Bad Faith Claim Brought Under Florida Law Foreclosed By The Insurance Policy's Choice Of Law Provision

• Published date: 08 June 2022
• Law Firm: Butler Weihmuller Katz Craig LLP
• Author: Mr William B. Collum and Kristina Harris

When contained in an insurance policy, a choice of law provision generally provides that the law of a certain state will apply to the policy and the determination of rights and responsibilities under the policy. Sometimes, a policy can also contain a mandatory arbitration provision, requiring all disputes arising pursuant to the policy be submitted to a binding arbitration.

If the choice of law provision of a policy provides that a state's law other than the law of Florida applies, and an arbitration panel decided Florida bad faith law therefore did not apply, a recent Florida federal court decision holds that the arbitration panel's decision should be enforced, precluding the claimant's bad faith suit under Florida law.

In Gomez v. Allied Professionals Insurance Company, 457 F. Supp....