Ag Law Case Annotations

Buckeye State Mutual Insurance Co. v. Carfield, et al., No. 70A04-0902-CV-95, 2009 Ind. App. LEXIS 2057 (Ind. Ct. App. Oct. 7, 2009)(farm pickup-truck which was shared between father and son covered under son's automobile insurance policy; policy language excluding coverage for "any vehicle...which is furnished or available for your regular use" inapplicable - son's use only periodic).

General Security Indemnity Company of Arizona v. Century Surety Company, No. 08-cv-01528-PAB-MEH, 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 67206 (D. Colo. Aug. 3, 2009)(plaintiff had no duty to defend seller of unimproved lots to builder who developed the lots with homes which subsequently suffered structural damage due to movement of soil under the homes; no "occurrence" happened which would have triggered policy coverage because seller of unimproved lots made knowing misrepresentations concerning soil conditions).

Michigan Millers Mutual Insurance Co. v. DG&G Company, Inc., No. 08-2699 (8th Cir. Jul. 1, 2009)(cotton was damaged at defendant's cotton gin facility by excessive moisture which rendered the cotton unmerchantable; because cotton was in defendant's custody, care and control at time of occurrence of damage, exclusionary language in policy applied and defendant's agribusiness policy excluded coverage under its provision excluding "defects, errors and omissions").

Whitmore v. Liberty Mutual Fire Insurance Co., No. 07-5162, 2008 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 76049 (E.D. Pa. Sept. 30, 2008)(pollution exclusion clause in insurance policy did not exclude coverage for damages caused by spilled home heating oil that remained contained within plaintiff's basement; policy language subject to more than one interpretation, and "petroleum products" not listed in exclusion clause language along with "smoke, vapor, soot, fumes, acids, alkalis, chemicals and waste").

Reed, et al. v. Auto-Owners Insurance Co., No. S07G 1768, 2008 Ga. LEXIS 746 (Ga. Sup. Ct. Sept. 22, 2008)(residential tenant sued landlord for carbon monoxide poisoning allegedly caused by landlord’s failure to keep rental house in good repair; defendant, landlord’s insurance carrier, defended suit but filed declaratory judgment action requesting determination of non-liability; pollution exclusion clause unambiguously excluded tenant’s claim from coverage – nothing in clause language limited term “pollution” to what is commonly or traditionally considered environmental pollution).

Willis Provost Transportation, Inc. v. First Financial Insurance Company, No. 07-0411, 2008 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 62842 (W.D. La. Aug. 18, 2008)(defendant failed to carry its burden to show that clean-up costs that plaintiff incurred for leaking diesel fuel storage tank on farm were not covered by insurance policy).

Steffen v. Progressive Northern Insurance Co., 276 Neb. 378 (2008)(plaintiff’s husband killed when tractor he was driving on public road struck from behind; plaintiff brought breach of contract action against defendant; defendant claimed that policy did not cover underinsured motorist coverage for operation of farm tractor; trial court’s granted summary judgment for defendant on basis that policy did not provide coverage for operation of farm tractor and that action barred by statute of limitations; trial court reversed on appeal – policy exclusion contravenes state law; case remanded on statute of limitations issue).

Hueske v. State Farm Fire and Casualty Company, No. 07-3582, 2008 U.S. App. LEXIS 17459 (8th Cir. Aug. 13, 2008)(plaintiffs sued defendant for payment under third party supplier’s policy for losses plaintiff sustained from feeding cattle corn syrup tainted with diesel fuel that was purchased from supplier (a farmer); court holds that supplier’s corn syrup brokerage activity was a non-covered business pursuit of the insured separate from his farming operation that was not covered by the policy; plaintiff had previously entered into settlement with defendant stipulating that judgment may be collected only from proceeds of insurance policy with no personal liability to insured).

Anderson v. Farm Service Agency, No. 07-2843 (8th Cir. Jul. 18, 2008)(amount of payment under group risk insurance policy properly calculated based on county average rather than plaintiff's calculation of historical production yield; defendant properly applied statewide payment rate because USDA's Risk Management Agency had not established a nationwide rate).

American Growers Insurance Company v. Federal Crop Insurance Corporation, No. 07-1655, 2008 U.S. App. LEXIS 14908 (8th Cir. Jul. 15, 2008)(7 U.S.C. §1508(j)(3) does not provide for a cause of action for indemnification of insurance company from FCIC; insurer may only seek indemnification from FCIC for a loss claim made against insurance company by a producer; trial court award of $950,025 to plaintiff reversed; case arose from FCIC's addition of prevented planting coverage to all multi-peril crop insurance policies).

Conrad v. Ace Property & Casualty Insurance Company, No. 06-35539, 2008 U.S. App. LEXIS 14888 (9th Cir. Jul. 14, 2008)(amount of revenue protection provided under adjusted gross revenue (AGR) policy determined by reference to procedures in FCIC handbook rather than insured's expected revenue; definition of approved AGR under the policy gave defendant discretion to adjust insured's average gross revenue and required use of indexing formulas from FCIC handbook).

National Fire Insurance Company of Hartford v. Martinelli, et al., No. 07-CV-01056-AWI-GSA , 2008 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 52911 (E.D. Cal. Jul. 11, 2008)(levee of process pond of olive-growing operation failed and flooded neighboring property with salt-water/brine wastewater which inundated 40 acres of defendant’s olive orchards and another defendant’s 40-acres of grapes, killing the olive trees and grape vines; levee failure was due to insured’s negligent failure to properly inspect and maintain process pond; plaintiff denied coverage and defendant obtained default judgment of over $70 million; insured then filed bankruptcy and plaintiff sought declaratory judgment that policies provided no coverage via a “pollution exclusion” clause; pollution exclusion clause held applicable – widespread flooding of substantial amount of saltwater/brine from commercial process pond onto adjacent agricultural land commonly thought of as pollution and environmental pollution).

Beaver Run Farms, et al. v. New Jersey Realty Title Insurance Co., No. A-125, 2008 N.J. LEXIS 603 (N.J. Sup. Ct. Jun. 5, 2008)(partners of plaintiff general partnership bought land and general partnership obtained title insurance from defendant; land conveyed to limited partnership owned by same partners, but new title insurance not obtained; title defect discovered ten years later and suit brought under policy; partners held to not have insurable interest because insured (general partnership) no longer held title to land - policy lapsed when property voluntarily conveyed to separate and distinct limited partnership and limited partnerhsip did not have standing to sue under policy).

Broad v. Randy Bauer Insurance Agency, Inc., 275 Neb. 788 (2008)(defendant insulated from liability for insured’s failure to read policies; but, question remained as to whether insured’s estate stated valid cause of action against defendant concerning whether defendant was a broker or an agent).

First American Title Insurance Co. v. U.S., No. 05-35520, 2008 U.S. App. LEXIS 6295 (9th Cir. Mar. 27, 2008)(buyers of homes purchased from estate heirs liable for unpaid estate tax pursuant to IRS 10-year estate tax lien, and buyers could not challenge additional estate tax assessment because they were not the “taxpayer”; buyers’ liability covered by title insurance policies).