Farmers Automobile Insurance v. Wroblewski

887 N.E.2d 916, 382 Ill. App. 3d 688, 320 Ill. Dec. 772, 2008 Ill. App. LEXIS 401
CourtAppellate Court of Illinois
DecidedMay 2, 2008
Docket1-06-3604
StatusPublished
Cited by16 cases

This text of 887 N.E.2d 916 (Farmers Automobile Insurance v. Wroblewski) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Appellate Court of Illinois primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Farmers Automobile Insurance v. Wroblewski, 887 N.E.2d 916, 382 Ill. App. 3d 688, 320 Ill. Dec. 772, 2008 Ill. App. LEXIS 401 (Ill. Ct. App. 2008).

Opinion

JUSTICE O’MALLEY

delivered the opinion of the court:

Plaintiff Farmers Automobile Insurance Association (Farmers) filed a declaratory judgment action against its insureds Stephen and Gloria Wroblewski (Wroblewski), 1 seeking a judgment that Farmers was not obligated to provide uninsured motorist coverage to Wroblewski in connection with a traffic accident involving Wroblewski and Sharon Drolet, who was an uninsured motorist. On appeal, Farmers challenges (1) the circuit court’s finding that Wroblewski’s settlement with Drolet’s employer, which expressly released from liability the employer’s “agents” and “employees,” did not release Wroblewski’s claims against Drolet; (2) and the court’s finding that Wroblewski’s settlement with Drolet’s employer for $1.25 million should be offset against Wroblewski’s total damages ($1.85 million). For the reasons that follow, we reverse the judgment of the circuit court and remand for entry of judgment in favor of Farmers.

BACKGROUND

A. Wroblewski’s Personal Injury Action (Case No. 98 L 3863)

Initially, in order to clarify the parties’ respective arguments on appeal, we briefly recount certain uncontested facts contained in the parties’ respective pleadings regarding a separate action initiated by Wroblewski in connection with a 1997 automobile accident.

On August 26, 1997, Wroblewski sustained serious physical injuries after the vehicle that she was driving was involved in a collision with a vehicle driven by Sherri Drolet, who died from injuries that she sustained in that collision. Thereafter, Wroblewski filed a personal injury action (No. 98 L 3863) against decedent Drolet’s estate and Drolet’s employer, namely, Walgreen Company (hereinafter Walgreens 2 ) under the theory of respondeat superior.

Ultimately, Wroblewski settled her claims against Walgreens for $1.25 million and settled her claims against Drolet’s estate for $10,000.

In regard to the Walgreens settlement, Wroblewski executed a release of liability against Walgreens in exchange for a payment of $1.25 million. That release, in relevant part, released Walgreens and its “agents” and “employees” from any and all liability arising out of the accident between Wroblewski and Drolet.

In regard to the settlement with Drolet’s estate, Wroblewski executed a release of claims against Drolet’s estate and Drolet’s insurer, namely, Gallant Insurance Company, in exchange for a payment of $10,000.

In March 2002, as a result of the settlements, the circuit court dismissed Wroblewski’s action against both Walgreens and Drolet’s estate. According to the parties, Walgreens paid Wroblewski $1.25 million pursuant to the terms of the settlement with Wroblewski.

However, as represented by the parties, Gallant Insurance Company (Drolet’s insurer) became insolvent at some point subsequent to the settlement and did not pay Wroblewski $10,000 on behalf of Drolet. Following this failure to pay, Wroblewski filed a claim with Farmers seeking uninsured motorist coverage.

B. Farmers Files Declaratory Judgment Action (Case No. 02 CH 14288)

In August 2002, Farmers filed a complaint seeking a declaratory judgment that Wroblewski was not entitled to uninsured motorist coverage, which is the action that forms the subject of this appeal. Farmers attached to its complaint a copy of Wroblewski’s insurance policy, which provided uninsured motorist coverage up to $100,000 and defined an uninsured motorist as a motorist whose insurer “is or becomes insolvent.”

In pertinent part, Farmers argued in its complaint that the limit of liability clause in Wroblewski’s policy entitled Farmers to offset the policy’s limit ($100,000) for uninsured motorist coverage against the proceeds Wroblewski had previously obtained from her Walgreens settlement ($1.25 million). Farmers also noted that Wroblewski had signed a release in connection with the Walgreens settlement, which released Walgreens and “all other persons, firms, and corporations” from any claims arising from the vehicle collision with Drolet.

In October 2002, Wroblewski answered Farmers’ complaint for declaratory judgment, arguing that Farmers had wrongfully denied her claim for uninsured motorist coverage. In regard to the release in the Walgreens settlement, Wroblewski admitted that she had executed a release in favor of Walgreens, but denied that Farmers had accurately detailed the terms and conditions of that release.

In December 2002, Farmers filed a motion for judgment on the pleadings, which the circuit court converted to a motion for summary judgment.

In April 2003, the circuit court denied Farmers’ motion for summary judgment without prejudice.

In July 2003, Wroblewski filed a motion to dismiss Farmers’ action based on lack of ripeness or, alternatively, for an order compelling arbitration. In relevant part, Wroblewski noted that her actual damages had never been adjudicated through trial or arbitration because her action against decedent Drolet’s estate remained pending. 3 In regard to the Walgreens settlement and release, Wroblewski argued that it was “nonsensical” to hold that the Walgreens settlement extinguished any liability for uninsured motorist coverage with respect to Drolet’s estate because the action against Drolet’s estate remained pending and Illinois law did not hold that a settlement with an employer extinguishes the employee’s liability.

In August 2003, Farmers filed a combined response to Wroblewski’s motion to dismiss and a renewed motion for summary judgment. In its motion to dismiss, Farmers again noted that Wroblewski had signed a release in the Walgreens settlement that had released Walgreens and its “agents” and “employees.” Further, in relevant part, Farmers argued that Wroblewski was not entitled to uninsured motorist coverage because Wroblewski had already received $1.25 million from Walgreens “on behalf of Drolet.” According to Farmers, a calculation of Wroblewski’s total damages was unnecessary because Farmers was entitled to setoff the $100,000 limit for uninsured motorist coverage against the $1.25 million Wroblewski received from the Walgreens settlement.

In October 2003, the circuit court (1) denied without prejudice Wroblewski’s motion for dismissal or order compelling arbitration without prejudice and (2) denied without prejudice Farmers’ motion for summary judgment.

In December 2003, Wroblewski filed a renewed motion to dismiss for lack of ripeness. In that pleading, Wroblewski explained that the trial court had previously denied her first motion to dismiss because it was “unclear” as to whether the release in the Walgreens settlement also released Drolet’s estate from liability.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
887 N.E.2d 916, 382 Ill. App. 3d 688, 320 Ill. Dec. 772, 2008 Ill. App. LEXIS 401, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/farmers-automobile-insurance-v-wroblewski-illappct-2008.