The Cincinnati Ins. Co. v. Selective Ins. Co.

CourtSuperior Court of Pennsylvania
DecidedOctober 18, 2017
Docket446 EDA 2017
StatusUnpublished

This text of The Cincinnati Ins. Co. v. Selective Ins. Co. (The Cincinnati Ins. Co. v. Selective Ins. Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Superior Court of Pennsylvania primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
The Cincinnati Ins. Co. v. Selective Ins. Co., (Pa. Ct. App. 2017).

Opinion

J-A19034-17

NON-PRECEDENTIAL DECISION - SEE SUPERIOR COURT I.O.P. 65.37

THE CINCINNATI INSURANCE : IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF COMPANY, AS SUBROGEE OF LEONARD : PENNSYLVANIA S. FIORE, INC., : : Appellant : : v. : : SELECTIVE INSURANCE COMPANY OF : SOUTH CAROLINA AND DAVID : PHILLIPS d/b/a DA-LYN CONTRACTORS : No. 446 EDA 2017

Appeal from the Order entered December 23, 2016 in the Court of Common Pleas of Philadelphia County, Civil Division, No(s): December Term, 2014 No. 0175

BEFORE: BENDER, P.J.E., DUBOW and MUSMANNO, JJ.

MEMORANDUM BY MUSMANNO, J.: FILED OCTOBER 18, 2017

The Cincinnati Insurance Company (“CIC”), as subrogee of Leonard S.

Fiore, Inc. (“Fiore”), appeals from the Order granting the Motion for

Summary Judgment filed by Selective Insurance Company of South Carolina

(“SIC”) and David Phillips d/b/a Da-Lyn Contractors (collectively

“Defendants”), and denying CIC’s Cross-Motion for Summary Judgment. We

affirm.

In its Opinion, the trial court set forth the relevant factual and

procedural background, which we adopt for the purpose of this appeal. See

Trial Court Opinion, 12/23/16, at 1-4. J-A19034-17

On December 23, 2016, the trial court granted Defendants’ Motion for

Summary Judgment, and denied CIC’s Cross-Motion for Summary Judgment.

This timely appeal followed.1

On appeal, CIC raises the following issues for our review:

1. Whether the [t]rial [c]ourt erred in granting [D]efendants’ [M]otion for [S]ummary [J]udgment in ruling[,] as a matter of law[,] that the [SIC] primary insurance policy [(“the SIC policy”)] was excess over the [CIC] primary insurance policy [(“the CIC policy”)] and the [CIC] umbrella policy [(“the CIC umbrella policy”)?]

2. Whether the [t]rial [c]ourt erred in denying [CIC’s] [C]ross- [M]otion for [S]ummary [J]udgment in ruling[,] as a matter of law[,] that the [SIC] policy was not triggered[,] and required to exhaust[,] prior to the [CIC] umbrella policy[?]

3. Whether the [t]rial [c]ourt erred in determining that the [SIC] policy was not obligated to reimburse the defense costs incurred by [CIC] in the defense of Fiore and Wal-Mart in the Peterman lawsuit[?]

Brief for Appellant at 4.

As CIC’s issues are related, we will address them together. In its first

issue, CIC contends that SIC advanced only two arguments in support of its

Motion for Summary Judgment, namely, that (1) Fiore and Wal-Mart are

additional insureds under the SIC policy with respect to bodily injury caused

in whole or in part by the ongoing operations of Da-Lyn Contractors (“Da-

Lyn”); and (2) the Amended Complaint filed in the underlying Peterman

litigation lacks any allegations of Da-Lyn’s negligence. Id. at 10. CIC

1 The trial court did not order CIC to file a concise statement of matters complained of on appeal, pursuant to Pa.R.A.P. 1925(a).

-2- J-A19034-17

asserts that both of SIC’s arguments were impliedly rejected pursuant to the

trial court’s finding that the allegations of the Amended Complaint filed in

the underlying Peterman litigation sufficiently articulated proximate

causation attributable to Da-Lyn. Id. at 10-11. CIC claims that, pursuant to

the indemnification provision in the contract between Fiore and Da-Lyn, Da-

Lyn was contractually obligated to indemnify Fiore and Wal-Mart for any

bodily injury caused by Da-Lyn’s negligence. Id. at 12-14. According to

CIC, SIC does not dispute that the SIC policy, although excess over the CIC

policy, applies before the CIC umbrella policy is triggered. Id. at 16-17.

In its second issue, CIC asserts that, pursuant to the contract between

Fiore and Da-Lyn, Da-Lyn was required to obtain commercial general liability

coverage with a personal and advertising injury limit of $1 million, and that

the SIC policy was, therefore, the primary coverage under the contract

between Fiore and Da-Lyn. Id. at 18.2 CIC claims that the contract

between Fiore and Da-Lyn also required that “[a]ll insurance must contain

an endorsement that the insurance coverage is primary to that of Wal-

Mart’s[,] and that Wal-Mart’s policies are excess.” Id. (quoting Exhibit C to

the Da-Lyn/Fiore Contract). CIC argues that, after the CIC policy was

exhausted during settlement of the Peterman lawsuit, the SIC policy should

2 CIC further asserts that, pursuant to the contract between Fiore and Da- Lyn, Da-Lyn was also required to obtain umbrella liability coverage with a limit of $3 million, but failed to do so. See Brief for Appellant at 18.

-3- J-A19034-17

have been exhausted before the CIC umbrella policy was triggered. Id. at

19. CIC contends that, in ruling that the SIC policy was excess over the CIC

umbrella insurance policy, the trial court failed to compare the language of

the SIC policy to the language of the CIC umbrella policy regarding the order

in which the policies were required to exhaust. Id. at 17. Specifically, CIC

points to the “Other Insurance” clause in the CIC umbrella policy, which

states as follows:

The insurance provided by this Coverage part is excess over any other valid and collectible insurance, other than insurance written specifically to be excess over this insurance, and shall not be contributory.

Id. at 19 (quoting the CIC Umbrella Policy, Form US 101 UM 10 02, at p.

14). CIC asserts that, in ruling that the SIC policy was excess to the CIC

umbrella policy, the trial court relied exclusively on the “Blanket Additional

Insured” form included in the SIC policy, which reads as follows:

This coverage shall be excess with respect to the person or organization included as an additional insured by its provisions: any other insurance that person or organization has shall be primary with respect to this insurance, unless this coverage is required to be primary and not contributory in the contract, agreement or permit referred to above.

Id. (quoting the SIC Policy, Blanket Additional Insured Form). CIC claims

that after the $1 million limit under the CIC policy was exhausted, the SIC

policy should have applied, pro rata, with the CIC umbrella policy until the

Peterman settlement was fully paid. Id. at 22. CIC argues that, because

Fiore and Wal-Mart are additional insureds under the SIC policy, the costs of

-4- J-A19034-17

defending them, as incurred by CIC, qualify as recoverable “damages” under

the SIC policy. Id. Finally, CIC contends that the contract between Fiore

and Da-Lyn is an “insured contract” under the SIC policy, and is not subject

to the contractual liability exclusion contained therein. Id.

In its third issue, CIC contends, in the alternative, that if the trial

court’s Order granting summary judgment in favor of SIC is affirmed, “there

must also be a finding that Da-Lyn’s insurance coverage with [SIC] is

primary and contributory over the coverage afforded to Wal-Mart.” Id. at

25.

We review orders granting summary judgment under the following

standard:

Summary judgment is proper only when the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, admissions and affidavits and other materials demonstrate that there is no genuine issue of material fact and that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. The reviewing court must view the record in the light most favorable to the non[-] moving party and resolve all doubts as to the existence of a genuine issue of material fact against the moving party.

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Bluebook (online)
The Cincinnati Ins. Co. v. Selective Ins. Co., Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/the-cincinnati-ins-co-v-selective-ins-co-pasuperct-2017.