Asked in Contracts, Real Estate Law and Construction Law for Texas

Q: The defendant's commercial liability insurance if offering to pay for damages, but not legal expenses.

Last year in Texas I hired a contractor to work on our house as part of an insurance claim. He offered to reimburse me for what I paid the public adjuster when the insurance company slow-walked the process, after I had paid him the full amount for a completed job. I paid him the agreed price. He ended damaging my house and refused to respond to queries for compensation. Now his liability insurance has offered to cover only the damages, but not the promised reimbursement of the fee nor legal expenses I've accrued. My court petition includes demand for the compensation for damages, reimbursement for the public adjuster fee, and legal fees to date. If I accept the compensation for damages from his liability, can I still keep the current court case active and demand in court for compensation for the public adjuster fee and the legal fees? Or is the court case nixed? Thanks.

1 Lawyer Answer

A: It would be highly unusual for a commercial general liability policy to cover your legal fees and expenses. That doesn’t mean you can’t get a judgment against the contractor—only that the insurance company is not contractually obligated to pay such fees and expenses on the contractor’s behalf.

It is common that the settlement you describe will be conditioned upon you giving a complete release to your contractor.

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