Bank of America, N.A. v. Terra Nova Insurance

212 F.R.D. 166, 2002 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 24181, 2002 WL 31842119
CourtDistrict Court, S.D. New York
DecidedDecember 19, 2002
DocketNo. 01 Civ. 646(LMM)(GWG)
StatusPublished
Cited by25 cases

This text of 212 F.R.D. 166 (Bank of America, N.A. v. Terra Nova Insurance) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, S.D. New York primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Bank of America, N.A. v. Terra Nova Insurance, 212 F.R.D. 166, 2002 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 24181, 2002 WL 31842119 (S.D.N.Y. 2002).

Opinion

OPINION AND ORDER

GORENSTEIN, United States Magistrate Judge.

Plaintiffs Bank of America, N.A. and Palladium Insurance Limited move to compel defendant Terra Nova Insurance Company to produce certain documents created by its agent — a company known simply as “Elli-ston.” This Court previously ruled that these documents constituted attorney work product. See Order, dated June 13, 2002 (Docket # 19). The plaintiffs now contend that the work product protection was waived because the substance of these documents and some of the documents themselves were disclosed to governmental law enforcement agencies. Plaintiffs seek production of the documents and leave to re-take the deposition of a witness from Elliston.

Terra Nova and Elliston oppose Bank of America’s motion. For the reasons stated below, the Court deems the work product protection to be waived and thus the motion to compel is granted.

I. BACKGROUND

A. The Alleged Fraud by Harold Mollin

The facts underlying this action and some related actions are reflected in prior opinions of the Court, familiarity with which is as[168]*168sumed. See Bank of America, N. A. v. Terra Nova Ins. Co. Ltd., 211 F.Supp.2d 493 (S.D.N.Y.2002); General Star Indem. Co. v. Platinum Indem. Ltd., 210 F.R.D. 80 (S.D.N.Y.2002). In brief, Palladium entered into a number of weather derivative contracts in 1999 whereby Palladium accepted weather-related risks throughout the United States. Bank of America extended letters of credit in connection with these contracts. Palladium entered into reinsurance contracts with Terra Nova, amongst others, to provide security in connection with the letters of credit extended by Bank of America. Under the reinsurance contracts, Terra Nova was required to indemnify Palladium and Bank of America for any payments made on the underlying weather derivative contracts.

Eventually payments were required to be made to third parties on the weather derivative contracts. The dispute in this case centers on the authority of an insurance agent, Harold Mollin of Customized Worldwide Weather, Inc. (“CWW”), to issue the reinsurance contracts. Terra Nova alleges that Mollin acted without authority — either actual or apparent — and the reinsurance contracts are therefore invalid. Bank of America and Palladium assert that Mollin at a minimum had apparent authority to bind Terra Nova and that it must therefore pay on the reinsurance contracts.

When Terra Nova first learned in March 2000 that Mollin had collected premiums and issued insurance without authority, its counsel retained Elliston, an insurance consulting company, to conduct an investigation of CWW with respect to eleven specific transactions that caused approximately five million dollars in losses to Terra Nova. During the course of its investigation, Elliston, including its president Michael Holland, interviewed Mollin a number of times and reviewed a large number of documents at CWW. During these meetings, Mollin confessed that he had entered into a number of the weather derivative policies in the name of Terra Nova without its knowledge. In fact, Mollin wrote an e-mail on April 7, 2000, suggesting that he was contemplating suicide as a result of what he did. Mollin has since fled the country.

The documents at issue in this motion are those that were prepared by Elliston during the course of its investigation.

B. The Meetings with Governmental Authorities

On April 17, 2000, Holland and other representatives of Terra Nova had a meeting first with officials of the New York State Insurance Department (“NYSID”) and, later in the day, with an Assistant United States Attorney in the Southern District of New York. The meetings were arranged by Terra Nova’s outside counsel, LeBoeuf, Lamb, Greene & MaeRae. At the meetings, Holland revealed the information he had discovered regarding Mollin and the Terra Nova policies. See Deposition of Michael P. Holland, dated July 12, 2002 (reproduced in Declaration of Loma M. McKenzie in Opposition to Bank of America’s Motion to Compel and for Sanctions, dated September 18, 2002, Ex. 3) (“Holland Dep.”), at 50-51. Documents gathered as a result of Elhston’s investigation were later produced, pursuant to a grand jury subpoena dated April 20, 2000, to the United States Postal Inspector, who had been “appointed” to investigate the matter by the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Id. at 49. It appears that some of these documents consisted of CWW documents gathered during the Elliston investigation (that is, not work product documents) and have already been produced to Bank of America as part of discovery in this matter. However, some work product created during the investigation was produced to the United States Postal Inspector and has been withheld. See Letter to the Court from John D. Gordan, III, dated November 13, 2002, at 1-3.

C. The PXRE Lawsuit

In one of many lawsuits that arose due to Mollin’s actions, Terra Nova was sued in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey by the PXRE Corporation. At the trial in May 2002, Terra Nova called Holland as a witness (over PXRE’s objection) to testify concerning Mollin’s admission that he had made unauthorized transactions. See Order, PXRE Corporation v. Terra Nova [169]*169Ins. Co. Ltd., No. 00-5314 (D.N.J. May 22, 2002).

D. Holland Deposition

On July 12, 2002, Bank of America took the deposition of Holland in this case. Prior to the deposition, Terra Nova produced to Bank of America a copy of Holland’s May 2002 testimony from the PXRE trial. At the same time, Terra Nova informed Bank of America that it would assert the work product doctrine to prevent Holland from testifying about any matters beyond those disclosed at the PXRE trial. Consistent with this position, Terra Nova’s counsel instructed Holland not to answer some questions during the deposition regarding what he told the NYSID and the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Holland was permitted to state, however, that he remembered that the facts he had gathered during his investigation had been presented during the meetings — though he was not permitted to state what facts he had gathered up to that point. Holland testified that he told the government officials that Mollin had acted without authority, although he did not remember the details of what he disclosed regarding Mollin’s actions. Holland was allowed to testify to some of the details of his investigation. Terra Nova’s counsel objected, however, to any answer that went beyond the substance of Holland’s testimony during the PXRE trial — that is, Holland’s recollection of Mollin’s own statements that he had acted without authority. See Holland Dep. at 50-51; 56-58; 60-61.

II. THE MOTION TO COMPEL

Bank of America contends that because Terra Nova permitted Holland to discuss his investigation with the governmental authorities in April 2000 and provided documents from the investigation to them, Terra Nova has waived the work product protection that otherwise covered the Elliston investigation. Bank of America seeks to question Holland about everything he told the governmental authorities and also to obtain the documents upon which his investigation was based.

A. Law Governing Work Product Protection and Waiver

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Bluebook (online)
212 F.R.D. 166, 2002 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 24181, 2002 WL 31842119, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/bank-of-america-na-v-terra-nova-insurance-nysd-2002.