Jefferson Block 24 Oil & Gas, L.L.C. v. Aspen Insurance UK Ltd.

652 F.3d 584, 181 Oil & Gas Rep. 999, 2011 U.S. App. LEXIS 18005, 2011 WL 3795594
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
DecidedAugust 29, 2011
Docket10-30190
StatusPublished
Cited by11 cases

This text of 652 F.3d 584 (Jefferson Block 24 Oil & Gas, L.L.C. v. Aspen Insurance UK Ltd.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Jefferson Block 24 Oil & Gas, L.L.C. v. Aspen Insurance UK Ltd., 652 F.3d 584, 181 Oil & Gas Rep. 999, 2011 U.S. App. LEXIS 18005, 2011 WL 3795594 (5th Cir. 2011).

Opinions

LYNN, District Judge:

In this insurance coverage dispute, Plaintiff-Appellant Jefferson Block 24 Oil & Gas, L.L.C. (Jefferson Block) appeals from the district court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of Defendants-Appellees, Aspen Insurance UK Limited, Ace European Group Limited, and Certain Underwriters at Lloyd’s, London (collectively Underwriters). For the following reasons, we REVERSE and REMAND.

I

At all times relevant to this appeal, Jefferson Block was the part-owner, and sole operator, of seven offshore oil and gas leases, an associated platform, wells, and pipelines located in the Gulf of Mexico. The leases were divided between two different lease blocks located in the High Island area. Two of the leases, M-103384 and M-103385, were located in the High Island 7 lease block, and the five others, M-103386, M-103387, M-103388, M-103389, and M-103390, were located in the High Island 24 lease block. Jefferson Block also operated a 16-inch right-of-way oil pipeline that connected an offshore production facility located on one of the leases in the High Island 24 lease block, M-103387, with a facility on shore. In reaching its destination, the pipeline crossed other lease blocks, including High Island 7, where Jefferson Block operated certain leases, and several others where it held no interests.

On November 5, 2007, there was a sudden decrease in pressure in the 16-inch pipeline while Jefferson Block was filling the pipeline with oil. An investigation revealed that a leak had developed in the line, resulting in the spill of oil into the Gulf of Mexico. Jefferson Block, acting under the direction of a “Unified Command” consisting of the United States [588]*588Coast Guard and other governmental agencies, conducted a cleanup of the spill, during which it incurred approximately $3 million in oil pollution “removal” costs.

At the time of the pipeline leak and the resulting cleanup, Jefferson Block owned a “London OPA Insurance Policy for Offshore Facilities” (the OPA Policy) underwritten by Underwriters. Underwriters’ potential exposure under the OPA Policy is limited, however, to only certain liabilities that Jefferson Block incurred “as the responsible party Designated Applicant of the offshore area(s) and facility(ies) set out in Item 10 of the Declarations.” An additional proviso in the OPA Policy provides that the policy only covers certain liabilities arising from a “discharge or substantial threat of discharge as to which a facility (or facilities) set out in Item 10 of the Declarations has been designated as the source.”

Item 10 of the Declarations consists of only a single sentence: “Item 10: Schedule of Offshore Area(s) and Facilities Thereon: (See attached form MMS-1021).” The MMS-1021 form itself, discussed in further detail below, is titled “Covered Offshore Facilities,” and lists “2 Locations of Covered Offshore Facilities.” Specifically, the form lists Lease Numbers M-103384 to M-103385 in the High Island 7 lease block on one line and Lease Numbers M-103386 through M-103390 in the High Island 24 lease block on a second line. The MMS-1021 form does not specifically reference the 16-inch pipeline.

Jefferson Block submitted a claim under the OPA Policy for indemnification of the removal costs it incurred in responding to the pipeline leak. Underwriters denied the claim, and Jefferson Block filed suit against Underwriters in the Eastern District of Louisiana. Specifically, Jefferson Block alleged that Underwriters wrongfully refused to indemnify it for oil pollution removal costs. The parties thereafter filed cross-motions for summary judgment, and the district court, after concluding that the OPA Policy did not cover the costs Jefferson Block sustained as a result of the leak in the 16-inch pipeline, granted Underwriters’ motion, denied Jefferson Block’s motion, and entered judgment in favor of Underwriters. This appeal followed.

II

We review the district court’s grant of summary judgment de novo, applying the same standards as the district court. DePree v. Saunders, 588 F.3d 282, 286 (5th Cir.2009). “The district court’s interpretation of an insurance contract is a question of law that we also review de novo.” Admiral Ins. Co. v. Ford, 607 F.3d 420, 422 (5th Cir.2010) (internal quotation marks and citation omitted). Summary judgment is appropriate when “the pleadings, the discovery and disclosure materials on file, and any affidavits show that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(c)(2). “A genuine issue of material fact exists if the evidence is such that a reasonable jury could return a verdict for the non-moving party.” Paz v. Brush Engineered Materials, Inc., 555 F.3d 383, 391 (5th Cir.2009) (internal quotation marks and citations omitted). “When assessing whether a dispute to any material fact exists, we consider all of the evidence in the record but refrain from making credibility determinations or weighing the evidence.” Delta & Pine Land Co. v. Nationwide Agribusiness Ins. Co., 530 F.3d 395, 398-99 (5th Cir.2008). “In reviewing the entire record, we consider all evidence in a light most favorable to the non-moving party and draw all reasonable inferences in favor of the non-moving party.” Frakes v. Crete Carrier Corp., 579 F.3d 426, 429-30 (5th Cir.2009) (internal quotation marks and citation omitted).

[589]*589III

This case presents an insurance coverage dispute governed by New York law.1 “It is well established under New York law that a policyholder bears the burden of showing that the insurance contract covers the loss.” Morgan Stanley Grp., Inc. v. New England Ins. Co., 225 F.3d 270, 276 (2d Cir.2000). A court interprets an insurance policy using the same general rules that govern the construction of any written contract. See Throgs Neck Bagels, Inc. v. GA Ins. Co. of N.Y., 241 A.D.2d 66, 671 N.Y.S.2d 66, 68 (1998). In a case like this one, the analysis proceeds in three steps.

First, the court considers the express language of the policy, construing that language “to effectuate the intent of the parties as derived from the plain meaning of the policy’s terms.” Andy Warhol Found. for the Visual Arts, Inc. v. Fed. Ins. Co., 189 F.3d 208, 215 (2d Cir.1999). When the contract language is unambiguous, the court will discern the parties’ intent from the document itself as a matter of law, and summary judgment is thus appropriate. See id. (“If the language of the insurance contract is unambiguous, we apply its terms.”); Sarinsky’s Garage, Inc. v. Erie Ins. Co., 691 F.Supp.2d 483, 485 (S.D.N.Y.2010) (“Where the contract language is wholly unambiguous, summary judgment is appropriate.”); Dryden Cent. Sch. Dist. v. Dryden Aquatic Racing Team,

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652 F.3d 584, 181 Oil & Gas Rep. 999, 2011 U.S. App. LEXIS 18005, 2011 WL 3795594, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/jefferson-block-24-oil-gas-llc-v-aspen-insurance-uk-ltd-ca5-2011.