LIBERTY MUTUAL INSURANCE COMPANY, APPELLANT,
v.
JOSHUA MILLER, M.D., APPELLEE
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Liberty Mutual Insurance Company appealed a declaratory judgment finding that its homeowner's insurance policy provided coverage to Dr. Joshua Miller for a personal injury lawsuit arising from a confrontation with another physician at a hospital. The court reversed, holding that the incident arose out of Dr. Miller's business pursuits as a surgeon and fell within the policy's business pursuits exclusion.
The homeowner's policy does not afford coverage for the incident because Dr. Miller's injury to Dr. Vinsant primarily arose out of Dr. Miller's business pursuit as a surgeon, and therefore falls within the policy's exclusion for damage arising out of business pursuits.
[1] A homeowner's insurance policy exclusion for "business pursuits" applies when the insured's conduct primarily arises out of a business pursuit.
[2] Activities ordinarily incident to non-business pursuits are not excluded by a homeowner's policy's business pursuits exclusion.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“Dr. Vinsant's injury primarily arose out of a business pursuit of Dr. Miller, therefore, coverage under the policy is excluded.”
The court's holding that the incident fell within the business pursuits exclusion because it arose from Dr. Miller's work as a surgeon.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceDr. Miller, a surgeon employed by the University of Miami, had a confrontation with fellow physician Dr. Mary Vinsant at a hospital regarding the care…
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PER CURIAM.
Liberty Mutual Insurance Company (Liberty Mutual) appeals a final declaratory judgment holding its homeowner’s insurance policy with Joshua Miller, M.D., affords coverage to Dr. Miller in connection with a lawsuit filed against him by a fellow physician. We reverse.
Appellee, Dr. Miller, is a surgeon employed by the University of Miami. It is undisputed that Dr. Miller had a confrontation with another doctor, Dr. Mary Vinsant, regarding the care and treatment of a mutual patient. It is also undisputed that this confrontation occurred at the hospital and that during the course of this confrontation, Dr. Miller tugged or pulled on the stethoscope draped around Dr. Vinsant’s neck. The incident occurred shortly after each doctor had met with their mutual patient.
Dr. Vinsant subsequently sued Dr. Miller for personal injury damages and Dr. Miller demanded that appellant Liberty Mutual provide coverage to him under his homeowner’s policy with the company. Liberty Mutual denied coverage and thereafter filed this action for declaratory judgment. The trial court determined that Dr. Miller’s homeowner’s policy of insurance with Lib erty Mutual afforded coverage for the incident.1
On appeal, Liberty Mutual contends that there is no coverage for Dr. Miller’s conduct because of an exclusion from coverage under the policy for business pursuits. The homeowner’s policy contains a specific provision excluding coverage “arising out of business pursuits of any insured.” The provision further provides that the exclusion does not apply to “activities which are ordinarily incident to non-business pursuits.” Dr. Miller asserts that there is coverage under the policy for his conduct because the confrontation between him and Dr. Vinsant was incidental to a non-business pursuit.
We conclude that Liberty Mutual’s homeowner’s policy with Dr. Miller does not afford coverage for the incident. In a similar case involving a virtually identical provision, Otero v. United States Fire Insurance Company, 314 So. 2d 208 (Fla. 3d DCA 1975), cert. den., 328 So. 2d 843 (Fla. 1976), this court concluded the homeowner’s policy did not afford coverage for the incident.
In Otero, a tenant was injured when he was assaulted by the insured’s son-in-law. The assault arose during the course of a meeting between the son-in-law and the tenant regarding the insured’s return of a security deposit and the tenant’s return of a key. The tenant sued the insured, which precipitated an action for declaratory judgment regarding the existence of coverage for the insured under her homeowner’s insurance policy. As in the present case, the homeowner’s policy excluded coverage for “damage arising out of business pursuits of any Insured except activities therein which are ordinarily incident to non-business pursuits.” Otero v. United States Fire Insurance Company, 314 So. 2d at 209. The trial court determined there was no coverage under the policy for the assault. This court affirmed “finding that the episode involved in this case and the personal injury to the plaintiff primarily arose out of a business pursuit and coverage under the policy was excluded.” Otero, 314 So. 2d at 209.
Here, as in Otero, Dr. Vinsant’s injury primarily arose out of a business pursuit of Dr. Miller, therefore, coverage under the policy is excluded. See Landis v. Allstate Insurance Company, 546 So. 2d 1051 (Fla. 1989) (coverage properly denied under business pursuits exclusion of homeowner’s policy where insureds were engaged in “babysitting in general, rather than the specific act of molesting children”).
Having found the other arguments raised by Dr. Miller in support of the judgment to be without merit, the final declaratory judgment in favor of Dr. Miller is reversed for entry of a judgment in favor of Liberty Mutual. Reversed and remanded.
. The trial court also determined that University of Miami's policy of insurance with Aetna Cas. and Sur. Co. (Aetna) afforded coverage for the incident. Aetna appealed the trial court’s determination and this court concluded that Aetna’s policy did not afford such coverage. Aetna Cas. and Sur. Co. v. Miller, 550 So. 2d 29 (Fla. 3d DCA 1989).
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Lambert v. Allstate Ins. Co., 593 So. 2d 1172 (Fla. 1st DCA 1992)…the appellant’s business activities. See generally, Landis v. Allstate Ins. Co., 546 So. 2d 1051 (Fla.1989). The exclusion applies to conduct which is primarily undertaken in furtherance of a business interest. See Liberty Mutual Ins. Co. v. Miller, 549 So. 2d 1200 (Fla.3d DCA 1989); Otero v. United States Fire Ins. Co., 314 So. 2d 208 (Fla.Sd DCA 1975), cert. denied, 328 So. 2d 843 (Fla.1976). The record in the present case is somewhat ambiguous as to this issue of material fact. Summary judgment is appropria…
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Michael Scheer, M.D. v. State Farm Fire & Cas. Co., 708 So. 2d 312 (Fla. 4th DCA 1998)…ife guards by male supervisor was not within scope of employment under well established common law agency principles but rather agent was “on a frolic of his own.”). We distinguish the case on which the trial court relied, Liberty Mutual v. Miller, 549 So. 2d 1200 (Fla. 3d DCA 1989). In that case two physicians were arguing about how to treat a mutual patient, and in the heat of the argument one of them jerked on the other’s stethoscope apparently, causing injury. There the assault arose out of a professional…
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Santos v. State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co., 707 So. 2d 1181 (Fla. 2d DCA 1998)…he homeowner’s policy, Santos concedes in her brief that her injuries might have arisen out of the business pursuits of Dr. Wolfson and the exclusion, therefore, might apply. We conclude that it does apply. In Liberty Mutual Insurance Co. v. Miller, 549 So. 2d 1200 (Fla. 3d DCA 1989), Dr. Miller and Dr. Vinsant were involved in a confrontation, and Dr. Miller pulled on the stethoscope draped around Dr. Vinsant’s neck. Dr. Miller had a homeowner’s policy which excluded coverage for injuries arising out of busin…
Previewing 3 of 5 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Landis v. Allstate Ins. Co., 546 So. 2d 1051 (Fla. 1989)
- AETNA Cas. & Sur. Co., Inc. v. Joshua Miller, M.D., 550 So. 2d 29 (Fla. 3d DCA 1989)
- Rosalina Otero v. United States Fire Ins. Co., 314 So. 2d 208 (Fla. 3d DCA 1975)