Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern
District of Virginia, at Alexandria.
T. S. Ellis, III, Senior
District Judge. (1:10-cv-00792-TSE-TCB)
Argued:
Decided:
GREGORY,
Circuit
Judges,
Gregory
HAMILTON, 1
wrote
the
ARGUED:
Stephen Anthony Horvath, BANCROFT, MCGAVIN, HORVATH &
JUDKINS, PC, Fairfax, Virginia, for Appellant.
Margaret F.
Catalano, CARROLL, MCNULTY & KULL, LLC, Basking Ridge, New
Jersey, for Appellee.
ON BRIEF:
Melissa H. Katz, Wesley D.
Allen, BANCROFT, MCGAVIN, HORVATH & JUDKINS, PC, Fairfax,
Virginia, for Appellant. Heather E. Simpson, CARROLL, MCNULTY &
1
Environmental
Services,
Inc.
(Capitol)
argues
of
The
North
River
Insurance
Company
(North
River)
(Earth
Tech)
included
the
contractual
indemnity
claim
We disagree.
We
hold that because Capitol could never be held liable for any
damages to Earth Tech on a theory of contractual indemnity after
Earth Tech was made whole on its breach of contract claim, North
River has no duty to indemnify Capitol for the damages covered
by the settlement agreement.
I.
Capitol is a waste-disposal company that had been hired as
a contractor by St. Marks Refinery for waste disposal.
Capitol
in
provide
turn
hired
Earth
Tech
as
subcontractor
to
Capitol
September
25,
2002,
as
FCI
employee
Peter
Blash
was
line
of
the
road
so
that
its
headlights
pointed
in
Careys lane, which caused a glare that distracted her from the
trailer
ahead
providing
in
her
lane.
Earth
flagmen
to
direct
traffic
Tech
was
responsible
at
the
site.
for
Several
her
vehicle,
causing
her
to
swerve
and
hit
the
tractor-
trailer.
Carey filed suit in state court in Florida against Peter
Blash, FCI, and Earth Tech for her injuries and her husbands
loss of consortium.
Tech
filed
third-party
complaint
against
Capitol,
against
Capitol,
holding
that
Capitol
breached
the
The
trial
court
sua
sponte
4
severed
the
contractual
July
13,
2007,
Capitol
filed
declaratory
judgment
the
Eastern
indemnification
Capitol.
District
according
of
Virginia
to
North
seeking
Rivers
defense
policy
and
held
by
The court
action
only
if
Capitol
demonstrates
that
it
was
found
Id. at 645.
Id.
was
the
appropriate
forum
to
resolve
the
remaining
that in the event that the Florida court did not consider the
indemnity claim, the parties would return to Virginia federal
court to resolve the issue.
Capitol
sought
indemnity
claim
denied.
The
in
a
the
court
trial
for
Florida
dismissed
the
court,
the
severed
which
the
contractual
contractual
trial
court
indemnification
May
28,
2008,
the
Circuit
Court
of
Wakulla
County,
favor
of
Earth
district
court
judgment,
but
Tech,
of
and
appeal
added
Capitol
in
appealed
Florida,
prejudgment
to
which
interest
the
first
affirmed
to
the
the
damages,
On November
30, 2009, the first district court of appeal affirmed the trial
courts decision that the contractual indemnity claim was moot.
Neither
Capitol
nor
Earth
Tech
sought
appeal
to
the
Florida
Supreme Court.
In August 2010, Capitol and Earth Tech entered a settlement
agreement, in which Capitol agreed to pay $769,087,68 to Earth
Tech
according
to
payment
schedule
in
satisfaction
of
the
On
July
16,
2010,
Capitol
filed
second
declaratory
and
that
litigating
legally
Earth
the
Tech
issue
obligated
is
precluded
again.
to
pay
As
by
Earth
such,
Tech
res
judicata
Capitol
under
never
the
from
became
contractual
The
agreement
court
between
further
Capitol
determined
and
Earth
that
Tech
did
the
not
II.
On
between
appeal,
Capitol
Capitol
and
argues
Earth
that
Tech
the
settlement
includes
the
agreement
dismissed
for
this
claim
according
7
to
its
insurance
policy.
or
property
damage.
J.A.
243.
The
. . .
also
policy
to
the
exception:
[t]hat
the
insured
contract or agreement.
there
would
is
have
J.A. 243.
But there is an
coverage
in
the
for
absence
damages
of
the
and
of
Capitol).
Capitol
the
would
agreement
have
(due
to
had
the
that
liability
court
judgment
in
the
against
only
agreement
question
that
remains
between
Capitol
and
is
whether
Earth
Tech
the
settlement
included
the
the fact that the state appeals court had ordered judgment for
$889,152.72 on the breach of contract claim.
Capitols argument
is unconvincing.
First, the judgment for $889,152.72 made Earth Tech whole
for its injury.
of
the
obligated
to
settlement
agreement,
pay
Tech
indemnity theory.
legally
Earth
Capitol
damages
was
under
At the
not
the
legally
contractual
obligated
to
pay
damages
to
Earth
Tech
under
the
under
judgment
against
Capitol
the
contractual
court
decision
indemnity
theory.
Second,
the
Florida
state
that
the
or
for
improper
venue
or
for
lack
of
an
the
Florida
courts
to
decide
9
moot
questions
is
based
on
Merkle v. Jacoby,
912 So. 2d 593, 594 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 2d Dist. 2005) (citing
Cook v. City of Jacksonville, 823 So. 2d 86 (Fla. 2002).
Under
consider
the
exceptions applies:
merits
when
one
of
three
policy
or
affect
the
(iii)
rights
determined.
v.
State,
when
of
the
collateral
party
legal
consequences
from
the
flow
issue
that
to
be
593
So.
2d
211,
212
(Fla.
1992)).
The
Florida
See also
Semtek Intern. Inc. v. Lockheed Martin Corp., 513 U.S. 497, 501503 (2001) (discussing the history of the federal counterpart,
Rule 41(b)); Allie v. Ionata, 503 So. 2d 1237, 1241 (Fla. 1987)
(same) (holding that [a] judgment on the merits precluding the
relitigation of the same cause of action is one based on the
legal rights and liabilities of the parties, as distinguished
from
one
based
contentions,
procedure.).
or
on
on
technical
mere
matters
Therefore,
under
10
or
dilatory
of
form
Florida
or
objections
of
law
practice
the
or
or
mootness
Because
North
River
policy
covers
only
claims
which
Capitol
is
purported
Capitol,
cannot
to
settle
be
said
all
to
claims
have
between
encompassed
Earth
Tech
and
the
breach
of
Mut. Life Ins. Co., 745 So.2d 349, 350 (Fla. 4th Dist. Ct. App.
(1999)) (applying res judicata where parties are not identical
because the insurance companys and the insureds interests
were not antagonistic).
Therefore, the Florida state court
decision that Earth Techs contractual indemnity claim was moot
does not bind Capitol in its instant litigation for indemnity by
North River.
Nevertheless, this is a pyrrhic victory for Capitol
because, as already stated, under no circumstances can Capitol
be liable for damages to Earth Tech under the theory of
contractual indemnification after Earth Tech was made whole by
the award of damages on the breach of contract claim.
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