Auto-owners Insurance v. Tomberlin, Young & Folmar Insurance

880 F. Supp. 2d 1236, 2012 WL 3023251, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 102374
Procedural entryThis page is a short order in Auto-owners Insurance v. Tomberlin, Young & Folmar Insurance. Read the opinion of the Court — 874 F. Supp. 2d 1310
District Court, M.D. Alabama·Decided July 24, 2012·No. Case No. 2:11-cv-468-WHA·Published

Opinion

MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER

W. HAROLD ALBRITTON, Senior District Judge.

I. INTRODUCTION

This cause is before the court on the Motion for Summary Judgment on all Claims and Counterclaims, filed by Defendants/Counter-claimants John S. Tomberlin; Tomberlin, Young & Folmar Insurance Co.; and Harold W. Young (Doc. # 112).

This case began with a Complaint filed in the Northern District of Florida by the United States of America against the Dick Corporation and others. United States, etc. v. Dick Corp., et al., 3:08cv56/MCR/MD. A Fourth-Party Complaint was filed by Auto-Owners Insurance Company (“Auto-Owners”) against Tomberlin, Young & Folmar Insurance Company d/b/a South Central Agency (“South Central”), John S. Tomberlin (“Tomberlin”), and Harold S. Young (“Young”) (collectively “the Tomberlin Defendants”). Auto-Owners and the Tomberlin Defendants jointly stipulated to a transfer of the action to the United States District Court for the Middle District of Alabama.

After the case was transferred to this court, Auto-Owners filed an Amended Complaint,1 with leave of court. Auto-Owners brings claims for breach of contract (Count I), breach of fiduciary duty during the application process (Count II), breach of fiduciary duty following the application process (Count III), indemnification (Count IV), negligent misrepresentation (Count V), and suppression of material facts (Count VI).

The Tomberlin Defendants brought a counterclaim against Auto-Owners.

The Tomberlin Defendants have moved for summary judgment as to all claims against them, and as to their counterclaim against Auto-Owners. The court held oral argument on the pending motion on May 17, 2012.

On June 14, 2012, 874 F.Supp.2d 1810, 2012 WL 2190784 (M.D.Ala.2012), the court issued a Memorandum Opinion and Order denying summary judgment to the Tomberlin Defendants only as to the voluntary payment rule and statute of limitations arguments raised in their motion and stating that the court would rule on the other grounds for summary judgment on a later date.

For reasons to be discussed, based upon the briefs in support of and in opposition to summary judgment, and oral argument, the Motion for Summary Judgment is due to be GRANTED in part and DENIED in part as to the remaining grounds for summary judgment.

II. SUMMARY JUDGMENT STANDARD

Summary judgment is proper “if there is no genuine issue as to any material fact [1239]*1239and ... the moving party is entitled to a judgment as a matter of law.” Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 322, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986).

The party asking for summary judgment “always bears the initial responsibility of informing the district court of the basis for its motion,” relying on submissions “which it believes demonstrate the absence of a genuine issue of material fact.” Id. at 323, 106 S.Ct. 2548. Once the moving party has met its burden, the nonmoving party must “go beyond the pleadings” and show that there is a genuine issue for trial. Id. at 324, 106 S.Ct. 2548.

Both the party “asserting that a fact cannot be,” and a party asserting that a fact is genuinely disputed, must support their assertions by “citing to particular parts of materials in the record,” or by “showing that the materials cited do not establish the absence or presence of a genuine dispute, or that an adverse party cannot produce admissible evidence to support the fact.” Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(c)(1)(A), (B). Acceptable materials under Rule 56(c)(1)(A) include “depositions, documents, electronically stored information, affidavits or declarations, stipulations (including those made for purposes of the motion only), admissions, interrogatory answers, or other materials.”

To avoid summary judgment, the non-moving party “must do more than show that there is some metaphysical doubt as to the material facts.” Matsushita Elec. Indus. Co. v. Zenith Radio Corp., 475 U.S. 574, 586, 106 S.Ct. 1348, 89 L.Ed.2d 538 (1986). On the other hand, the evidence of the nonmovant must be believed and all justifiable inferences must be drawn in its favor. See Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, 477 U.S. 242, 255, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986).

After the nonmoving party has responded to the motion for summary judgment, the court shall grant summary judgment if 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. Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(a).

III. FACTS

The facts, taken in a light most favorable to the nonmovant, are as follows:

Plaintiff Auto-Owners is an insurance company. Among other tasks, Auto-Owners issues performance and payment bonds related to construction projects. In September of 2005, Auto-Owners provided South Central Agency, an independent insurance and bonding agency in Andalusia, Alabama, a contract to solicit surety bonds on behalf of Auto-Owners. South Central Agency was owned and operated by Tomberlin and Young. The Tomberlin Defendants had previously entered into a contract with Auto-Owners to solicit policies of insurance.

The September 2005 agreement included a Letter of Instructions (“LOI”) which authorized the Tomberlin Defendants to solicit bonding business if, after a thorough investigation, they were satisfied that it was a proper risk for Auto-Owners to assume. The LOI limited the use of the Power of Attorney which was also issued, stating that the instructions contained the Tomberlin Defendants’s entire authority, and “you should not execute any bond not specifically covered herein unless you have express authorization.” (Doc. # 79-5). The LOI sets out limitations on bonds which may be issued by the Tomberlin Defendants, but for “Bid, Contract, and Supply Bonds,” the Tomberlin Defendants are given “No Authority,” and no bond can [1240]*1240be executed “without first obtaining the approval of the Home Office or Branch Office.” (Doc. # 79-5 at p. 3).

Michael Smith (“Smith”) approached the Tomberlin Defendants about a surety bond on a construction subcontract in Pensacola, Florida. Smith had started S & S Construction (“S & S”) in 2004. S & S signed on to perform four subcontracts at the Naval Air Station for a total of $9,402,964. The Dick Corporation was the general contractor on the project.

The Tomberlin Defendants had Smith complete an application for bonds, which they submitted to Auto-Owners. Auto-Owners rejected these bond requests by the Tomberlin Defendants on behalf of S & S. Auto-Owners’s bond underwriting manager, Jim House (“House”), stated that Auto-Owners might bond the program for a smaller amount than the total proposed job, and needed to review financial statements.

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Auto-owners Insurance v. Tomberlin, Young & Folmar Insurance, 880 F. Supp. 2d 1236, 2012 WL 3023251, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 102374 (M.D. Ala. 2012).

880 F. Supp. 2d 1236 (Auto-owners Insurance v. Tomberlin, Young & Folmar Insurance) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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874 F. Supp. 2d 1310 (M.D. Alabama, 2012)