Nationwide Mut. Fire Ins. v. Mnatsakanov, COA07-1004.

• Decision Date: 05 August 2008
• Docket Number: No. COA07-1004.,COA07-1004.
• Court: North Carolina Court of Appeals
• Parties: NATIONWIDE MUTUAL FIRE INSURANCE COMPANY, Plaintiff, v. Konstantin MNATSAKANOV, Liana Mnatsakanov, Amiran Mnatsakanov and Melissa C. McCalister, Defendants.

664 S.E.2d 13

NATIONWIDE MUTUAL FIRE INSURANCE COMPANY, Plaintiff, v. Konstantin MNATSAKANOV, Liana Mnatsakanov, Amiran Mnatsakanov and Melissa C. McCalister, Defendants.

No. COA07-1004.

Court of Appeals of North Carolina.

August 5, 2008.

Appeal by defendant from order entered 2 May 2007 by Judge Linwood O. Foust in Mecklenberg County Superior Court. Heard in the Court of Appeals 20 February 2008.

Baucom, Claytor, Benton, Morgan & Wood, P.A., by Rex C. Morgan, Charlotte, for plaintiff-appellee.

Price, Smith, Hargett, Petho & Anderson, by Wm. Benjamin Smith, Charlotte, for defendant-appellant.

BRYANT, Judge.

Defendants Konstantin Mnatsakanov, Liana Mnatsakanov, Amiran Mnatsakanov, and Melissa McCalister appeal from an order granting summary judgment for Nationwide Mutual Fire Insurance Company. For the reasons stated herein, we reverse and remand this case to the trial court.

On 15 July 2005, Konstantin Mnatsakanov received a letter from Nationwide notifying him that his Homeowner's Policy would not renew on 31 October 2005 because he had a Rottweiler dog on the premises. On 15 July 2005, Konstantin Mnatsakanov met with Nationwide agent Gary Griffith and requested that his policy not be cancelled on 31 October 2005 but that it be renewed. After contacting Nationwide Underwriting, Griffith advised Konstantin that the policy would be renewed if Konstantin agreed to a restriction of coverage for any occurrence caused by his dog as set forth on the "Restriction of Individual Policies" (Endorsement H-7030A). Konstantin agreed to the restriction. Both he and Griffith signed the "Restriction of Individual Policies" on 15 July 2005. The "Restriction of Individual Policies," (H-7030-A) exempted from coverage any claim brought against the insured "caused by any animal, owned or in the care of the insured." However, the restriction did not state an effective date.

Melissa McCalister filed a claim for personal injuries that occurred 13 October 2005 when she was bitten by a dog owned by the Mnatsakanovs. The Mnatsakanovs requested coverage under the Nationwide policy for the claim asserted by McCalister. Nationwide filed a Declaratory Judgment action naming the Mnatsakanovs and McCalister as defendants and asking the trial court to determine if the insurance policy covered McCalister's claim. Nationwide thereafter moved for summary judgment asking the trial court to find as a matter of law that the policy excluded coverage for the dog bite injury suffered by McCalister on the Mnatsakanov's property.

The trial court found that the effective date of the "Restriction of Individual Policies" was 15 July 2005, the date it was signed by Nationwide Policyholder Konstantin Mnatsakanov and Nationwide agent Gary Griffith. The trial court found that in exchange for agreeing to the restriction, Nationwide promised not to cancel the Mnatsakanov's policy on 31 October 2005 but renew the Policy for another year. The trial court found that Nationwide's agreement to not cancel the Mnatsakanov's policy on 31 October 2005 and renew the policy for another year constituted adequate consideration for the Restriction of Individual Policies signed by Mr. Mnatsakanov and Nationwide Agent Griffith.

Based on those findings, the trial court concluded that the effective date of the modification of the Nationwide Policy as set forth in the "Restriction of Individual Policies" was 15 July 2005; the renewal of the policy from 31 October 2005 through 31 October 2006 constituted adequate consideration for the 15 July 2005 modification of the policy; and the language set forth in the "Restriction of Individual Policies" effectively excluded any liability coverage or medical payments coverage for injuries sustained by McCalister. On these grounds, the trial court granted summary judgment in favor of Nationwide.

Konstantin Mnatsakanov, Liana Mnatsakanov, Amiran Mnatsakanov and Melissa McCalister (collectively "defendants") appealed.

Defendants present six issues on appeal: whether the trial court committed reversible error by (I) granting summary judgment for Nationwide; (II) finding as fact that the effective date of the endorsement of the "Restriction of Individual Policies" was 15 July 2005; (III) finding as fact that Nationwide agreed not to cancel the Mnatsakanov's policy in exchange for signing the restriction on 15 July 2005; (IV) finding that no coverage existed for Melissa McCalister's injury claim; (V) concluding that the effective date of the restriction on the policy was 15 July 2005; and (VI) finding that the renewal of the policy was consideration for restricting the policy on the date it was signed.

Because the dispositive issue is whether there was a genuine issue of material fact as to the effective date of the endorsement of the "Restriction of Individual Policies," and because many of defendant's other issues violate our appellate rules, we do not reach those other issues. See N.C.R.App. P. 28(b)(6) (2007) ("assignments of error not set out in the appellant's brief, or in support of which no reason or argument is stated or authority cited, are deemed abandoned").

Standard of Review

Where a motion for summary judgment has been granted, the two critical questions on appeal are whether, on the basis of the materials presented to the trial court, (1) there is no genuine issue of material fact, and (2) the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. North River Ins. Co. v. Young, 117 N.C.App. 663, 667, 453 S.E.2d 205, 208 (1995).

An issue is material if the facts...