Thomas v. Benchmark Insurance

140 P.3d 438, 36 Kan. App. 2d 409, 2006 Kan. App. LEXIS 831
CourtCourt of Appeals of Kansas
DecidedAugust 18, 2006
DocketNo. 95,202
StatusPublished
Cited by8 cases

This text of 140 P.3d 438 (Thomas v. Benchmark Insurance) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Kansas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Thomas v. Benchmark Insurance, 140 P.3d 438, 36 Kan. App. 2d 409, 2006 Kan. App. LEXIS 831 (kanctapp 2006).

Opinions

Green, J.:

Ramon Sanchez was killed and Victor Reyes was injured when Melissa Gutierrez lost control and wrecked the car that she was driving. Both Sanchez and Reyes were passengers in the car. Reyes, along with Rene Thomas, who is the mother of Sanchez, and the natural guardian of Sanchez’ minor children, filed a declaratory judgment action. Reyes and Thomas, the plaintiffs, sought to determine whether Gutierrez, who also died in the wreck, had liability coverage for the wreck under a car insurance policy issued to her by Benchmark Insurance Company (Benchmark). Benchmark contended that no liability coverage existed under the policy because of the illegal acts of Gutierrez, Sanchez, and Reyes. The trial court, however, granted summary judgment in favor of the plaintiffs upon finding that Benchmark’s illegality defense was inapplicable to this case. We agree. The trial court, however, did not address Benchmark’s other argument that liability coverage was excluded under the unexpected and unintended act provisions of its policy. Determining that an intent to injure can be inferred from the nature of the act and the foreseeability of harm flowing from that act, our Supreme Court, in Bell v. Tilton, 234 Kan. 461, Syl. ¶ 2, 674 P.2d 468 (1983), declared: ‘Where an intentional act results in injuries which are a natural and probable result of the act, the injuries are intentional.” We determine that Gutierrez’ pur[411]*411poseful conduct in driving a car at speeds of up to 100 m.p.h. in an attempt to elude police would meet the above test. As a result, we reverse the judgment of the trial court.

The parties do not dispute the basic facts of what transpired the night of November 8, 2003. Reyes went to a pub in Overland Park, Kansas, with Sanchez and Gutierrez. While at the pub, they consumed alcohol, and Reyes and Sanchez got into a fight with several other individuals that began inside the pub. The fight later moved outside the pub. Reyes and Sanchez got into Gutierrez’ car. Sanchez sat in the front passenger seat, and Reyes sat in the back seat. Sanchez grabbed a gun and fired approximately 10 shots in the general direction of a crowd of people. Gutierrez then drove off at a high rate of speed and eventually entered Interstate 635, where a police officer spotted them and began pursuit. After the officer activated his emergency lights, Sanchez threw the gun out of the car. Then, Gutierrez pulled onto the shoulder of the highway and stopped the car. When the officer got out of his car, Gutierrez drove off. According to Reyes, he and Sanchez had told Gutierrez not to drive off, but “she just took off anyway.”

The officer lost sight of Gutierrez’ car as she exited onto Shawnee Drive. According to Reyes, Gutierrez lost control of the car while on Shawnee Drive. The car flipped several times, and Sanchez was thrown from the car.

Gutierrez and Sanchez died as a result of injuries they sustained in the wreck. Reyes, who was wearing a seatbelt, survived but sustained various injuries. The record indicated that Gutierrez was driving at speeds of 100 m.p.h. while attempting to elude the police.

Benchmark defended the plaintiffs’ declaratory judgment action, in part, on an illegality defense theory. Benchmark argued that public policy precluded the plaintiffs from being indemnified for the damages caused by the criminal conduct of Gutierrez and the passengers in attempting to elude police during a high speed car chase. Benchmark also contended that the intentional conduct of the occupants barred recovery.

Plaintiffs moved for summary judgment. Following a nonevidentiary hearing, the trial court granted plaintiffs’ motion for sum[412]*412mary judgment. The trial court determined that the illegality defense did not apply. The court explained: “The Court considers the prior illegal acts that occurred before the eluding of the police as being too remote in time. Regarding the eluding, the Court does not find that there is any evidence to show that Sanchez or Reyes were involved in the decision to elude the police.”

Did the trial court err in granting summary judgment in favor of plaintiffsP

Benchmark challenges the trial court’s entry of summary judgment in favor of the plaintiffs on several grounds: (1) The trial court failed to give Benchmark, as the nonmoving party, the benefit of all inferences to be drawn from the evidence, particularly with respect to the occupants’ willing participation in crimes and the driver’s intentional conduct; (2) the trial court erroneously concluded that no causal connection existed between tire events at the pub and the later wreck; (3) the insurance policy and public policy prohibit coverage for such intentional and malicious acts as those that occurred here; and (4) the trial court erred in rejecting Benchmark’s argument that the “illegality defense” barred coverage.

“Summary judgment is appropriate when the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions on file, together with the affidavits, show that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. The trial court is required to resolve all facts and inferences which may reasonably be drawn from the evidence in favor of the party against whom the ruling is sought. When opposing a motion for summary judgment, an adverse party must come forward with evidence to establish a dispute as to a material fact. In order to preclude summary judgment, the facts subject to the dispute must be material to the conclusive issues in the case. On appeal, we apply the same rules and where we find reasonable minds could differ as to die conclusions drawn from the evidence, summary judgment must be denied.” [Citation omitted.]’ [Citations omitted.]” State ex rel. Stovall v. Reliance Ins. Co., 278 Kan. 777, 788, 107 P.3d 1219 (2005).

To die extent there is no factual dispute, appellate review of a trial court’s order regarding summary judgment is unlimited. Roy v. Young, 278 Kan. 244, 247, 93 P.3d 712 (2004). Further, this court has unlimited review over die interpretation of insurance contracts. Hence, we are not bound by the trial court’s interpre[413]*413tation of the policy at issue. See Marshall v. Kansas Med. Mut. Ins. Co., 276 Kan. 97, 111, 73 P.3d 120 (2003).

Intentional acts

On appeal, Benchmark raises an argument that it made below. Benchmark maintains that the intentional act of Gutierrez in driving at excessive speeds prohibited recovery under the insurance policy. Benchmark contends that the wreck was a “ ‘natural and probable consequence’ ” of Gutierrez’ actions. In granting plaintiffs’ motion for summaiy judgment, the trial court did not address Benchmark’s argument that its intentional act exclusion barred coverage under its insurance policy.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
140 P.3d 438, 36 Kan. App. 2d 409, 2006 Kan. App. LEXIS 831, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/thomas-v-benchmark-insurance-kanctapp-2006.