Personal Injury Lawyer | Bill Cosby

Personal injury lawyers for Bill Cosby have asked a federal judge to dismiss or put on hold a lawsuit from his insurer, which seeks to avoid paying for his defense against defamation claims by women who have accused him of sexual assault.

Cosby is arguing that he would be forced to fight a ‘four-front battle’ that would drain his resources if he has to face the American International Group Inc’s two lawsuits before his other two are resolved.

The comedian is defending against defamation lawsuits by Tamara Green, Therese Serignese, Linda Traitz in Massachusetts, and the model Janice Dickinson in California, spurred by both Cosby and his representatives’ denials of sexual misconduct claims.

Cosby claims in the suit that he purchased homeowners insurance coverage from AIG for many years to ‘protect himself against, among other things, lawsuits alleging that he defamed others’.

He notes that policies in his coverage obligate AIG to pay damages to Cosby for ‘personal injury’, which is defined to include ‘bodily injury, shock, emotional distress, mental injury, invasion of privacy, and defamation, libel, or slander’.

But in June AIG sued Cosby over policies issued to him in both Massachusetts and California and said they do not provide coverage for personal injury claims arising from ‘sexual, physical or mental abuse’.

In a Monday filing in the federal court in Springfield, Massachusetts, Cosby said he would face ‘substantial prejudice’ by being forced to defend simultaneously against AIG over the policies, and against the women over the defamation claims.

‘Forcing Mr. Cosby to fight a four-front battle would demonstrate AIG’s complete disregard for the best interests of Mr. Cosby and would indisputably manifest itself in AIG directly impairing Mr. Cosby’s ability to defend himself in the Underlying lawsuits,’ his personal injury lawyers wrote.

‘Not only does AIG’s action bolster the underlying plaintiffs, who will perceive Mr. Cosby as under attack even from his supposed backers, but it splits Mr. Cosby’s focus and drains his resources.’

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3236287/Bill-Cosby-asks-court-dismiss-insurer-s-lawsuit-drain-resources-fight-against-sexual-assault-accusers.html