Narragansett Bay Insurance v. Kaplan

146 F. Supp. 3d 364, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 156213, 2015 WL 7295462
CourtDistrict Court, D. Massachusetts
DecidedNovember 18, 2015
DocketCIVIL ACTION NO. 14-12466-DPW
StatusPublished
Cited by17 cases

This text of 146 F. Supp. 3d 364 (Narragansett Bay Insurance v. Kaplan) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Massachusetts primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Narragansett Bay Insurance v. Kaplan, 146 F. Supp. 3d 364, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 156213, 2015 WL 7295462 (D. Mass. 2015).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER

DOUGLAS P. WOODLOCK, UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

At issue in this case is whether an insurance company has a duty to defend its policyholders in a state court lawsuit against them alleging the commission of three intentional wrongs arising from.-a dispute among neighbors.. .Defendants Kenneth and Donna Kaplan reside in Hull, Massachusetts, and purchased a homeowner’s insurance policy with a Mariner Plus endorsement from plaintiff Narragansett Bay Insurance Company (“Narragansett”). That policy includes liability insurance for the Kaplans, the terms of which will be detailed below. Having to date provided a defense — under. a reservation of rights — for the Kaplans in the underlying state litigation, Narragansett now seeks a declaratory judgment determination by this court that it has no duty to provide a defense. For their part, the Kaplans seek through counterclaims to establish that they are owed a defense.

I. BACKGROUND

A, The Underlying Suit

In 2013, the Kaplans were sued in state court by their neighbors, William and Mary Costello. That lawsuit came on the heels of five years of conflict between the Kaplans and Costellos. In the underlying action, the Costellos complained of an ongoing campaign of harassment by the Kap-lans in an attempt to enlarge their own yard at the Costellos’ expense. As part- of this campaign, according to the underlying complaint, the Kaplans filed five lawsuits in state court that involved the Costellos, initiated a number of complaints and appeals to town and state agencies, and wrote many aggressive e-mails about the matter to public officials and the local media. In response, the Costellos have asserted three causes of action: abuse of process, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and violation of the Massachusetts Civil Rights Act. To date, Narragansett has provided the Kaplans with counsel in the underlying action.1

B. The Kaplans’ Insurance Policy

The Kaplans’ homeowner policy provides personal liability insurance. The standard coverage includes a duty to defend against all claims made against the insured for damages “because of ‘bodily injury* or ‘property damage’ caused by an ‘occurrence.’” Section II - Liability Coverages, § A. “Bodily injury” is defined as “bodily harm, ■ sickness or- death.” Id. Definitions section (2). “Property damage” is defined as “physical injury to, destruction of, or loss of use of tangible property.” Id. Definitions section (9). An “occurrence” is defined as an" “accident” during -the policy period which Results in bodily injury or property damage. Id. Definitions section (8). This standard coverage also contains a number of exclusions, the most relevant of which excludes coverage for injuries that are “expected or intended by an ‘insured,’ ” even if the resulting harm is of a different kind, quality or degree than initially intended or is sustained by a differ[369]*369ent person than intended. Id. Section II - Exclusions, § E.l. In short, this section of the coverage concerns suits over unintentional, physical harms to people or property- ' .

The Kaplans also purchased an additional policy, called the “Mariner. Plus Endorsement,” which covers suits for “personal injury.” That term is defined to cover enumerated intentional torts:

1. False arrest or detention
2. Malicious prosecution;
3. The “wrongful eviction from, wrongful entry into, or invasion of the right of private occupancy of a room, dwelling or premises that a person occupies, committed by or on behalf of its owner, landlord, or lessor”;
4. Defamation; and
5. The publication of material that vio- ■ lates a person’s right to privacy.

Mariner Plus Endorsement,' § 8. The exclusions relevant to the standard-coverage are not applicable to the additional Mariner Plus coverage, which are governed by a different set of exclusions,- In relevant part, coverage is excluded if the injury was “caused by” the insured, with “the knowledge that the-act would violate the rights of another and would inflict ‘personal injury”’ or if the injury arose out of a criminal act caused by the insured. Mariner Plus Endorsement, Section II — Exclusions.

No coverage is provided for conduct performed prior to the effective date, of the policy. The policy commenced on November 8, 2012, and accordingly Narragansett would only have a duty to defend against suits arising out of events after that date.

II.STANDARD OF REVIEW

Narragansett has moved for summary judgment on its declaratory judgment action and all counterclaims raised by the Kaplans. Summary judgment is appropriate where there is no genuine dispute of material fact and the undisputed facts demonstrate that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(a); Carmona v. Toledo, 215 F.3d 124, 132 (1st Cir.2000). A genuine issue is one which “may reasonably be resolved in favor of either party,” and a material fact is one which could affect the outcome of the litigation. Vineberg v. Bissonnette, 548 F.3d 50, 56 (1st Cir.2008). In determining whether genuine disputes of material fact exist, all reasonable inferences must be drawn in the non-movant’s favor. Id. The interpretation of an insurance policy and the application of its language to facts is a question of law. Massamont Ins. Agency, Inc. v. Utica Mut. Ins. Co., 489 F.3d 71, 72 (1st Cir.2007).

III.ANALYSIS

A. Continuance under Fed. R. Civ. P. Rule 56(f)

As a threshold matter, I must address the Kaplans’ effort to obtain a continuance under Rule 56(f) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure in order to eon-duct additional discovery. That rule provides that a court may order a continuance to permit additional discovery to be obtained, if there is a basis for finding that a party lacks the facts essential to justify its opposition to summary judgment. Defense counsel avers that he was unable to secure the facts necessary to oppose summary judgment. He states that he needs the continuance in order to depose Narragansett employees and agents.

The Kaplans and their counsel have failed to make the requisite showings necessary for a continuance under Rule 56(f). A party seeking extra time under this Rule must show “(i) good cause for his inability to have discovered or marshalled the necessary.facts earlier in the proceed[370]*370ings; (ii) a plausible basis for believing that additional facts probably exist and can be retrieved within a reasonable time; and (iii) an explanation of how those facts, if collected, will suffice to defeat the pending summary judgment motion.” Rivera-Torres v. Rey-Hernandez, 502 F.3d 7, 10 (1st Cir.2007).

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146 F. Supp. 3d 364, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 156213, 2015 WL 7295462, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/narragansett-bay-insurance-v-kaplan-mad-2015.