Campbell v. Great Northern Insurance, Unpublished Decision (11-24-2003)
Campbell v. Great Northern Insurance, Unpublished Decision (11-24-2003)
Opinion of the Court
OPINION {¶ 1} On May 30, 1996, Brandon Campbell sustained fatal injuries in a motor vehicle accident while at work for Briarwood Landscape Nursery, caused by the negligence of a co-worker.
{¶ 2} At the time of the accident, Brandon's father, appellee, Ric Campbell, was employed by The Timken Company, insured under a commercial automobile policy issued by American and Foreign Insurance Company.
{¶ 3} On June 7, 2002, appellee, individually and as executor of the estate of Brandon Campbell, together with other next of kin, filed a complaint for declaratory judgment seeking underinsured motorists benefits from various insurance companies.
{¶ 4} All parties filed motions for summary judgment. By judgment entry filed January 17, 2003, the trial court found appellees were entitled to underinsured motorists benefits under the American commercial automobile policy.
{¶ 5} American filed an appeal and this matter is now before this court for consideration. Assignments of error are as follows:
{¶ 14} The American policy did not contain express uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage. Looking to the liability portion of the policy, the definition of an "insured" is similar to the definition in Scott-Pontzer. See, Section II(A)(1) of the Business Auto Coverage Form, attached to Royal SunAlliance's [American's] Motion for Summary Judgment filed under seal November 12, 2002 as Exhibit 1. Based upon the Supreme Court of Ohio's recent decision in WestfieldInsurance Co. v. Galatis, 100 Ohio St.3d ___,
{¶ 15} Assignments of Error I, III and IV are granted. The remaining assignments of error are moot.
{¶ 16} The judgment of the Court of Common Pleas of Stark County, Ohio is hereby reversed.
By Farmer, P.J., Hoffman, P.J. and Wise, J. concur.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.