Auto Club Group Insurance v. Andrzejewski

808 N.W.2d 537, 292 Mich. App. 565
CourtMichigan Court of Appeals
DecidedMay 17, 2011
DocketDocket No. 297551
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 808 N.W.2d 537 (Auto Club Group Insurance v. Andrzejewski) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Michigan Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Auto Club Group Insurance v. Andrzejewski, 808 N.W.2d 537, 292 Mich. App. 565 (Mich. Ct. App. 2011).

Opinion

PER CURIAM.

In this case involving personal injury insurance coverage, defendants Nicolas Andrzejewski and his parents, Darrell L. Andrzejewski and Kristen Andrzejewski, appeal as of right the trial court’s grant of summary disposition under MCR 2.116(C)(10) in favor of plaintiff, Auto Club Group Insurance Association. We affirm.

[567]*567Nicolas Andrzejewski was 13 years old at the time of the incident in which defendant Matthew Volk, also 13 years old, was injured. The injury occurred on March 28, 2008, during the course of a basketball game on “Teen Night” at the Grandville YMCA.

Nick and Matt were on opposing teams in a half-court game where the number of players on each team varied from four to seven per team and there was no restriction on substitutions. Matt and Nick guarded each other throughout the game. Matt claimed that Nick was “playing dirty” and that Nick had grabbed his shirt eight or ten times during the game. Matt also said that Nick grabbed his arm four or five times to take the ball away, elbowed him four or five times, threw the basketball hard at his chest twice, and unsuccessfully tried to trip him three to five times. Matt did not recall how he was injured. Nick claims that Matt pushed him in the back as he bent over to pick up a ball. Nick testified that he “got mad” and put Matt in a headlock. As Matt struggled to get out, he fell forward and hit his head on the ground. Matt’s friends stated that Nick threw a punch at Matt. Matt’s friends also stated that Nick then put Matt in a headlock, picked Matt up, and threw Matt onto the gym floor. After Matt’s head hit the floor, he began to have a seizure.

Matt was taken by ambulance to the emergency room. He suffered an acute head injury with associated seizures, two hematomas on his head, soft-tissue injuries, a bruised or fractured iliac crest of his hip bone, photophobia, and postconcussion syndrome.

As a result of this incident, the prosecutor filed a delinquency petition requesting the Kent Circuit Court, Family Division, to take temporary custody of Nick, as a juvenile who violated Michigan’s aggravated-assault statute, MCL 750.81a(l). Jurisdiction was subsequently [568]*568transferred to Ottawa County, where Nick and his family lived at the time. A plea of nolo contendere was entered for Nick and the referee entered a juvenile adjudication and disposition, ordering that Nick be made a temporary ward of the court, be placed in the Ottawa County Juvenile Detention Center for 10 to 14 days, and serve 56 hours of community service.

In 2009, Matt, by his next friend, Lori Volk, his mother, filed suit against Nick and his parents (hereafter defendants).1 The complaint alleged that Nick was overly aggressive and acted intentionally, recklessly, carelessly, negligently, unlawfully, and maliciously toward Matt. Defendants were insured under a homeowner’s insurance policy issued by plaintiff, which included liability insurance coverage.

Plaintiff is currently defending the underlying tort action brought by Matt and his mother against defendants under a reservation of rights set forth in a letter dated August 24, 2009. Plaintiffs reservation-of-rights letter set forth three separate grounds for denying coverage for the claims asserted against defendants: (1) there was no “occurrence” as defined in the policy; (2) the “intentional acts” exclusion set forth in ¶ 5 of the exclusions under part II, liability coverage was applicable; and (3) the “criminal acts” exclusion set forth in ¶ 10 of the exclusions under part II, liability coverage was applicable.

Plaintiff brought the present action seeking a declaratory judgment regarding its obligations under the policy and filed a motion for summary disposition. The circuit court granted the motion, finding that Nick’s [569]*569actions were criminal in nature and intentional, as those terms were used within the insurance policy. The circuit court subsequently entered a declaratory judgment. Defendants now appeal, arguing that the trial court erred and that Nick’s actions were not criminal in nature or intentional. We disagree.

A trial court’s decision on a motion for summary disposition is reviewed de novo on appeal. Latham v Barton Malow Co, 480 Mich 105, 111; 746 NW2d 868 (2008). This Court reviews the motion by considering the pleadings, admissions, and other evidence submitted by the parties in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party. Id. Summary disposition is properly granted only if there is “no genuine issue regarding any material fact and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.” Id. A genuine issue regarding a material fact exists “when reasonable minds could differ on an issue after viewing the record in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party.” Allison v AEW Capital Mgt, LLP, 481 Mich 419, 425; 751 NW2d 8 (2008).

The guidelines for enforcing exclusionary clauses are summarized in Century Surety Co v Charron, 230 Mich App 79, 83; 583 NW2d 486 (1998):

Exclusionary clauses in insurance policies are strictly construed in favor of the insured. Coverage under a policy is lost if any exclusion in the policy applies to an insured’s particular claims. Clear and specific exclusions must be given effect because an insurance company cannot be liable for a risk it did not assume.

When reviewing an exclusionary clause, this Court must read the contract as a whole to effectuate the overall intent of the parties. Pacific Employers Ins Co v Mich Mut Ins Co, 452 Mich 218, 224; 549 NW2d 872 (1996). Where the language is clear and unambiguous, [570]*570the insurance policy must be enforced as written. Century Surety Co, 230 Mich App at 82-83.

The policy states (bold in original):

We will pay damages for which an insured person is legally liable because of bodily injury.. . caused by an occurrence covered by this Policy.
We will defend any suit with lawyers of our choice or settle any claim for these damages as we think appropriate. We will not defend or settle: any suit unless it arises from an occurrence covered by this Policy ....

“Occurrence” is defined in the Auto Club policy as follows:

1. Occurrence means an accident, including injurious exposure to conditions, which results, during the policy term, in bodily injury or property damage.
2. Accident means a fortuitous event or chance happening that is neither reasonably anticipated nor reasonably foreseen from the standpoint of both any insured person and any person suffering injury or damages as a result.

The pertinent exclusions provided as follows:

BODILY INJURY AND PROPERTY DAMAGE NOT COVERED
Under Part II, we will not cover:
5. bodily injury or property damage resulting from an act or omission by an insured person which is intended or could reasonably be expected to cause bodily injury or property damage. This exclusion applies even if the bodily injury or property damage is different from, or greater than, that which is expected or intended.
[571]*57110. bodily injury or property damage resulting from:
a.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
808 N.W.2d 537, 292 Mich. App. 565, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/auto-club-group-insurance-v-andrzejewski-michctapp-2011.