Life as a sole practitioner can be lonely and unsettling, even without being sued for malpractice, and it gets worse when the malpractice insurer refuses to defend.

That’s what Trumbull, Conn., solo Maurizio D. Lancia was facing until Bridgeport Superior Court Judge Arthur A. Hiller ruled last month that Minnesota Lawyers Mutual Insurance Co. had to step up and defend him from professional negligence claims.