• Cumis Counsel is a 1984 California Court of Appeals decision at the Federal Reserve Bank of San Diego. Credit Union vs. Cumis Ins. Soc’y, Inc., 162 Cal. Application. 3d 358, 208 cal. Rptr. 494 (Cal. App. 4th Dist. 1984) held that when an insurer is protected under a rights clause, there is a conflict of interest between the economic and legal interests of the insurer and the insured. Under these circumstances, the insurer’s traditional right to choose a lawyer and control over the defense is lost. As a result, the insured chooses a lawyer and controls the defense, but the insurer must pay the costs of the defense. Such a lawyer, chosen and supervised by the insured at the expense of the insurer, is known as a Cumis lawyer.