Pulte Home Corp. v. Am. Safety Indem. Co.

*1093 In this insurance defense dispute, defendant and appellant American Safety Indemnity *54 Company (American Safety or ASIC) challenges a judgment after court trial that awarded over $1.4 million in compensatory and punitive damages to plaintiff and respondent Pulte Home Corporation (Pulte), who was the general contractor and developer of two residential projects in the San Marcos area. American Safety issued several sequential comprehensive general liability (CGL) insurance policies to three of Pulte's subcontractors, 1 and during 2003 to 2006, it added endorsements to those policies that named Pulte as an additional insured. The projects were completed by 2006.

In 2011 and 2013, two groups of residents of the developments sued Pulte for damages in separate construction defect lawsuits. After American Safety declined to provide Pulte with a defense, Pulte filed this action, asserting that *1094 the additional insured endorsements afforded it coverage and therefore required American Safety to provide it with defenses on the construction defect issues. The trial court resolved companion summary judgment and adjudication motions by ruling as a matter of law that a duty to…