Baroco West, Inc. v. Scottsdale Insurance

1. Introduction

Baroco West, Inc. (hereafter Baroco), a construction company, sued its insurance carrier, Scottsdale Insurance Company (hereafter Scottsdale), for failing to defend it in a homeowners’ action for negligent construction of a private residence. Based on the terms of policy, including the policy period and the exclusionary provisions, the trial court granted Scottsdale’s motion for summary judgment. On appeal, Baroco claims the trial court erred in granting the motion for summary judgment because Scottsdale failed to establish that there was no potential for coverage.

We conclude that, based on the policy period, the relevant policy provisions, the homeowners’ complaint, and Baroco’s admissions, there was no potential for coverage under the policy and, hence, no duty to defend in the third-party action. We affirm the trial court’s judgment.

2. Factual and Procedural History

In April or May of 1995, Baroco (doing business as Highpoint Construction) began construction of a private residence for Gary T. Charlebois and *99 Lori L. Charlebois. On July 1, 1998, the Charleboises brought an action against Baroco for various causes of action, including breach of…