Greenwich Insurance Co. v. Sharon Bankofier

MEMORANDUM

Greenwich Insurance Company (“Greenwich Insurance”) appeals the district court’s summary judgment in favor of Sharon and Duane Bankofíer (“the Banko-fiers”) in a diversity case brought by Oregon Realty against Greenwich Insurance. The district court ruled that Greenwich Insurance had a duty to defend the Banko-fiers in an underlying lawsuit then pending in Oregon state court. As the facts and procedural history are familiar to the parties, we do not recite them here except as necessary to explain our disposition. We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1291 , and we affirm.

Under Oregon law,

Ledford v. Gutoski, 319 Or. 397 , 877 P.2d 80, 82-83 (1994) (internal citations omitted).

Under Oregon Realty’s insurance policy, Greenwich Insurance had a duty to defend claims arising “in the performance of real estate services.” Here, the allegations in the complaint were sufficient to trigger Greenwich Insurance’s duty to defend the Bankofiers because the complaint contained allegations of “real estate services” related to the sale of the property. Among other things, the complaint alleges that the Bankofiers negligently structured the sale of the property to facilitate the…