Parker v. Southern Farm Bureau Casualty Ins. Co.

292 S.W.3d 311, 104 Ark. App. 301, 2009 Ark. App. LEXIS 197
CourtCourt of Appeals of Arkansas
DecidedFebruary 4, 2009
DocketCA 08-568
StatusPublished
Cited by10 cases

This text of 292 S.W.3d 311 (Parker v. Southern Farm Bureau Casualty Ins. Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Arkansas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Parker v. Southern Farm Bureau Casualty Ins. Co., 292 S.W.3d 311, 104 Ark. App. 301, 2009 Ark. App. LEXIS 197 (Ark. Ct. App. 2009).

Opinion

JOHN B. ROBBINS, Judge.

This appeal arises out of the grant of summary judgment to two insurance companies (Southern Farm Bureau Casualty Insurance Company and Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Company of Arkansas, Inc., collectively “Farm Bureau” and the appellees herein) regarding two policies owned by Gene and Laura Graves. For purposes of this appeal, the operative facts are not in material dispute and are viewed most favorably to appellant, Katrina Parker. We affirm in part and reverse in part and remand for further proceedings.

The insureds, Gene and Laura Graves, resided in rural Stone County, as did their neighbors, Ron and Katrina Parker. The relationship was not harmonious. On the morning of August 24, 2005, Mr. Graves was on his land shooting dogs that had been attacking his sheep. Graves believed that the aggressive dogs belonged to the Parkers. Although Mr. Graves remained on his land, at some point he was near the fence line, whereupon the Parkers emerged from their house. Mr. Parker fired a pistol shot, while Mrs. Parker attempted to return inside the Parker residence. Graves intentionally returned fire toward Mr. Parker, which shot killed Mr. Parker. 1 The bullet passed through Mr. Parker and struck Mrs. Parker, which seriously and permanently injured her.

Appellant Katrina Parker filed a negligence suit against Mr. Graves in Stone County Circuit Court, attempting to acquire monetary relief for her damages. Mr. Graves submitted a claim on two insurance policies, both homeowner’s and general liability, seeking to have Farm Bureau provide a defense and indemnity. Farm Bureau initially mounted a defense on behalf of Mr. Graves.

Then, Farm Bureau fried an independent declaratory judgment action in Pulaski County Circuit Court, seeking to have the trial court declare that there was no obligation on Farm Bureau’s part to defend or indemnify its insureds. Declaratory judgment is typically used to determine the obligations of the insurer under a policy of insurance. See Martin v. Equitable Life Assurance Society, 344 Ark. 177, 40 S.W.3d 733 (2001). All interested parties must be named in a declaratory-judgment case. Ark.Code Ann. § 16-111-106 (Repl.2006). Farm Bureau named its insureds and Katrina Parker as defendants. This Pulaski County Circuit Court lawsuit is the subject of the present appeal.

It is undisputed that Mr. and Mrs. Graves purchased insurance coverage under a homeowner’s policy and general liability policy with Farm Bureau that were in force at the time of the shooting. Farm Bureau presented the exclusionary provisions in each policy, arguing that there was no duty to defend or indemnify for Mr. Graves’s intentional acts that resulted in bodily harm or property damage. Farm Bureau moved for summary judgment. Mr. and Mrs. Graves as well as Mrs. Parker responded in resistance to the motion. Each of them also counterclaimed, requesting that the trial judge declare that the policies provided coverage for this incident, or at least did not unambiguously exclude coverage. A hearing was conducted before the Pulaski County Circuit Court, and after taking the issue under advisement, the trial judge entered summary judgment on Farm Bureau’s behalf.

The trial judge determined that the insurance policies were unambiguous, that the material facts were undisputed, and that Farm Bureau was entitled to a declaratory judgment as a matter of law. He found that the homeowner’s policy excluded coverage for any intentional act that causes damage whether the damage was expected or unexpected. He further held that the general liability policy did not provide coverage for any injuries that are the result of an act by the insured that was intended to harm others. Katrina Parker appeals to our court. ■ Mr. and Mrs. Graves did not appeal.

Appellant’s argument is that summary judgment was inappropriate because Farm Bureau did have a duty to defend the insureds. Summary judgment should only be granted when it is clear that there are no genuine issues of material fact to be litigated, and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Castaneda v. Progressive Classic Insurance Co., 357 Ark. 345, 166 S.W.3d 556 (2004). In reviewing summary-judgment cases, we determine whether the trial court’s grant of summary judgment was appropriate based on whether the evidence presented by the moving party left a material question of fact unanswered. Norris v. Stale Farm Fire & Cas. Co., 341 Ark. 360, 16 S.W.3d 242 (2000). The moving party always bears the burden of sustaining a motion for summary judgment. Youngman v. State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co., 334 Ark. 73, 971 S.W.2d 248 (1998). Where there are no disputed material facts, our review must focus on the trial court’s application of the law to those undisputed facts. See id. When the facts are not at issue but possible inferences therefrom are, we will consider whether those inferences can be reasonably drawn from the undisputed facts and wliether reasonable minds differ on those hypotheses. Flentje v. First National Bank of Wynne, 340 Ark. 563, 11 S.W.3d 531 (2000).

The law regarding construction of an insurance contract is well settled. Once it is determined that coverage exists, it then must be determined whether the exclusionary language wdthin the policy eliminates the coverage. Norris v. State Farm Fire & Cas. Co., supra. Exclusionary endorsements must adhere to the general requirements that the insurance terms must be expressed in clear and unambiguous language. Id. If the language of the policy is unambiguous, we will give effect to the plain language of the policy without resorting to the rules of construction. Elam v. First Unum Life Ins. Co., 346 Ark. 291, 57 S.W.3d 165 (2001). On the other hand, if the language is ambiguous, we will construe the policy liberally in favor of the insured and strictly against the insurer. Id. Language is ambiguous if there is doubt or uncertainty as to its meaning and it is fairly susceptible to more than one reasonable interpretation. Harasyn v. St. Paul Guardian Ins. Co., 349 Ark. 9, 75 S.W.3d 696 (2002). Whether the language of the policy is ambiguous is a question of law to be resolved by the court. Id.

In this case, the trial court was called to apply two exclusionary clauses in the respective policies of insurance. The clause contained in the homeowner’s policy read in relevant part that:

[C]ertain types of losses are not covered by your policy.... [W]e do not cover: ... bodily injury or property damage caused by intentional acts or at the direction of you or any covered person. The expected or unexpected results of these acts are not covered[.]

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Jose Hinojosa v. Trexis Insurance Corporation
2023 Ark. App. 359 (Court of Appeals of Arkansas, 2023)
Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Co. of Arkansas v. Future Davenport
2017 Ark. App. 207 (Court of Appeals of Arkansas, 2017)
Atlantic Casualty Insurance Co. v. Paradise Club
219 F. Supp. 3d 938 (W.D. Arkansas, 2016)
Mancabelli v. Gies
2015 Ark. App. 67 (Court of Appeals of Arkansas, 2015)
J & J Excavating v. Doyne Construction Co.
391 S.W.3d 367 (Court of Appeals of Arkansas, 2012)
Pulaski Choice, L.L.C. v. 2735 Villa Creek, L.P.
376 S.W.3d 500 (Court of Appeals of Arkansas, 2010)
Screeton v. ASCO Vending, Inc.
374 S.W.3d 749 (Court of Appeals of Arkansas, 2010)
Watkins v. Southern Farm Bureau Casualty Insurance Co.
370 S.W.3d 848 (Court of Appeals of Arkansas, 2009)
Nationwide Assurance Co. v. Lobov
309 S.W.3d 227 (Court of Appeals of Arkansas, 2009)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
292 S.W.3d 311, 104 Ark. App. 301, 2009 Ark. App. LEXIS 197, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/parker-v-southern-farm-bureau-casualty-ins-co-arkctapp-2009.