20th Century Insurance v. Superior Court

The petitioner, 20th Century Insurance Company, seeks a writ of mandate directing the trial court to vacate and set aside an order granting the motion of the real party in interest, Linda P. Ahles, to reconsider an earlier order sustaining a demurrer to Ahles’s complaint without leave to amend.

Ahles had filed a complaint against 20th Century for breach of a contract of insurance, tortious breach of the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing (bad faith) and fraud. The trial court’s mling, which allowed her to go forward with her action and required 20th Century to file an answer, was based on the Legislature’s enactment of Code of Civil Procedure section 340.9 (hereafter section 340.9). This new statute, which became effective on January 1, 2001, revives, subject to certain conditions and limitations, insurance claims “arising out of the Northridge earthquake of 1994” that previously had been barred by “the applicable statute of limitations.” (Italics added.)

The trial court’s application of section 340.9 to restore legal vitality to Ahles’s complaint raises a number of important questions which we must address. After a review of this record, the legislative…