Farm Bureau Ins. Co. Of Idaho v. Kinsey

Decision Date07 July 2010
Docket NumberNo. 36607.,36607.
Citation149 Idaho 415,234 P.3d 739
PartiesFARM BUREAU INSURANCE COMPANY OF IDAHO, Plaintiff-Respondent,v.Jamey KINSEY and M. Wilmoth Kinsey, d/b/a Kinsey Family Limited Partnership, Defendants,andMichael Brookbank, Intervenor-Appellant.
CourtIdaho Supreme Court

149 Idaho 415
234 P.3d 739

FARM BUREAU INSURANCE COMPANY OF IDAHO, Plaintiff-Respondent,
v.
Jamey KINSEY and M. Wilmoth Kinsey, d/b/a Kinsey Family Limited Partnership, Defendants,
and
Michael Brookbank, Intervenor-Appellant.

No. 36607.

Supreme Court of Idaho,
Boise, June 2010 Term.

July 7, 2010.


234 P.3d 740

COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED

234 P.3d 741
Jeffrey J. Hepworth, P.A. & Associates, Twin Falls, for appellant. Jeffrey J. Hepworth argued.

Merrill & Merrill, Pocatello, for respondent. Kent L. Hawkins argued.

J. JONES, Justice.

Michael Brookbank appeals the district court's grant of summary judgment in favor of Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Company, finding that Jamey Kinsey was not covered under M. Wilmoth Kinsey's homeowner's insurance policy. We affirm.

I.
Factual and Procedural History

Brookbank was injured on August 18, 2007, when he collided with Jamey's dog while riding his motorcycle. The incident occurred in front of Wilmoth's residence at 3497 East, 300 North, Kimberly, Idaho. Wilmoth is Jamey's grandmother, and he was allegedly at her residence to pick up a pair of work boots at the time of the incident. While at Wilmoth's residence, Jamey's dog jumped out of the back of his truck and ran across the road, colliding with Brookbank's motorcycle. Brookbank was seriously injured as a result. Brookbank subsequently filed suit against Jamey to recover damages arising from the incident.

Wilmoth's property is covered by a Farm and Ranch Squire Policy issued by Farm Bureau to her and the Kinsey Family Limited Partnership. Jamey is not a member of the partnership. Bodily injury and property damage claims are covered under the policy as follows:

If a claim is made or a suit brought against any insured for damages of bodily injury or property damage caused by an occurrence to which this coverage applies, we will:
1. Pay up to our limit of liability for the damages for which the insured is legally liable;
2. Provide a defense at our expense by counsel of our choice.

The policy defines “insured” as:

Insured means you or the entity named in the Declarations.

1. If you are an individual, insured also means, if residents of your household, your spouse, your relatives....
2. If you are a partnership ... insured also means your members and your partners, but only with respect to your partnership or joint venture.

The policy defines “relative” as “a person related to [the policyholder] by blood [or] marriage ... who is a resident of [the policyholder's] household.”

Based on the policy language, Farm Bureau filed this action for declaratory judgment against Jamey and Wilmoth, seeking a determination of whether the policy covered Brookbank's claim against Jamey. The parties later stipulated to Brookbank's intervention. Jamey and Wilmoth never formally appeared. After Jamey and Wilmoth were deposed, Farm Bureau and Brookbank filed cross-motions for summary judgment on the sole issue of Jamey's coverage under the policy; more specifically, whether Jamey was a resident of Wilmoth's household at the time of the accident. The district court determined that Jamey was not a resident of Wilmoth's household based on the following facts: Jamey is 38 years old and financially independent of Wilmoth; Jamey had not stayed in Wilmoth's house since at latest 2001, other than for occasional overnight visits; Jamey normally lives at his girlfriend's house; Jamey often spends up to 30 days at a time in the hills and mountains; most of Jamey's clothing is at his girlfriend's house;

234 P.3d 742
testimony of Jamey and Wilmoth that Jamey is not a resident of Wilmoth's household; the lack of a bedroom for Jamey in Wilmoth's house; and the infrequent contact between Jamey and Wilmoth. Consequently, the district court granted summary judgment in favor of Farm Bureau. Brookbank appealed to this Court on the sole issue of whether Jamey is covered under the policy.
II.
Issue Presented on Appeal

The sole issue presented on appeal is whether the district court erred in determining that Jamey was not a resident of Wilmoth's household.

III.
Discussion
A.
Standard of Review

When reviewing the grant of a motion for summary judgment, we apply the same standard used by the district court in ruling on the motion. Van v. Portneuf Med. Ctr., 147 Idaho 552, 556, 212 P.3d 982, 986 (2009). “Summary judgment is properly granted when ‘the pleadings, depositions, and admissions on file, together with the affidavits, if any, show that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.’ ” Id. (quoting Idaho R. Civ. P. 56(c)). The burden of demonstrating the absence of a genuine issue of material fact is on the moving party. Id. We must construe the record in favor of the nonmoving party, drawing all reasonable inferences in that party's favor. Id. If we find that reasonable minds could differ on conclusions drawn from the evidence presented, the motion must be denied. Id. “The fact that the parties have filed cross-motions for summary judgment does not change the applicable standard of review, and this Court must evaluate each party's motion on its own merits.” Intermountain Forest Mgmt., Inc. v. La. Pac. Corp., 136 Idaho 233, 235, 31 P.3d 921, 923 (2001).

Where the case will be tried without a jury, the district court, as the trier of fact, is entitled to draw the most probable inferences from the undisputed evidence properly before it and grant the summary judgment motion in spite of the potential of conflicting inferences. P.O. Ventures, Inc. v. Loucks Family Irrev. Trust, 144 Idaho 233, 237, 159 P.3d 870, 874 (2007). “This Court freely reviews the entire record before the district court to determine whether either side was entitled to judgment as a matter of law and whether inferences drawn by the district court are reasonably supported by the record.” Potlatch Educ. Ass'n v. Potlatch Sch. Dist. No. 285, 148 Idaho 630, 633, 226 P.3d 1277, 1280 (2010).

In those limited instances where “the evidence is entirely confined to a written record, there is no additional, in-court testimony to be obtained, and the trial judge alone will be responsible for choosing the evidentiary facts he deems most probable,” the trial judge may grant summary judgment on undisputed evidentiary facts, despite conflicting inferences. Argyle v. Slemaker, 107 Idaho 668, 670-71, 691 P.2d 1283, 1285-86 (Ct.App.1984). In such instances, the appropriate standard of review on appeal is equivalent to the standard of clear error prescribed by I.R.C.P. 52(a). Flemmer v. Tammany Elementary Sch. Dist. No. 343, 116 Idaho 204, 207 n. 2, 774 P.2d 914, 917 n. 2 (Ct.App.1989). Thus, we examine the record to determine whether the trial court's decision is supported by substantial and competent evidence.

B.
Policy Interpretation

On appeal, Brookbank argues that the phrase “residents of your household” is ambiguous and that the district court should have construed the ambiguous phrase against Farm Bureau and in favor of coverage. Brookbank also argues that the evidence in the record demonstrates that Jamey was a resident of Wilmoth's household under the standard set forth in Allstate Ins. Co. v. Mocaby, 133 Idaho 593, 990 P.2d 1204 (1999), and

234 P.3d 743
AID Ins. Co. v. Armstrong, 119 Idaho 897, 811 P.2d 507 (Ct.App.1991). Brookbank relies on the following facts: Jamey and Wilmoth have a close relationship, Wilmoth pays some of Jamey's bills and renews his vehicle registration, some of Jamey's mail is sent to Wilmoth's address, Wilmoth's address is listed on the accident report, and Jamey keeps some belongings at Wilmoth's home. Farm Bureau argues that the district court did not err because testimony of Jamey and Wilmoth established that they did not view Jamey as being a resident of Wilmoth's household and that Jamey resided with his girlfriend.

Because insurance policies are contracts of adhesion that are not usually subject to negotiation between the parties, any ambiguity in a policy is construed strongly against the insurer. Mocaby, 133 Idaho at 597, 990 P.2d at 1208. Where the language used in an insurance policy is clear and unambiguous, the language must be given its plain, ordinary meaning. Id. Coverage will be determined according to the plain meaning of the words in the policy. Id. “A provision in an insurance policy is ambiguous if it is reasonably subject to conflicting interpretations.” Id. If confronted with ambiguous language, the reviewing court must determine what a reasonable person would understand the language to mean. Id.

The district court in this case, much like this Court in Mocaby and the Court of Appeals in Armstrong, acknowledged that the phrase “residents of your household” is potentially ambiguous, but found that sufficient evidence was presented to demonstrate that Jamey was not a resident of Wilmoth's household in spite of any ambiguity.1 “Whether a person is a resident of a particular place is to be determined from all the facts of each particular case, not from the facts viewed in isolation from one another.” Mocaby, 133 Idaho at 598, 990 P.2d at 1209 (quoting Armstrong, 119 Idaho at 901, 811 P.2d at 511). Use of the term “resident” generally indicates “a living arrangement with some degree of permanence.” Id. (citing Armstrong, 119 Idaho at 901, 811...

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