Amanda Flynn v. State Farm Mutual Auto. Ins. Co.

554 F. App'x 430
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
DecidedFebruary 10, 2014
Docket13-3424
StatusUnpublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 554 F. App'x 430 (Amanda Flynn v. State Farm Mutual Auto. Ins. Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Amanda Flynn v. State Farm Mutual Auto. Ins. Co., 554 F. App'x 430 (6th Cir. 2014).

Opinions

OPINION

McKEAGUE, Circuit Judge.

Amanda McGinnis Flynn sued her boyfriend (and now husband) Scott Flynn and Defendant State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company seeking to recover for Scott Flynn’s alleged negligence arising out of a January 20, 2010 automobile accident when Amanda’s car rear-ended a semi-tractor trailer. Amanda also asserted claims for declaratory judgment and bad faith against State Farm, alleging that Scott Flynn was entitled to coverage for the accident under policies issued by State Farm to Scott’s mother and father. The parties filed cross-motions for summary judgment on the issue of whether the State Farm policies provide coverage for the accident to Scott Flynn. The district court issued an order granting State Farm’s Motion for Summary Judgment and denying Amanda Flynn’s CrossMotion for Summary Judgment, finding that Scott Flynn was not entitled to coverage for the accident. For the reasons stated below, we AFFIRM.

I.

On January 20, 2010, Amanda Flynn (“Amanda”) was a passenger in her own automobile, which was being driven by her then-boyfriend (and now husband) Scott Flynn (“Scott”) to an apartment in Lebanon, Ohio that she and Scott shared with his mother, Sallie Flynn (“Sallie”). They were traveling southbound on 1-75 in Dayton, Ohio when Scott glanced down at his cell phone and failed to see that the traffic ahead had stopped. Scott was unable to stop Amanda’s car in time and the car collided with the rear of the semi-tractor [432]*432trailer. Scott and Amanda were injured as a result of the accident.

Amanda filed suit against Scott and State Farm on July 8, 2011 in the Hamilton Court of Common Pleas, alleging claims against Scott in negligence and negligence per se, as a result of the accident. Amanda also asserted claims for declaratory judgment and bad faith against State Farm, claiming that Scott was entitled to coverage for the accident under the State Farm policies issued to Scott’s mother, Sallie, and to Scott and his father, Stephen Flynn.

In November 2011, the parties reached a partial settlement with Amanda’s insurer, Nationwide Insurance, and Amanda dismissed her claims against Scott with prejudice. With the dismissal of Scott, the parties were diverse and State Farm removed the case to the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio on December 19, 2011 pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1332. The parties then consented to jurisdiction by the magistrate judge assigned to the case. The parties agreed that there was no genuine dispute as to any material facts and filed cross motions for summary judgment. On March 12, 2013, the magistrate judge granted State Farm’s Motion for Summary Judgment and denied Amanda’s Motion for Summary Judgment. The magistrate judge found that Amanda was not covered under either State Farm policy as her car was not a “non-owned car.”

II.

A. Standard of Review

We review de novo a district court’s grant of summary judgment. Williams v. Mehra, 186 F.3d 685, 689 (6th Cir.1999). Summary judgment is proper when “the movant shows that there is no genuine dispute as to any material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.” 1 Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(a). When reviewing a grant of summary judgment, we must view the evidence and draw all reasonable inferences in favor of the non-moving party. See Matsushita Elec. Indus. Co. v. Zenith Radio Corp., 475 U.S. 574, 587, 106 S.Ct. 1348, 89 L.Ed.2d 538 (1986). For cross-motions for summary judgment, the court must review each motion on its own merits and view all facts and inferences in the light most favorable to the non-moving party. Beck v. City of Cleveland, 390 F.3d 912, 917 (6th Cir.2004). This Court has recognized that the filing of cross-motions for summary judgment does not necessarily mean that the [433]*433award of summary judgment is appropriate. Id.

B. State Farm Policies at Issue

As the only issue for this Court to review is the interpretation of the two insurance policies at issue, we will begin by addressing the specific language of the State Farm policies2 at issue.

The State Farm insurance policy at issue is an automobile policy issued to Sallie Flynn (the “policy”). The policy provides $100,000 per person of bodily injury or property damage liability. The “Liability Coverage” section of the policy provides that State Farm will:

1. pay damages which an insured becomes legally liable to pay because of:
a. bodily injury to others, and
b. damage to or destruction of property including loss of its use, caused by accident resulting from the ownership, maintenance or use of your car....

R. 13-1, Sallie Flynn Policy at 12, PagelD # 112. The policy provides that the “liability coverage extends to the use, by an insured, of a newly acquired car, a temporary substitute car or a non-owned car.” Id. The policy defines a “non-owned car” as follows:

Non-Owned Car — means a car not owned by, registered to or leased to: any other person residing in the same household as you, your spouse or any relative;....

Id. at 8, PagelD # 108.

When a “non-owned car” is referenced in the policy, the policy specifically defines an “insured” to mean:

1. the first person named in the declarations;
2. his or her spouse;
3. their relatives;3 and
3. any person or organization which does not own or hire the car but is liable for its use by one of the above persons.

Id. at 12, PagelD # 112.

In order for this Court to determine whether Amanda’s car qualifies as a “non-owned” car, we must interpret whether Amanda was a “person residing in the same household ” as Scott and Sallie Flynn. R. 13-1, Sallie Flynn Policy at 8, PagelD # 108. If Amanda was “residing in the same household” as Scott and Sallie, then Amanda’s car will not be considered a “non-owned car” under either policy and State Farm will not be liable to indemnify Scott for damages owed to Amanda.

C. Interpretation of the State Farm Policy

1. Contract Interpretation Principles in Ohio

Under Ohio law, an insurance policy must be interpreted in accordance with the [434]*434rules of construction applicable to other contracts.4 Hybud, Equip. Corp. v. Sphere Drake Ins. Co., 64 Ohio St.3d 657, 597 N.E.2d 1096, 1102 (1992).

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Gibbons v. Shalodi
2021 Ohio 1910 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2021)
Martin v. Wandling
2016 Ohio 3032 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2016)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
554 F. App'x 430, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/amanda-flynn-v-state-farm-mutual-auto-ins-co-ca6-2014.