Puget Sound Energy, Inc. v. ALBA General Insurance

102 Wash. App. 729
CourtCourt of Appeals of Washington
DecidedOctober 2, 2000
DocketNo. 44941-9-I
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 102 Wash. App. 729 (Puget Sound Energy, Inc. v. ALBA General Insurance) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Washington primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Puget Sound Energy, Inc. v. ALBA General Insurance, 102 Wash. App. 729 (Wash. Ct. App. 2000).

Opinion

Agid, C.J.

— Puget Sound Energy, Inc. (PSE) filed a declaratory judgment action against a number of its insurers to establish their liability for PSE’s costs of remediation at six environmentally contaminated Washington sites. The trial court dismissed the majority of PSE’s claims against the insurers on summary judgment, concluding that PSE had admitted it was adequately compensated by prior settlements with its other insurers for its known past and future remediation costs at the sites. The sole question on appeal is whether there are disputed issues of fact about the adequacy of the compensation PSE has received.

We hold that the trial court should not have dismissed the claims against PSE’s third-party insurers because PSE has produced settlement agreements establishing that some of the money it has received from other insurers was paid for remediation at sites not at issue here. PSE should have the opportunity on remand to demonstrate that some of these proceeds either have been or will be allocated to these other sites. We affirm the trial court’s order dismissing claims against the first-party insurers because PSE failed to meet its summary judgment burden of identifying [732]*732disputed facts on the issue whether there is property damage on the Everett, Chehalis, or “A” Street sites for which it has not been fully compensated.1 We therefore reverse and remand PSE’s claims against the third-party insurers and affirm the order granting the first-party insurers’ motions for summary judgment.

FACTS

In November 1997, PSE filed a complaint for declaratory relief and money damages against a number of its first-party and third-party insurers claiming coverage for its environmental liabilities at six Washington sites: Chehalis, Everett, 22d and A Street in Tacoma, Thea Foss Waterway, Gas Works Park, and Quendall Terminals. Contending that PSE admitted in various documents that it had fully recovered insurance proceeds for past cleanup costs at the sites and obtained and allocated additional insurance funds exceeding all projected future cleanup costs at the same sites, the insurers sought to dismiss PSE’s claims on summary judgment. They based their argument on three documents authored primarily by Steven Secrist, PSE’s Director of Environmental Services and Assistant General Counsel. These documents are PSE’s answers to the insurers’ requests for admission, PSE’s 1998 annual 10-K report to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and a letter PSE sent to the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission (WUTC) on February 26, 1999.

Requests for Admission

In their requests for admission, the insurers posed questions about PSE’s cost estimates and recoveries as of December 1997:

REQUEST FOR ADMISSION NO. 1: Admit that the following statement was made in PSE’s Form 10-K Annual Report pursuant to the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, for the fiscal year ending December 31, 1997: [733]*733Five former WNG or predecessor companies manufactured gas plant (“MGP”) sites are currently undergoing investigation, remedial actions or monitoring actions relating to environmental contamination: 1) Everett, Washington; 2) “Gas Works Park” in Seattle, Washington; 3) “Tacoma 22nd and A St.” Site in Tacoma, Washington; 4) Chehalis, Washington; and 5) and “Tideflats” area of Tacoma, Washington. Costs incurred to date total approximately $48.0 million and currently estimated future remediation costs are approximately $7.7 million. To date, the Company has recovered approximately $55.7 million from insurance carriers. ANSWER: Admitted.
REQUEST FOR ADMISSION NO. 2: Admit that by December 31, 1997, PSE had incurred approximately $48 million in costs for investigation, remedial actions or monitoring actions relating to environmental contamination at the following manufactured gas plant sites: 1) Everett, Washington; 2) “Gas Works Park” in Seattle, Washington; 3) “Tacoma 22nd and A St.” Site in Tacoma, Washington; 4) Chehalis, Washington; and 5) the “Tideflats” area of Tacoma, Washington.
ANSWER: Denied. PSE admits that, as of December 31, 1997, it had incurred approximately $40.6 million in costs for investigation, remedial action or monitoring actions relating to environmental contamination at the listed sites. The $48 million figure cited in PSE’s form 10-K Annual Report for the year ending December 31,1997 included the costs of insurance coverage litigation and the costs of pursuing recoveries from other potentially liable or responsible parties.
REQUEST FOR ADMISSION NO. 3: Admit that by December 31, 1997, PSE estimated future remediation costs to be approximately $7.7 million for actions relating to environmental contamination at the following manufactured gas plant sites: 1) Everett, Washington; 2) “Gas Works Park” in Seattle, Washington; 3) “Tacoma 22nd and A St.” Site in Tacoma, Washington; 4) Chehalis, Washington; and 5) the “Tideflats” area of Tacoma, Washington.
ANSWER: Admitted.
REQUEST FOR ADMISSION NO. 4: Admit that by December 31, 1997, PSE had recovered approximately $55.7 million from insurance carriers for actions relating to environ[734]*734mental contamination at the following manufactured gas plant sites: 1) Everett, Washington; 2) “Gas Works Park” in Seattle, Washington; 3) “Tacoma 22nd and A St.” Site in Tacoma, Washington; 4) Chehalis, Washington; and 5) the “Tideflats” area of Tacoma, Washington.
ANSWER: Denied. PSE admits that as of December 31, 1997, PSE has recovered approximately $55.1 million in compensation from all sources, including insurance carriers and others, in connection with actions relating to environmental contamination at sites including the listed sites. The total sum of $55.1 million included approximately $47.6 million from insurance carriers, approximately $5.9 million from non-insurer third parties that were liable to PSE in contribution and/or indemnity, and approximately $1.6 million in the form of a tax refund that resulted from the expenses associated with the listed sites.

SEC 10-K Filing

Secrist explained in his declaration that for purposes of financial disclosure, he periodically estimates combined past and future costs for various manufactured gas plant sites previously or currently owned by PSE. In the 1998 10-K SEC filing PSE stated:

GAS SITES: Five former WNG or predecessor companies manufactured gas plant (“MGP”) sites are currently undergoing investigation, remedial actions or monitoringactions [sic] relating to environmental contamination: 1) Everett, Washington; 2) “Gas Works Park” in Seattle, Washington; 3) “Tacoma 22nd and A St.” Site in Tacoma, Washington; 4) Chehalis, Washington; and 5) the “Tideflats” area of Tacoma, Washington. Legal and remedial costs incurred to date total approximately $50.9 million and currently estimated future remediation costs are approximately $7.0 million. Work at both the Chehalis and Tideflats sites is substantially completed. To date, the Company has recovered approximately $59 million from insurance carriers and other third parties. Based on all known facts and analyses, the Company believes it is not likely that the identified environmental liabilities will result in a materialadverse [sic] impact on the Company’s financial position, operating results or cashflow [sic] trends.

[735]

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Related

Puget Sound Energy v. Certain Underwriters at Lloyd's, London
138 P.3d 1068 (Court of Appeals of Washington, 2006)
Puget Sound Energy, Inc. v. Alba General Insurance
68 P.3d 1061 (Washington Supreme Court, 2003)

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Bluebook (online)
102 Wash. App. 729, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/puget-sound-energy-inc-v-alba-general-insurance-washctapp-2000.