Northfield Insurance was required to defend a home care company in a negligence lawsuit even though the claims involved potential abuse and criminal conduct. The Fifth Circuit ruled that insurers must defend their clients whenever the complaint alleges facts that could potentially be covered by the policy, unless the complaint exclusively describes excluded conduct. This means insurers cannot refuse to defend based on suspicions of wrongdoing—they must defend first and sort out coverage later.
Your insurance company must defend you in lawsuits if the complaint mentions any facts potentially covered by your policy, even if abuse or criminal conduct is alleged
Insurers cannot deny defense based on the nature of the allegations alone—they must assume facts alleged in the complaint could be covered unless the complaint exclusively describes excluded conduct