Westfield Insurance Co. v. Gallatis, Unpublished Decision (4-3-2002)
Westfield Insurance Co. v. Gallatis, Unpublished Decision (4-3-2002)
Opinion of the Court
This cause was heard upon the record in the trial court. Each error assigned has been reviewed and the following disposition is made: Appellants/cross-appellees, James Galatis, Anita Galatis, Nicole Galatis,1 Mike Galatis, Vicki Galatis, Jenna Galatis and John Galatis ("Appellants"), appeal the decision of the Summit County Court of Common Pleas granting summary judgment to Aetna Casualty Surety Company NKA Travelers ("Aetna"). We affirm.
At the time of the accident, Anita Galatis (decedent's mother) was employed at Quagliata's Restaurants Inc. ("Quagliata"). Quagliata had an insurance policy with Aetna. In 2000, Appellants notified Westfield Insurance Company ("Westfield")2 and Aetna regarding their possible claims arising out of the death of Jason Robert Galatis.
On December 27, 2000, Westfield filed a complaint against Appellants and Aetna seeking declaratory judgement that Appellants were not entitled to coverage under the policy. Appellants answered and filed counterclaims and crossclaims seeking a declaratory judgment regarding the underinsured motorist coverage under Westfield and Aetna's policies and damages in the amount of ten million dollars. Aetna filed answers to all the claims. On June 5, 2001, the parties entered stipulations. Westfield and Aetna moved the trial court for summary judgment. On August 30, 2001, the trial court granted summary judgment to Westfield and Aetna and dismissed with prejudice the Appellants' counterclaims and crossclaims.
This appeal and cross-appeal followed.
THE TRIAL COURT ERRED WHEN IT GRANTED SUMMARY JUDGMENT IN FAVOR OF THE APPELLEES/CROSS-APPELLANTS AND DENIED APPELLANTS' MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT.
In their sole assignment of error, the Appellants challenge the trial court's granting of summary judgment to Aetna.
To prevail on a summary judgment motion, the moving party "bears the initial burden of demonstrating that there are no genuine issues of material fact concerning an essential element of the opponent's case."Dresher v. Burt (1996),
An appellate court reviews an award of summary judgment de novo.Grafton v. Ohio Edison Co. (1996),
Civ.R. 56(C) provides an exclusive list of materials which the trial court may consider on a motion for summary judgment. Spier v. AmericanUniv. of the Carribean (1981),
In support of its motion for summary judgment, Aetna provided the June 5, 2001 stipulations, interrogatory answers and a copy of Quagliata's insurance policy. The declarations page of the policy's Business Auto Coverage Form states the named insured as the corporation. A later endorsement to the policy modified the Business Auto Coverage by listing the Schedule of the following individuals: John Quagliato, Angelo Guaglito, Carl Patricia Quagliato, Nick Carla Fritz, Kathy Quagliato. The endorsement provides:
CHANGES IN AUTO MEDICAL PAYMENTS AND UNINSURED AND UNDERINSURED MOTORISTS COVERAGES
The following is added to WHO IS AN INSURED:
Any individual named in the Schedule and his or her "family members" are "insured" while "occupying" or while pedestrian when being struck by any "auto" you don't own except:
Any "auto" owned by that individual or by any "family member."
* * *
E. ADDITIONAL DEFINITION
The following is added to the DEFINITIONS Section:
"Family member" means a person related to the individual named in the Schedule by blood, marriage or adoption who is a resident of the individual's household, including a ward or foster child.
Where individuals and a corporation are named as insureds entitled to underinsured motorist coverage the policy language is unambiguous. As Anita Galatis was not one of the named individuals in the Schedule, neither she nor her relatives were entitled to underinsured motorist coverage under Aetna's policy.
Appellants responded in opposition but did not provide the trial court with any evidence of the type listed in Civ.R. 56(C) to support their argument that they were entitled to underinsured motorist coverage. Instead, Appellants submitted copies of case law. Appellants argued that underinsured motorist coverage existed by operation of law pursuant toScott-Pontzer v. Liberty Mut. Fire Ins. Co. (1999),
We do not reach a Scott-Pontzer analysis on the facts before us. UnlikeScott-Pontzer, where the insurance policy provided underinsured motorist insurance protection solely to a corporation without any regard to persons, Aetna's policy referred to the Schedule of individuals, in addition to the corporation, as the insureds under the policy. See id. at 664. Listing specific individuals as insureds removed the ambiguity present in Scott-Pontzer surrounding the term "you," as it referred to insureds in a corporation's policy. Quagliata's policy language is not open to the interpretation that employees of the corporation are "insureds" for underinsured motorist coverage. Accordingly, we interpret the policy language at issue in Quagliata's policy as providing underinsured motorist insurance protection to the Schedule of specifically named individuals.
Aetna presented evidence of a policy that unambiguously provides underinsured motorist coverage to the Schedule of individuals that did not include Anita Galatis. Appellants failed to adduce evidence to dispute the policy language. Where the element is put in issue by the movant, and the non-moving party fails to make a showing of evidence as to the existence of an essential element of his or her cause of action, "there can be `no genuine issue as to any material fact,' since a complete failure of proof concerning an essential element of the nonmoving party's case necessarily renders all other facts immaterial."Dresher,
Appellants' assignment of error is overruled.
THE TRIAL COURT COMMITTED REVERSIBLE ERROR BY FINDING THAT THE COMMERCIAL GENERAL LIABILITY ("CGL") COVERAGE PART OF MASTER INSURANCE POLICY NO. 002 ACM 23704697 ISSUED BY AETNA CASUALTY SURETY COMPANY ("TRAVELER'S) TO QUAGLIATA'S RESTAURANTS, INC ("QUAGLIATA'S"), EFFECTIVE JUNE 1, 1994 TO JUNE 1, 1995 ("TRAVELER'S POLICY"), CONSTITUTED AN AUTOMOBILE LIABILITY OR MOTOR VEHICLE LIABILITY POLICY OF INSURANCE AS TO BE INDEPENDENTLY SUBJECT TO R.C.
3937.18 .
In its sole assignment of error, Aetna invites this court to issue a finding that their policy with Quagliata contains express underinsured motorist coverage provisions precluding a finding that coverage existed by operation of law pursuant to R.C.
Aetna's assignment of error is overruled.
Judgment affirmed.
The Court finds that there were reasonable grounds for this appeal.
We order that a special mandate issue out of this Court, directing the Court of Common Pleas, County of Summit, State of Ohio, to carry this judgment into execution. A certified copy of this journal entry shall constitute the mandate, pursuant to App.R. 27.
Immediately upon the filing hereof, this document shall constitute the journal entry of judgment, and it shall be file stamped by the Clerk of the Court of Appeals at which time the period for review shall begin to run. App.R. 22(E). The Clerk of the Court of Appeals is instructed to mail a notice of entry of this judgment to the parties and to make a notation of the mailing in the docket, pursuant to App.R. 30.
Costs taxed to Appellants/Cross-Appellees.
Exceptions.
SLABY, P.J., WHITMORE, J. CONCUR.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.