American Family Mut. Ins. Co. v. Thiem, C2-92-2435
| Decision Date | 13 August 1993 |
| Docket Number | No. C2-92-2435,C2-92-2435 |
| Citation | 503 N.W.2d 789 |
| Parties | AMERICAN FAMILY MUTUAL INSURANCE COMPANY, Petitioner, Appellant, v. Joel Robert THIEM, Respondent. |
| Court | Minnesota Supreme Court |
Syllabus by the Court
Under the facts and circumstances presented, the deceased minor child was a "resident" of his father's household for the purpose of determining whether the child was an "insured" under the uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage of his father's automobile insurance policy.
Mary Muehlen Maring, Fargo, ND, for appellant.
Paul T. Bensloof, Bemidji, for respondent.
Considered and decided by the court en banc without oral argument.
On petition for further review of American Family Mutual Insurance Company, we consider a decision of the court of appeals reversing the summary judgment entered in favor of the petitioner-insurer and remanding for further proceedings in this insurance coverage dispute. American Family Mut. Ins. Co. v. Thiem, 498 N.W.2d 279 (Minn.App.1993). While the facts are more fully detailed in the decision of the court of appeals, it is sufficient for our purposes to summarize them as follows: 10-year-old Joshua Thiem died as a result of injuries sustained in an automobile accident on August 31, 1990 while a passenger in an automobile driven by his mother. His parents' marriage had been dissolved by judgment and decree entered on September 23, 1986 and this action centers upon whether the deceased was a resident of his father's household for insurance coverage purposes under an automobile policy issued by American Family to its insured, Joel Robert Thiem.
At the time of the marriage dissolution, Barbara Thiem, Joshua's mother, was awarded sole custody of the three minor children subject to Joel's reasonable visitation and during the ensuing years, while the separate families moved on several occasions and at times considerable distance separated them, Joel and his new family spent considerable time with Joshua and routinely maintained space for him during his visits in the home. The parties appear to have established a cooperative effort by which both participated fully in their son's life and Joel's regular contacts and interaction were maintained.
Designated as trustee for Joshua's heirs and next of kin in a wrongful death action, Joel made a claim against the uninsured and underinsured coverage of the automobile policy issued to him by American Family contending that Joshua was an insured under that policy. When the insurer denied coverage, it commenced this declaratory judgment action, seeking a judicial declaration that Joshua was neither in the named insured's custody nor a resident of the insured's household at the time of the accident. On the parties' cross-motions for summary judgment, the trial court awarded judgment to the insurer, concluding that the deceased was not a resident of his father's household.
The court of appeals reversed, declaring that there exist...
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