Plapis v. Lagerstrom and York Insurance Company of Maine

• Court: Superior Court of Maine
• Decided: February 10, 2016
• Docket: CUMcv-14-355
• Status: Unpublished

Opinion

STATE OF MAINE SUPERIOR COURT CUMBERLAND, ss CIVIL ACTION Docket No. CV-14-/

BRITTANY E. PLAPIS,

Plaintiff ORDER ON MOTION TO SEVER v. STATE OF MAINE DANNAH E. LAGERSTROM Cumbe"'~""' "'~ ~ '" '~'c; Office and YORK INSURANCE COMP ANY OF MAINE, FEB 1 1 2016 Defendants RECEiVED Before the court is defendant York Insurance Company of Maine's motion to

sever. M.R. Civ. P. 21. Defendant York requests it be severed from this matter and the

complaint against it be dismissed without prejudice.

Defendant York does not argue it was joined improperly. See Warren v. Preti,

Flaherty, Beliveau & Pachios, LLC, 2013 Me. Super. LEXIS 111, at *36 (Mar. 27, 2013)

("[T]o succeed on a motion to sever, [the defendant] must show they were improperly

joined in this matter."). Defendant York was properly joined because plaintiff Plapis is

asserting against both defendants a right to relief arising out of the same occurrence.

M.R. Civ. P. 20(a).

Instead, defendant York argues it stands ready to pay any uninsured motorist

benefits required after plaintiff Plapis's damages have been assessed at a trial with

defendant Lagerstrom. (Def. York's Mot. Sever 1.) The cases cited by defendant York

do not establish this as a proper ground for granting a motion to sever. See Tungate v.

Gardner, 2002 ME 85,

against insurer did not bar her subsequent action against insured); Beane v. Me. Ins.

Guar. Ass'n, 2007 ME 40,

1 not apply because at the time of settlement, plaintiffs did not have a claim against

insurer).

The entry is

Defendant York Insurance Company of Maine's Motion to Sever is DENIED .

Date: February 10, 2016 Nancy Mills Justice, Superior Court