Colony Insurance Co. v. Georgia-Pacific, LLC

27 So. 3d 1210, 2009 Ala. LEXIS 172, 2009 WL 2343673
CourtSupreme Court of Alabama
DecidedJuly 31, 2009
Docket1071593 and 1071604
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 27 So. 3d 1210 (Colony Insurance Co. v. Georgia-Pacific, LLC) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Alabama primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Colony Insurance Co. v. Georgia-Pacific, LLC, 27 So. 3d 1210, 2009 Ala. LEXIS 172, 2009 WL 2343673 (Ala. 2009).

Opinions

BOLIN, Justice.

Colony Insurance Company (“Colony”) appeals from a summary judgment in favor of Lumbermens Mutual Casualty Company (“Lumbermens”) and Georgia-Pacific, LLC (“Georgia-Pacific”), in an action filed by Colony, seeking a judgment declaring that Lumbermens was required to defend and indemnify Georgia-Pacific in an underlying lawsuit arising out of the death of Rufus Scott White, an employee of Industrial Maintenance and Mechanical, Inc. (hereinafter referred to as “IMMI”), who was killed while working on the roof at Georgia-Pacific’s facility in Cedar Springs, Georgia. Georgia-Pacific also appeals from a summary judgment in favor of Colony on the counterclaim, alleging that Colony had breached its enhanced obligation of good faith in defending Georgia-Pacific under a reservation of rights. The appeals have been consolidated for the purpose of issuing one opinion. We affirm.

I. Undisputed Facts and Procedural History

Colony issued IMMI a commercial general liability policy of insurance, no. GL113031, that provided annual coverage from September 10, 2001, to September 10, 2002. An endorsement to this policy added as additional insureds “all persons or organizations as required by written contract with the named insured.”

On March 28, 2002, IMMI executed a written contract with Georgia-Pacific, whereby IMMI agreed to perform work on the roof of Georgia-Pacific’s facility in Cedar Springs, Georgia. After entering into this contract, IMMI added Georgia-Pacific as an additional insured under the Colony policy. Georgia-Pacific was also listed as an “insured” under a commercial general liability policy of insurance it had with Lumbermens, policy no. 5AA045534-00, that provided annual coverage from May 15, 2001, to May 15, 2002.

On April 18, 2002, while both policies were in effect, White, an employee of IMMI, was killed when he fell through the roof of the Georgia-Pacific facility. On July 11, 2002, White’s estate sued Georgia-Pacific, IMMI, and fictitiously named parties, alleging negligence, wantonness, and willfulness (hereinafter referred to as “the underlying case”). IMMI was subsequently dismissed from the underlying case after a determination that White was an employee of IMMI’s for workers’ compensation purposes.

Pursuant to the “additional insured” endorsement in IMMI’s policy, Colony defended the underlying case under a reservation of rights. Colony thereafter filed a declaratory-judgment action, naming Georgia-Pacific and Lumbermens as defendants and seeking a determination that the coverage provided under both the Colony policy and the Lumbermens policy was excess coverage and that Lumbermens was required to defend and indemnify Georgia-Pacific in proportion with each insurer’s share of the total limits of applicable coverage.

On September 21, 2007, Georgia-Pacific filed a counterclaim alleging that Colony had breached its enhanced obligation of good faith in defending Georgia-Pacific under a reservation of rights.

[1213]*1213On January 8, 2008, Georgia-Pacific and Lumbermens filed a motion for a summary judgment, contending that the Lumber-mens policy was not a policy of insurance1 and that the coverage provided by the Colony policy was the primary coverage. On February 19, 2008, Colony settled the underlying ease. On April 1, 2008, Colony filed a motion for a summary judgment, seeking a judgment on its complaint for a declaratory judgment and on Georgia-Pacific counterclaim alleging a breach of the enhanced obligation of good faith. The trial court entered a summary judgment in favor of Lumbermens and Georgia-Pacific on Colony’s declaratory-judgment complaint, from which Colony appeals; the trial court entered a summary judgment in favor of Colony on Georgia Pacific’s counterclaim, which alleged a breach of the enhanced obligation of good faith, from which Georgia-Pacific appeals.

II. Standard of Review

“In reviewing a summary judgment, we use the same standard the trial court used in determining whether the evidence before it presented a genuine issue of material fact and whether the movant was entitled to a judgment as a matter of law. Bussey v. John Deere Co., 531 So.2d 860, 862 (Ala.1988); Rule 56(e), Ala. R. Civ. P. When the movant makes a prima facie showing that no genuine issue of material fact exists, the burden then shifts to the nonmovant to present substantial evidence creating such an issue. Bass v. SouthTrust Bank of Baldwin County, 538 So.2d 794 (Ala.1989). Evidence is ‘substantial’ if it is of ‘such weight and quality that fair-minded persons in the exercise of impartial judgment can rea-

sonably infer the existence of the fact sought to be proved.’ West v. Founders Life Assurance Co. of Florida, 547 So.2d 870, 871 (Ala.1989). In reviewing a summary judgment, this Court must review the record in a light most favorable to the nonmovant and must resolve all reasonable doubts against the movant. Hanners v. Balfour Guthrie, Inc., 564 So.2d 412 (Ala.1990). Furthermore, ‘[i]f the terms within a contract are plain and unambiguous, the construction of the contract and its legal effect become questions of law for the court and, when appropriate, may be decided by summary judgment.’ McDonald v. U.S. Die Casting & Dev. Co., 585 So.2d 853, 855 (Ala.1991).”

Taylor v. Striplin, 974 So.2d 298, 301 (Ala. 2007).

III. Primary or Excess Insurance

In the instant case, both the Colony policy and the Lumbermens policy contain “other insurance” clauses specifying when their respective coverage is primary coverage as opposed to excess coverage. On appeal, Colony does not dispute Georgia-Pacific and Lumbermens’ assertion that coverage under the Lumbermens policy is excess coverage. Instead, Colony argues that because both policies contain excess-insurance clauses, liability for defending the underlying case should be prorated between the two insurers in proportion to each company’s share of the total limits of applicable coverage, citing State Farm, Mutual Automobile Insurance Co. v. General Mutual Insurance Co., 282 Ala. 212, 210 So.2d 688 (1968) (where two insurance policies covering the same risk contain excess-insurance clauses, the clauses are mutually repugnant and the loss should be [1214]*1214apportioned between the two insurers on a pro rata basis).

The “other insurance” clause of the Colony policy provides:

“4. Other Insurance.
“If other valid and collectible insurance is available to the insured for a loss we cover under Coverages A or B of this Coverage Part, our obligations are limited as follows:
“a. Primary Insurance
“[Colony] insurance is primary except when b. below applies. If this insurance is primary, our obligations are not affected unless any of the other insurance is also primary. Then, we will share with all that other insurance by the method described in c. below.
“b. Excess Insurance
“This insurance is excess over any of the other insurance, whether primary, excess, contingent or on any other basis:
“(1) That is Fire, Extended Coverage, Builder’s Risk, Installation Risk or similar coverage for ‘your work’;

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Colony Insurance Co. v. Georgia-Pacific, LLC
27 So. 3d 1210 (Supreme Court of Alabama, 2009)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
27 So. 3d 1210, 2009 Ala. LEXIS 172, 2009 WL 2343673, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/colony-insurance-co-v-georgia-pacific-llc-ala-2009.