The Appellate Division, Supreme Court of New York, affirmed the lower court’s grant of summary judgment determining that the insurer could not challenge the judgment in the underlying case after refusing to defend the insured. Shattuck v Dryden Mut. Ins. Co., 2026 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 3789 (N.Y. App. Div. June 5, 2026).

The underlying plaintiff was injured while performing construction work using tools and equipment of Cory Lisinski. Lisinski was insured by Dryden Mutual Insurance Company. Lisinski notified Dryden of the accident. Dryden disclaimed coverage based on lack of coverage for liability under the Workers’ Compensation law. The underlying plaintiff sued Lisinski and obtained a default judgment after a damages inquest in the amount of $2,841,782. Lisinski assigned to plaintiff any rights he had against Dryden arising from the personal injury action.