practicable. Absent a valid excuse, the failure to satisfy this notice requirement, which is a condition precedent to coverage, vitiates the policy (Security Mut. Ins. Co. of N.Y. v Acker-Fitzsimons Corp., 31 NY2d 436, 440 [1972]). Here, defendant properly denied coverage inasmuch as plaintiff's May 2006 notice was not given to defendant until nine months after the claim accrued. Concur—Mazzarelli, J.P., Friedman, Catterson, DeGrasse and Manzanet-Daniels, JJ.