After reading this edition of Texas Update!, we are sure you will agree that Paris Hilton made a big mistake when she fired us.
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PRODUCTS LIABILITY UPDATE: In a case closely watched by the industry, Chamberlain♦McHaney scored a significant jury trial victory last week for the manufacturer of a vent fan motor whose product was alleged to have caused a fire that seriously damaged a restaurant and bar in Austin. The plaintiff alleged $1.4 million in damages and claimed the fan motor contained a defectively designed and manufactured thermal cutoff which allowed the motor to reach extreme temperatures thereby igniting the fire. On behalf of the manufacturer, we blamed the fire on Mrs. O’Leary’s milk cow and that lantern she kicked over (just kiddin’ about that part). After a week long trial in federal court that included the testimony of eight experts from around the country, the jury rejected all theories alleged by the plaintiff and held for the defendant. David Chamberlain and Cathy Kyle represented the defendant motor manufacturer.
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PREMISES LIABILITY UPDATE: Chamberlain♦McHaney also recently obtained a summary judgment and eventually the ultimate dismissal of a suit brought by the parents of two boys against an apartment complex in the Dallas area. The parents sought several hundred thousand dollars in damages, alleging that the boys were sexually assaulted on the premises by a former tenant. The parents argued that apartment management had been grossly negligent in failing to take measures to prevent the former tenant from entering the premises after his lease had expired. The trial court granted our motion for partial summary judgment on the parents’ individual claims, and the boys claims were also dismissed shortly thereafter. The predator is currently serving a 50 year prison sentence. David Chamberlain and Ranelle Meroney handled the defense of the apartment complex at the request of St. Paul Travelers Insurance Company.
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Another 3rd of June has come and passed and we still do not know why Billy Joe McAlister jumped off the Tallahatchie Bridge. If you can assist us in figuring this mystery out, please let us know. Tx/Up! has been pondering this southern gothic tale since 1967 and our heads are starting to hurt.
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ADDITIONAL INSURED UPDATE: Chamberlain♦McHaney obtained a summary judgment for its client, Solectron, Inc, in a case brought against it by IBM Corp. Solectron, as the tenant, signed a lease agreement with its landlord, IBM. The lease agreement obligated Solectron to obtain a comprehensive liability insurance policy naming IBM as the additional insured. After one of Solectron’s employees was injured on the leased property, he brought suit against IBM alleging his injuries were caused by a premises defect. IBM settled with the injured employee and then brought suit against Solectron to recover over a quarter of a million dollars in settlement and defense costs. IBM alleged that Solectron had breached the lease agreement by failing to obtain a liability policy that actually named IBM as an additional insured. Specifically, IBM alleged that Solectron’s insurance agent had issued a certificate of insurance that stated that IBM was an additional insured, but the policy itself failed to name IBM as an additional insured.
On behalf of Solectron, we filed a summary judgment motion alleging that the claim was barred by the statute of limitations because suit had been brought more than four years after the commencement date of the lease. In response, IBM claimed that the statute of limitations was tolled until the date it received notice that Solectron’s insurer had denied IBM’s additional insured status (which was a date less than four years before IBM brought suit). IBM also claimed that it justifiably relied on the certificate of insurance that stated it was an additional insured. Citing a recent Texas Supreme Court case, Via Net v. Safety Lights, (Tex 2006), we argued that IBM did not exercise due diligence by merely receiving, reading and relying on the certificate of insurance. Instead, IBM had a duty to review the entire liability policy at the time of lease commencement in order to assure itself that the policy actually provided additional insured status to IBM.
The trial court agreed with us, granting a full summary judgment for Solectron, and awarding us the entirety of Solectron’s attorneys fees as the prevailing party under the lease agreement. David Chamberlain and Erin Westendorf handled Solectron’s defense at the request of Chubb Insurance Company.
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We will cover these and other important cases at our full day, fully accredited, 12th Annual ULTIMATE CLAIMS HANDLING SEMINAR on October 5, 2007 at CityPlace Conference Center in Dallas, Texas. Mark your calendar now! Registration forms will be available in August.
Chamberlain♦McHaney is an AV (Highest) Rated Firm and is listed in A.M. Best’s Directory of Recommended Attorneys.