San Diego Assemblers, Inc. v. Work Comp for Less Insurance Services, Inc.

INTRODUCTION

San Diego Assemblers, Inc. (Assemblers), appeals from a judgment of dismissal following the court’s granting of summary judgment in favor of Work Comp for Less Insurance Services, Inc. (Broker). Assemblers contends the court erroneously determined Broker had no duty to procure a liability insurance policy for Assemblers covering Assemblers’s prior completed work. Assemblers additionally contends its claim is not barred by the superior equities doctrine or the statute of limitations. It also contends that, if Broker owed a duty to Assemblers, the court erroneously sustained Broker’s objections to the declaration of Assemblers’s standard of care expert.

We conclude Assemblers’s claim is barred by the superior equities doctrine. We further conclude Broker owed no duty to procure prior completed work coverage for Assemblers. We, therefore, affirm the judgment.

BACKGROUND

Broker procures insurance for businesses. Assemblers was a remodeling contractor. In 2000, Assemblers contacted Broker seeking a basic liability policy. Assemblers told Broker the policy limits its clients required, but never described the types of coverage it wanted. Assemblers repeatedly…