Patricia Jackson v. Allstate Insurance Company
2015 U.S. App. LEXIS 7529
| 8th Cir. | 2015Background
- Fire of incendiary origin destroyed Patricia Jackson’s house on Feb 22, 2012; investigators found accelerants and multiple points of origin, and classified it arson. No criminal charges were filed. The district court instructed the jury the fire was arson.
- Allstate denied Jackson’s homeowner claim invoking (1) an intentional-acts exclusion (loss caused by insured or at insured’s direction) and (2) a material-misrepresentation exclusion; Allstate’s investigators suspected coworker Alexander Henson acted at Jackson’s direction based on cell-phone records and other circumstances.
- Jackson sued for breach of contract, unjust enrichment, bad faith, and estoppel; Allstate moved for partial summary judgment and asserted the policy exclusions as defenses. The district court granted partial summary judgment dismissing equitable claims and bad-faith claims but left breach-of-contract for trial.
- Pretrial and evidentiary disputes: Allstate’s privileged documents were withheld after in camera review; the court excluded some of Jackson’s experts and character witnesses, limited Jackson to one day to present her case, and denied several discovery requests (including late requests for admissions).
- At trial Allstate presented forensic and cell-site evidence (expert Kevin Levy) tying Henson’s phone near Jackson’s home at relevant times; Jackson presented rebuttal expert testimony (Russell Pope) challenging geographic precision. The jury returned a general verdict for Allstate, finding in favor of the insurer on the intentional-acts defense.
- Post-trial Jackson appealed multiple rulings (sufficiency of evidence, discovery, evidentiary rulings, time limit, privilege, expert admissibility, and denial of statutory penalty/fees related to Allstate’s mortgage payment attempts); the Eighth Circuit affirmed.
Issues
| Issue | Jackson’s Argument | Allstate’s Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dismissal of unjust enrichment / estoppel claims | Policy doesn’t address mortgage payments made post-loss; equitable relief appropriate | Written insurance contract governs the subject; quasi-contract claims precluded | Affirmed: contract controls; equitable claims dismissed |
| Bad-faith claim dismissal | Denial of claim was wrongful and in bad faith | Denial was based on substantial evidence of arson and misrepresentation | Affirmed: no evidence of dishonest/malicious insurer conduct |
| Privilege & discovery (privileged docs, late RFAs) | Insurer waived privilege / mental impressions discoverable; RFAs justified to narrow issues | Documents protected by attorney-client/work-product; RFAs were untimely and harassing | Affirmed: in camera review upheld privilege; protective order for late RFAs proper |
| Evidentiary rulings (time limit, exclusion of character witnesses, cell-phone expert) | Time and witness exclusions prejudiced trial; cell-site evidence unreliable; late expert report required exclusion | Limits were reasonable to avoid cumulative evidence; Levy’s field study timely disclosed and harmlessly supplemented | Affirmed: time limit and exclusions not an abuse; Levy admissible; Google Maps excluded as hearsay |
| Sufficiency of evidence / JAML | Jury verdict unsupported; district court should have granted judgment that Jackson didn’t burn her home | Evidence (forensic and cell-site) permitted reasonable jury finding for Allstate | Issue not reviewable on appeal—Jackson failed to renew Rule 50(b) motion, so sufficiency challenge forfeited |
| Mortgage payment / statutory penalty & fees | Allstate delayed payment; Jackson entitled to 12% statutory penalty and fees under Ark. Code | Delay was justified: insurer sought proof of loss and attempted many times; later delay due to Jackson’s refusal to permit mortgagee to apply funds | Affirmed: insurer’s delay justified; no penalty or fees awarded |
Key Cases Cited
- Keup v. Hopkins, 596 F.3d 899 (8th Cir. 2010) (denial-of-summary-judgment review after trial principle)
- Rose v. Flairty, 772 F.3d 552 (8th Cir. 2014) (standard for reviewing partial summary judgment)
- Servewell Plumbing, LLC v. Summit Contractors, Inc., 210 S.W.3d 101 (Ark. 2005) (written contract ordinarily precludes quasi-contract recovery)
- Aetna Cas. & Sur. Co. v. Broadway Arms Corp., 664 S.W.2d 463 (Ark. 1984) (elements of tort of bad faith by insurer)
- Unitherm Food Sys., Inc. v. Swift-Eckrich, Inc., 546 U.S. 394 (2006) (Rule 50(b) renewed motion requirement for sufficiency review)
- Clark Center, Inc. v. Nat’l Life & Accident Ins. Co., 433 S.W.2d 151 (Ark. 1968) (insurer’s delay justified where insured failed to furnish necessary information)
- Pamida, Inc. v. E.S. Originals, Inc., 281 F.3d 726 (8th Cir. 2002) (waiver of work-product privilege principles)
- Union Cnty., Iowa v. Piper Jaffray & Co., 525 F.3d 643 (8th Cir. 2008) (attorney-client privilege in diversity cases governed by state law)
- EEOC v. S.W. Bell Tel., L.P., 550 F.3d 704 (8th Cir. 2008) (procedural requirements for post-verdict motions under Rule 50)