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Insurance and Indemnity

California Supreme Court holds that a subcontractor's duty to defend under an indemnity clause exists even though the subcontractor is not at fault for issue in which the duty to defend arose. 

In the case entitled Crawford v. Weather Shield (2008) 08 CDOS 9261, the California Supreme Court stated: "We consider whether, by their particular terms, the provisions of a pre-2006 residential construction subcontract obliged the subcontractor to defend its indemnitee-the developer-builder of the project-in lawsuits brought against both parties, insofar as the plaintiffs' complaints alleged construction defects arising from the subcontractor's negligence, even though (1) a jury ultimately found that the subcontractor was not negligent, and (2) the parties have accepted an interpretation of the subcontract that gave the builder no right of indemnity unless the subcontractor was negligent. We conclude that the answer is yes."  As a result of the decision, subcontractors should review indemnity clauses and attempt to delete or modify any automatic duty to defend.