Westfield Ins. Co. v. Weaver Cooke Constr., LLC, 2019 BL 129431 (E.D.N.C. Apr. 11, 2019)

This case arises out of the alleged defective construction of a condominium complex in North Carolina.  In 2009, the developer on the project filed suit for the alleged construction defects.  This related coverage lawsuit then ensued between the parties’ insurers regarding a duty to defend the general contractor.Continue Reading Federal Court in North Carolina Enforces Insurers’ Duty to Defend a General Contractor as an Additional Named Insured Under the Subcontractor’s Commercial General Liability Policy

Addison Ins. Co. v. 4000 Island Blvd. Condo. Ass’n, 2017 U.S. App. LEXIS 26870 (11th Cir. Dec. 28, 2017)

The owner of a high-rise condominium building in Florida hired a contractor to replace the building’s concrete balcony railings with new railings featuring aluminum and glass.  The contractor on the project, Poma Construction (“Poma”), entered into a subcontract with Windsor Metal Specialties (“Windsor”), under which Windsor agreed to paint the new aluminum railings.

Two years after the work was completed, the owner sued Poma and Windsor in Florida state court, alleging that the railings were defective and required replacement.  In addition to replacing the railing system, the owner alleged that Windsor’s defective paint finish damaged other surrounding property, including railing post pockets and the concrete balcony slabs.

Windsor submitted the claim to its liability carrier, Addison Insurance Company (“Addison”).  Addison then filed a declaratory judgment action in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida, seeking a declaration that it had no duty to defend Windsor in the owner’s underlying lawsuit.  Windsor’s policy provided a defense against claims alleging that an “occurrence” caused “property damage.”  But the policy excluded claims alleging damage to Windsor’s own work product or to the particular part of a property on which Windsor performed its work.  Addison had invoked that exclusion, arguing that the owner merely alleged damage to Windsor’s own work and/or the part of the property on which Windsor performed its work, i.e. the balcony.  The District Court granted summary judgment in favor of Windsor, and Addison appealed.Continue Reading Applying Florida’s “Eight Corners Rule,” Eleventh Circuit Finds that Insurer Has a Duty to Defend Claim That Insured’s Faulty Paint Work on Balcony Railings Caused Damage to Adjacent Balcony Slabs