Zurich American Ins. Co. v. Puccini

271 So. 3d 1079
District Court of Appeal of Florida·Decided February 6, 2019·No. 17-0690·Published·Cited by 1 cases

Opinion

Third District Court of Appeal State of Florida

Opinion filed February 6, 2019.

Not final until disposition of timely filed motion for rehearing.

No. 3D17-0690

Lower Tribunal No. 16-6142

Zurich American Insurance Company, a/s/o Lincoln-Drexel Waserstein, Ltd. and Lincoln Drexel, Ltd., Appellant,

vs.

Puccini, LLC d/b/a 5 Napkin Burger, Appellee.

An Appeal from the Circuit Court for Miami-Dade County, Bronwyn C.

Miller, Judge.

Derrevere Stevens Black and Cozad, and Jon D. Derrevere, and Michael B.

Stevens, and Shirley Jean McEachern and Mary Grecz (West Palm Beach), for appellant.

Hamilton, Miller & Birthisel, LLP, and Michelle A. Delancy and Melanie Grant, for appellee.

Before EMAS, C.J., and LOGUE and LINDSEY, JJ.

LINDSEY, J.

Appellant Zurich American Insurance Company (“Zurich”), as subrogee of Lincoln-Drexel Waserstein, Ltd. and Lincoln Drexel, Ltd. (“Landlord”), appeals the trial court’s final order dismissing, with prejudice, all of its claims against Appellee Puccini, LLC. d/b/a 5 Napkin Burger (“Tenant”). Because we find, based on the written lease agreement as a whole, that Tenant was not an implied co-insured with Landlord for subrogation purposes, we reverse.

BACKGROUND

This subrogation action arises from Zurich’s attempt to recover money from Tenant that Zurich paid to Landlord for fire damage sustained to Landlord’s building. Tenant leased space from Landlord for a restaurant pursuant to a written lease agreement dated March 1, 2010, for a term of fifteen years and ten months. On February 7, 2015, a fire ignited in Tenant’s kitchen followed by another fire on the roof of the building. At the time of the fire, Landlord had a Zurich insurance policy that covered a portion of the damage. Pursuant to the terms of its policy, Zurich alleged that it paid Landlord over $2.1 million dollars and that, as a result, Zurich became subrogated to all of Landlord’s claims against Tenant up to that amount.

Tenant moved to dismiss Zurich’s subrogation action, asserting that Tenant was an implied co-insured under the policy. The trial court ultimately agreed and entered a written order finding, based on various provisions of the lease, that Tenant

was an implied co-insured and concluding, as a matter of law, that Zurich was barred from proceeding with a subrogation action against Tenant. The trial court then entered a final order dismissing Zurich’s claims against Tenant with prejudice and without leave to amend. This timely appeal follows. I. STANDARD OF REVIEW We review a trial court's order granting a motion to dismiss de novo. Grove Isle Ass'n v. Grove Isle Assocs., LLLP, 137 So. 3d 1081, 1089 (Fla. 3d DCA 2014) (citations omitted). “In determining the merits of a motion to dismiss, the trial court must limit itself to the four corners of the complaint, including any attached or incorporated exhibits, assuming the allegations in the complaint to be true and construing all reasonable inferences therefrom in favor of the non-moving party.” Id. (citations omitted).

Moreover, the interpretation of a lease agreement is a question of law, and the applicable standard of review is de novo. Leisure Resorts, Inc. v. City of West Palm Beach, 864 So. 2d 1163, 1166 (Fla. 4th DCA 2003) (citation omitted). In undertaking review of a lease, an appellate court is permitted to reassess the contract and reach a different interpretation from that of the trial court. Sugar Cane Growers Coop. of Fla. v. Pinnock, 735 So. 2d 530, 534 (Fla. 4th DCA 1999). The contract should be reviewed as a whole and all language given effect, and where the language is clear and unambiguous, the contract should be enforced as it reads. Id.

II. ANALYSIS At issue in this case is the concept of insurance by implication as it relates to an insurer’s ability to maintain a subrogation action against a tenant who is not named in the insurance policy. “Generally, when an insurer pays the claim of its insured, the insurer stands in the shoes of its insured, and the insurer may bring a subrogation action against the tortfeasor to recover the amounts paid under the insurance policy.” State Farm Fla. Ins. Co. v. Loo, 27 So. 3d 747, 748 (Fla. 3d DCA 2010). However, an insurer may not maintain a subrogation action against its own insured, even if the insured’s negligence caused the loss. Id. In the landlord/tenant context, when a tenant is found to be an implied co-insured with its landlord, the landlord’s insurer is barred from bringing an action against the tenant in subrogation. Here, Zurich seeks to stand in the shoes of its insured, Landlord, to sue Tenant for any damage to the building that may have been caused by Tenant’s agents or employees.

In determining whether a landlord’s insurer may pursue a subrogation action against a negligent tenant, courts have typically adopted one of three views: (1) the approach set forth in Sutton v. Jondahl, 532 P.2d 478 (Okla. Civ. App. 1975), which establishes that a tenant is a coinsured of the landlord—and therefore subrogation is unavailable—absent an express agreement to the contrary; (2) the “anti-Sutton approach,” which provides a presumption in favor of subrogation and permits an

insurer to bring a subrogation action against the tenant absent an express or implied agreement to the contrary; and (3) the “case-by-case approach.” Loo, 27 So. 3d at 749; see also Am. Family Mut. Ins. Co. v. Auto-Owners Ins. Co., 757 N.W.2d 584, 589-94 (S.D. 2008).

In the case-by-case approach, there is no presumption in favor of or against subrogation; rather, “the ‘lease as a whole’ is examined ‘in order to ascertain the intent of the parties as to who should bear the risk of loss for damage to the leased premises caused by the tenant’s negligence.’” Loo, 27 So. 3d at 750 (quoting Am. Family, 757 N.W.2d at 592). This Court, along with some of our sister courts, has adopted the case-by-case approach.1 Id. at 750-51; see also Underwriters of Lloyds of London v. Cape Publ’ns, Inc., 63 So. 3d 892, 895-96 (Fla. 5th DCA 2011) (“Although each approach is supported by persuasive policy rationales, this court

1 According to the dissent, our case-by-case approach departs from the majority view, which is the anti-subrogation approach from Sutton. But see Rausch v. Allstate Ins. Co., 882 A.2d 801, 814 (Md. 2005) (“The majority of courts, however, have avoided per se rules and taken a more flexible case-by-case approach, holding that a tenant's liability to the landlord's insurer for negligence causing a fire depends on the intent and reasonable expectations of the parties to the lease as ascertained from the lease as a whole.” (quoting Union Mut. Fire Ins. Co. v. Joerg, 824 A.2d 586 (Vt. 2003))). We are, however, bound by our prior cases to follow the case-by-case approach. Moreover, as articulated by other courts, “[w]e are not particularly impressed with characterizations of a doctrine as the ‘majority’ or ‘minority’. We will give due consideration to all decisions of other jurisdictions but will be persuaded only by the soundness of their reasoning and their consistency with [our State's] law.” Am. Family, 757 N.W.2d at 594 (alterations in original) (quoting Koch v. Spann, 92 P.3d 146, 150 n.2 (Or. Ct. App. 2004)).

concludes that the parties are in the best position to allocate the risk of loss for fire damage and, therefore, adopt the case-by-case approach.” (footnote omitted)); Cont'l Ins. Co. v. Kennerson, 661 So. 2d 325, 326-30 (Fla. 1st DCA 1995) (examining several lease provisions to determine the parties’ intent as to who should bear the risk of loss for damage caused by tenants’ negligence).

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Zurich American Ins. Co. v. Puccini, 271 So. 3d 1079 (Fla. Ct. App. 2019).

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