Tort Of Another: Plaintiff Art Gallery Owner Properly Awarded Attorney’s Fees Against Negligent Insurance Broker Under Tort Of Another Doctrine

Fees Awarded For Plaintiff’s Lawsuit Against Insurer To Protect Interest In Insurance Coverage Due To Broker’s Negligenc

            A jury found defendant insurance broker liable to plaintiff art gallery owner for damages resulting from an insurance carrier’s denial of a dealer fine art policy claim after plaintiff sued insurer and incurred fees in pursuing insurance coverage.  After the jury verdict, the trial judge awarded attorney’s fees incurred in pursuing claims against the insurance carrier (which settled), prompting an appeal by insurance broker in Koeppel v. John O. Bronson Co., Inc., Case No. H041697 (6^th Dist. Aug. 11, 2017) (unpublished).

            The Sixth District affirmed, after a discussion of the tort of another doctrine.  Although acknowledging that joint tortfeasors cannot utilize the tort of another doctrine, the appellate court did not find that this applied to the innocent plaintiff in these circumstances, finding persuasive the reasoning in Third Eye Blind, Inc. v. Near North Entertainment Ins. Services, LLC, 127 Cal.App.4^th 1311, 1316, 1325 (2005) when insurance coverage was involved and plaintiff sought to vindicate rights against the carrier—after all, the broker’s negligence forced plaintiff to sue the carrier.  With respect to the causation element of the tort of another doctrine, the Sixth District found that the substantial factor test approved in Mitchell v. Gonzales, 54 Cal.3d 1041, 1049-1054 (1991) was applicable.