Plum Creek Marketing, Inc. v. American Economy Insurance

2009 MT 264, 214 P.3d 1238, 352 Mont. 56, 2009 Mont. LEXIS 399
CourtMontana Supreme Court
DecidedAugust 11, 2009
DocketDA 08-0491
StatusPublished
Cited by10 cases

This text of 2009 MT 264 (Plum Creek Marketing, Inc. v. American Economy Insurance) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Montana Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Plum Creek Marketing, Inc. v. American Economy Insurance, 2009 MT 264, 214 P.3d 1238, 352 Mont. 56, 2009 Mont. LEXIS 399 (Mo. 2009).

Opinion

JUSTICE COTTER

delivered the Opinion of the Court.

¶1 On September 8,2008, the Eleventh Judicial District Court issued an order on summary judgment motions filed by Plum Creek Marketing, Inc. and Plum Creek Northwest Plywood Inc. (collectively Plum Creek), Jed Moser (Moser), American Economy Insurance Company (American), Safeco Corporation (Safeco), and Walsten Garage Doors, Inc. (Garage Doors). The District Court granted summary judgment to American and Safeco, concluding they did not have a duty to defend and indemnify Plum Creek against a negligence claim filed by Moser. The District Court also granted summary judgment to Garage Doors, concluding it could not be held liable for the negligence claims stated in Moser’s complaint. Plum Creek, Moser, and Garage Doors now appeal from the District Court’s order. We affirm.

FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

¶2 On January 2, 2002, Plum Creek and Garage Doors entered into *58 a contract for services (Contract) to govern work performed by Garage Doors at Plum Creek’s facilities. A provision in the Contract required Garage Doors to indemnify Plum Creek. It read as follows:

6. Indemnity. Contractor shall indemnity and save the Company harmless from any and all personal injuries, damages, claims, suits, costs and recoveries of every name and nature which may in any manner arise or grow out of the business conducted by the Contractor on the premises of the Company, or the use or occupancy thereof by the Contractor, or by other persons at Contractor’s instance or with Contractor’s consent or knowledge, or the services to be provided hereunder, during the term of this Agreement, whether due to the negligence of the Company, its contractors, officers, agents and employees; and in the event any suit or action shall be brought against the Company to recover on account of such loss, damage, injury or destruction hereinbefore agreed to be borne by Contractor, Contractor shall appear and defend any such suit or action and pay any judgment that may be obtained against the Company.

¶3 The next provision in the Contract required Garage Doors to obtain a policy of commercial general liability insurance. This provision read as follows:

7. Insurance.
A. Contractor shall obtain and keep in full force and effect, during the life of this Agreement (including any extension thereof), at its sole costs and expense, a policy of public liability and property damage insurance protecting the Company against loss on account of injuries to or death of persons and loss of or damage to property which may in any manner arise or grow out of the business conducted by Contractor on the premises of the Company, or the use and occupancy thereof by Contractor or by other persons at Contractor’s instance or with Contractor’s consent or knowledge, or the services to be provided hereunder, during the term of this Agreement, whether or not due to the negligence of the Company, its contractors, officers, agents and employees. Coverage requirements will be as follows:
(1) A policy of Commercial General Liability Insurance to include minimum limits of $ 1,000,000 combined single limit Bodily Injury and Property Damage each occurrence.
(3) The polices specified above shall include an endorsement which shall name Plum Creek Timber Company, Inc, and *59 Subsidiaries, and/or Affiliates, as additional insureds on a primary basis for the duration of the Contract term. The additional insured endorsement must be ISO CF20 10 11 85 1 or other form with like wording.

¶4 Plum Creek claims that Garage Doors forwarded the Contract to Western States Insurance Agency, Inc. (Western States), and that Western States in turn procured a commercial general liability policy (Policy) issued by American.

¶5 In April 2002, Moser suffered serious bodily injury while repairing a garage door at a Plum Creek mill in Columbia Falls. Moser claims that his employer at the time was Walsten Enterprises, Inc. (Enterprises), a separate business owned by Craig and Linda Walsten, who are also the principals of Garage Doors. Moser claims that he subsequently received workers’ compensation benefits from Enterprises, not Garage Doors.

¶6 In April 2005, Moser filed a negligence action against Plum Creek, alleging that his injuries were caused by Plum Creek’s negligence and failure to provide a safe work place as required under § 50-71-101, MCA. On October 3, 2005, Plum Creek tendered Moser’s claims to American. Plum Creek claimed that it was covered under the Policy issued by American to Garage Doors, and under the Liability Plus Endorsement (Endorsement) subsequently issued under Garage Doors’ Policy. The Endorsement reads in pertinent part as follows:

ADDITIONAL INSURED-BY WRITTEN CONTRACT, AGREEMENT OR PERMIT, OR SCHEDULE
The following paragraph is added to WHO IS AN INSURED (Section II):
5. Any person or organization shown in the Schedule or for whom you are required by written contract, agreement or permit to provide insurance is an insured, subject to the following additional provisions:
b. The person or organization added as an insured by this endorsement is an insured only to the extent you are held liable due to:
(2) Your ongoing operations for that insured, whether the work *60 is performed by you or for you;
[d.] No coverage will be provided if, in the absence of this endorsement, no liability would be imposed by law on you. Coverage shall be limited to the extent of your negligence or fault according to the applicable principles of comparative fault.

¶7 Plum Creek also claimed that it and its subsidiaries had been listed as certificate holders on the certificate of liability issued in conjunction with the Policy. Plum Creek demanded that Western States, Garage Doors, and American acknowledge and honor the Policy’s terms of coverage, and provide a defense to Plum Creek for Moser’s claims.

¶8 On November 15,2005, Safeco responded to Plum Creek’s demand letter on behalf of American, and refused to provide a defense for Plum Creek against Moser’s claims. Safeco acknowledged Plum Creek’s allegations that it was covered under the Policy and Endorsement pursuant to the indemnity provision in the Contract between Plum Creek and Garage Doors. Safeco asserted that the Policy and Endorsement themselves extended coverage to Plum Creek only insofar as Garage Doors was negligent. In addition, Safeco noted that Garage Doors was covered by § 39-71-411, MCA, of the Workers’ Compensation Act (Act), which states that the Act’s remedies are exclusive for any employment-related claims covered by its provisions. Because pursuant to the Act, no liability could be imposed by law upon Garage Doors, Safeco asserted that, under the provisions of paragraph 5(2)(d) of the Endorsement (see Opinion, ¶ 6), American was not required to indemnify Plum Creek in any event.

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

Related

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
2009 MT 264, 214 P.3d 1238, 352 Mont. 56, 2009 Mont. LEXIS 399, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/plum-creek-marketing-inc-v-american-economy-insurance-mont-2009.