Lucy and the Tsar
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Lucy served as second officer on a 747 operated by Trans-Oceanic Airlines. Twice a week she flew from Dallas to Leningrad; with brief layovers in New York and Brussels. She had been a second officer for five years. Lucy was looking forward to promotion to first officer. She would be the second woman to command a 747 for Trans-Oceanic.
Her performance reviews were always exceptional. Never had Trans-Oceanic Airlines treated her differently than any other pilot. The glass ceiling seemed nonexistent.
Lucy, as a highly paid professional airline pilot, owned a beautiful 5000 square foot home in Dallas where she lived with her son, daughter and a full- time housekeeper/nanny. She was happy. Her future was unlimited. At forty years of age she was approaching the apex of her professional career.
Her layover in Leningrad was usually two days. Lucy would recover from the inevitable jet lag by visiting the great museums of the time of the Tsars. Her favorite was the Hermitage, which was once the Tsar’s summer palace.
To the museum she always brought along her Nikon single lens reflex camera that recorded each picture with very high resolution. She used the Nikon to photograph the magnificent treasures stolen by the Bolsheviks from the Tsar. The fast lens and digital enhancement allowed her to obtain images without using a flash. Lucy would spend evenings in her hotel sorting her photographs into categories on her lap top.
She had collections of close-up shots of Faberge royal Easter eggs; of oil paintings by Gaugin, Degas, Van Gogh and Picasso; and photos of fine works of art made by native Russian craftsmen unknown in the West.
Lucy converted the settlement check to US currency Travelers Checks. She placed the Travelers Checks in her overnight bag on the airplane. When she landed, as part of a well-known airline crew, her luggage was not inspected by the local customs officials. The Travelers Checks, better than cash, entered the new Russia without hindrance. Lucy immediately went to the dealer appointed by the Hermitage and purchased the Fabergé bird she lusted for paying only 200,000 US Dollars in Travelers checks.
With the remaining $50,00 she purchased two Fabergé silver cigarette cases and a small Picasso drawing in pencil signed and dated by the artist. The bird is displayed prominently over Lucy’s mantelpiece and she used the Fabergé cigarette case to hold note papers and a fountain pen.
Lucy was lucky. If anyone at Edward Lloyd’s Insurance Company had gone to the Dallas public library, they could have found similar photographs of the same items in any one of several books on the Hermitage collection housed at the library. They did not.
Lucy was promoted to Captain. She now commands a Trans-Oceanic 747 that flies three times a week nonstop from Dallas to London’s Heathrow airport.
She is starting a collection of photographs from the Queen’s Museum at Buckingham Palace.
ZALMA OPINION
It is time for the insurance industry to invest in a team of insurance claims professionals who know how to investigate a claim, interpret an insurance policy, and deal with a false and fraudulent claim to keep people like Lucy for enjoying a life of successful crime.
(c) 2022 Barry Zalma & ClaimSchool, Inc.
Barry Zalma, Esq., CFE, now limits his practice to service as an insurance consultant specializing in insurance coverage, insurance claims handling, insurance bad faith and insurance fraud almost equally for insurers and policyholders. He practiced law in California for more than 44 years as an insurance coverage and claims handling lawyer and more than 54 years in the insurance business. He is available at http://www.zalma.com and [email protected].
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Convicted Criminal Seeks to Compel Receiver to Protect his Assets
Post number 5291
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The Work of a Court Appointed Receiver is Constitutionally Protected
In Simon Semaan et al. v. Robert P. Mosier et al., G064385, California Court of Appeals, Fourth District, Third Division (February 6, 2026) the Court of Appeals applied the California anti-SLAPP statute which protects defendants from meritless lawsuits arising from constitutionally protected activities, including those performed in official capacities. The court also considered the doctrine of quasi-judicial immunity, which shields court-appointed receivers from liability for discretionary acts performed within their official duties.
Facts
In September 2021, the State of California filed felony charges against Simon Semaan, alleging violations of Insurance Code section 11760(a) for making...
When There are Two Different Other Insurance Clauses They Eliminate Each Other and Both Insurers Owe Indemnity Equally
Post number 5289
In Great West Casualty Co. v. Nationwide Agribusiness Insurance Co., and Conserv FS, Inc., and Timothy A. Brennan, as Administrator of the Estate of Pat- rick J. Brennan, deceased, Nos. 24-1258, 24-1259, United States Court of Appeals, Seventh Circuit (February 11, 2026) the USCA was required to resolve a dispute that arose when a tractor-trailer operated by Robert D. Fisher (agent of Deerpass Farms Trucking, LLC-II) was involved in a side-impact collision with an SUV driven by Patrick J. Brennan, resulting in Brennan’s death.
Facts
Deerpass Trucking, an interstate motor carrier, leased the tractor from Deerpass Farms Services, LLC, and hauled cargo for Conserv FS, Inc. under a trailer interchange agreement. The tractor was insured by Great West Casualty Company with a $1 million policy limit, while the trailer was insured by Nationwide Agribusiness Insurance Company with a $2 million ...
Opiod Producer Seeks Indemnity from CGL Insurers
Post number 5288
Read the full article at https://lnkd.in/guNhStN2, see the full video at https://lnkd.in/gYqkk-n3 and at https://lnkd.in/g8U3ehuc, and at https://zalma.com/blog plus more than 5250 posts.
Insurers Exclude Damages Due to Insured’s Products
In Matthew Dundon, As The Trustee Of The Endo General Unsecured Creditors’ Trust v. ACE Property And Casualty Insurance Company, et al., Civil Action No. 24-4221, United States District Court, E.D. Pennsylvania (February 10, 2026) Matthew Dundon, trustee of the Endo General Unsecured Creditors’ Trust, sued multiple commercial general liability (CGL) insurers for coverage of opioid-related litigation involving Endo International PLC a pharmaceutical manufacturer.
KEY FACTS
Beginning as early as 2014, thousands of opioid suits were filed by governments, third parties, and individuals alleging harms tied to opioid manufacturing and marketing.
Bankruptcy & Settlements
Endo filed Chapter 11 in August 2022; before bankruptcy it ...
Passover for Americans
Posted on February 19, 2026 by Barry Zalma
“The Passover Seder For Americans”
For more than 3,000 years Jewish fathers have told the story of the Exodus of the enslaved Jews from Egypt. Telling the story has been required of all Jewish fathers. Americans, who have lived in North America for more than 300 years have become Americans and many have lost the ability to read, write and understand the Hebrew language in which the story of Passover was first told in the Torah. Passover is one of the many holidays Jewish People celebrate to help them remember the importance of G_d in their lives. We see the animals, the oceans, the rivers, the mountains, the rain, sun, the planets, the stars, and the people and wonder how did all these wonderful things come into being. Jews believe the force we call G_d created the entire universe and everything in it. Jews feel G_d is all seeing and knowing and although we can’t see Him, He is everywhere and in everyone.We understand...
Passover for Americans
Posted on February 19, 2026 by Barry Zalma
Read the full article at https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/passover-americans-barry-zalma-esq-cfe-5vgkc.
“The Passover Seder For Americans”
For more than 3,000 years Jewish fathers have told the story of the Exodus of the enslaved Jews from Egypt. Telling the story has been required of all Jewish fathers. Americans, who have lived in North America for more than 300 years have become Americans and many have lostthe ability to read, write and understand the Hebrew language in which the story of Passover was first told in the Torah.
Passover is one of the many holidays Jewish People celebrate to help them remember the importance of G_d in their lives. We see the animals, the oceans, the rivers, the mountains, the rain, sun, the planets, the stars, and the people and ...
You Get What You Pay For – Less Coverage Means Lower Premium
Post number 5275
Posted on January 30, 2026 by Barry Zalma
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When Experts for Both Sides Agree That Two Causes Concur to Cause a Wall to Collapse Exclusion Applies
In Lido Hospitality, Inc. v. AIX Specialty Insurance Company, No. 1-24-1465, 2026 IL App (1st) 241465-U, Court of Appeals of Illinois (January 27, 2026) resolved the effect of an anti-concurrent cause exclusion to a loss with more than one cause.
Facts and Background
Lido Hospitality, Inc. operates the Lido Motel in Franklin Park, Illinois. In November 2020, a windstorm caused one of the motel’s brick veneer walls to collapse. At the time, Lido was insured under a policy issued by AIX Specialty Insurance Company which provided coverage for windstorm damage. However, the policy contained an exclusion for any loss or damage directly or indirectly resulting from ...
