Reshamwalla

Reshamwalla v. State Farm Fire & Casualty Co.

Good Law
72 F. App'x 543
United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth CircuitJuly 18, 2003No. 02-15379California1,142 words

Opinion

Lead Opinion

MEMORANDUM *

State Farm Fire & Casualty Co. (“State Farm”) appeals the district court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of plaintiffsappellees, Hussein and Zaheda Reshamwalla, in their action for breach of California’s duty to defend and breach of the covenant of good faith and fair dealing. We affirm in part, reverse in part, and remand.

A. State Farm Owed Darrel Abruzzo a Duty to Defend.

A duty to defend is triggered if the Reshamwallas’ complaint contained any claims that were “potentially covered under the policy,” Montrose Chem. Corp. v. Superior Court, 6 Cal.4th 287 , 24 Cal.Rptr.2d 467 , 861 P.2d 1158 , 1160 (Cal.1993) (emphasis in original), or “if the complaint might be amended to give rise to a liability that would be covered under the policy.” Id. Here, there was insufficient evidence to demonstrate conclusively that the Reshamwallas’ allegations could “by no conceivable theory raise a single issue which could bring it within [State Farm’s] policy coverage.” Anthem Electronics Inc. v. Pac. Employers Ins. Co., 302 F.3d 1049, 1056 (9th Cir.2002) (quoting Montrose, 24 Cal.Rptr.2d 467 , 861 P.2d at 1160 ). Given the evidence before us, we conclude that it is possible…

Sign in to read the full opinion

Create a free account to read the complete opinion text, citation history, and good-law status for this case.