Warehouse Wines & Spirits v. Travelers Property Casualty Co. of America

711 F. App'x 654
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Second Circuit
DecidedSeptember 21, 2017
Docket16-2611-cv
StatusUnpublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 711 F. App'x 654 (Warehouse Wines & Spirits v. Travelers Property Casualty Co. of America) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Warehouse Wines & Spirits v. Travelers Property Casualty Co. of America, 711 F. App'x 654 (2d Cir. 2017).

Opinion

SUMMARY ORDER

Defendant-Appellant Travelers Property Casualty Company of America (“Travelers”) appeals from a final judgment entered in favor of Plaintiff-Appellee Warehouse Wines and Spirits (“Warehouse Wines”) following the entry of summary judgment as to liability and a bench trial as to damages. Travelers argues that the district court erred in granting summary-judgment in favor of Warehouse Wines as to liability and improperly determined the amount of damages and prejudgment interest. We assume the parties’ familiarity with the underlying facts, procedural history, and issues on appeal.

I.

We review de novo a district court’s grant of summary judgment, McBride v. BIC Consumer Prods. Mfg. Co., 583 F.3d 92, 96 (2d Cir. 2009), and will affirm “only where, construing all the evidence in the light most favorable to the non-movant and drawing all reasonable inferences in that party’s favor, ‘there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and ... the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.’ ” Id. (omission in original) (quoting Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(c)).

Travelers initially denied coverage for Warehouse Wines’ insurance claim, asserting that the “dishonest acts” exclusion applied. In response, Warehouse Wines argued that the “carrier for hire” exception to the dishonest acts exclusion applied, and the district court agreed. Travelers contends that this was error. We disagree.

Under New York law, insurance policies are interpreted according to general rules of contract interpretation. See, e.g., World Trade Ctr. Props., L.L.C. v. Hartford Fire Ins. Co., 345 F.3d 154, 183-84 (2d Cir. 2003), abrogated on other grounds by Wachovia Bank v. Schmidt, 546 U.S. 303, 126 act. 941, 163 L.Ed,2d 797 (2006). Under those principles, insurance contracts should be interpreted “to give effect to the intent of the parties as expressed in the clear language of the contract.” Morgan Stanley Grp. Inc. v. New England Ins. Co., 225 F.3d 270, 275 (2d Cir. 2000). The “words and phrases [in a contract] should be given their plain meaning, and the contract should be construed so as to give full meaning and effect to all of its provisions.” LaSalle Bank Nat'l Ass’n v. Nomura Asset Capital Corp., 424 F.3d 195, 206 (2d Cir.2005) (internal quotation marks and ellipsis omitted).

In contending that the carrier for hire exception does not apply, Travelers asserts that Bestway Logistics Transportation was acting in its capacity as a warehouseman at the time of the loss. While the Policy does not define the term “carrier for hire,” as understood in common usage, a “carrier” is “[a]n individual or organization (such as a shipowner, a railroad, or an airline) that contracts to transport ... goods for a fee.” Carrier, Black’s Law Dictionary (10th ed. 2014) (emphasis added). As this definition implies, it is the nature of the relationship between the transportation company and customer that determines whether an entity is a carrier for hire. Moreover, in determining whether an entity is a “carrier for hire,” courts have looked to the primary goal or purpose of the entity entrusted with the goods or property. See, e.g., Nippon Fire & Marine Ins. Co., Ltd. v. Skyway Freight Sys., Inc., 45 F.Supp.2d 288, 292 (S.D.N.Y. 1999) (concluding that Skyway was acting as a carrier because it “was engaged to ship [goods] by air, and any storage was temporary and incidental to that primary goal”); Cougar Sport, Inc. v. Hartford Ins. Co., 190 Misc.2d 91, 737 N.Y.S.2d 770, 774-75 (Sup. Ct. 2000) (holding that warehouseman was not a carrier for hire because its “responsibility ended once it moved goods to the loading dock”), aff'd 288 A.D.2d 85, 733 N.Y.S.2d 151 (1st Dep’t 2001). The underlying purpose of the contractual relátionship between a carrier and the customer. controls whether the exception applies.

Here, because Warehouse Wines contracted -with Bestway Logistics Transportation to ship its products from the Haup-pauge warehouse to its Manhattan retail store, the carrier for hire exception applies. Indeed, Bestway Logisites Transportation was registered with the Department of Transportation as a carrier for hue. The fact that Warehouse Wines’ property was stolen from Bestway’s warehouse does not alter the fact that it was in the custody of Bestway Logistics Transportation — a company contracted to transport goods for a fee. Cf. Nippon Fire & Marine, 45 F.Supp.2d at 292 (concluding that Skyway was acting as a carrier because it “was engaged to ship [goods] by air, and any storage was temporary and incidental to that primary goal”).

Travelers makes much of the fact that by the time of the loss, James Ceser-etti (the owner and president of the Best-way companies) had incorporated Bestway Warehouse &' Transportation (strictly a warehousing business), and Warehouse Wines had entered an agreement with Bestway Warehouse & Transportation to store its products at the Hauppauge warehouse. Travelers contends that, because Warehouse Wines’ product was in the custody of Bestway’s warehousing operation (and not Bestway Logisites), the carrier for hire exception is inapplicable. In any event, because Travelers conceded that both companies were the alter egos of Ceseretti — and there is nothing to suggest that the warehousing agreement replaced the transportation agreement — Ceseretti remained a carrier for hire at the time of the loss. Indeed, Ceseretti expanded his operations under Bestway Logistics Transportation to provide warehouse services before incorporating Bestway Warehouse & Transportation, and both companies shared a common bank account. Ceseretti also made all decisions for the two companies and exercised complete dominion and control over them. In these circumstances, it is of no significance that Ceseretti also provided warehousing services to Warehouse Wines under a separate agreement, or that the goods were stored pursuant to that agreement at the time of the loss, because these facts do no undermine Best-way’s relationship with Warehouse Wines as a carrier for hire.

ii.

“When reviewing a judgment following a bench trial in the district court, we review the court’s findings of fact for clear error and its conclusions of law de novo.” Merck Eprova AG v. Gnosis S.p.A., 760 F.3d 247, 255 (2d Cir. 2014). “The insured bears the burden of proving the amount of damage, and the insurance company bears the burden of proving facts in ibitigation of damage.” C-Suzanne Beauty Salon, Ltd. v. Gen. Ins. Co. of Am., 574 F.2d 106, 114 (2d Cir. 1978) (footnote omitted). 1 Once the fact of damages is established “[t]he plaintiff need only show a stable foundation for a reasonable estimate of the damage incurred as a result of the breach.” Tractebel Energy Mktg., Inc. v. AEP Power Marketing, Inc., 487 F.3d 89, 110 (2d Cir. 2007) (internal quotation marks and citation omitted).

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Bluebook (online)
711 F. App'x 654, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/warehouse-wines-spirits-v-travelers-property-casualty-co-of-america-ca2-2017.