Petrochem Marketing Inc. v. Mt. Hawley Insurance

MEMORANDUM *

Petrochem Marketing, Inc. (“Petrochem”) appeals the district court’s summary judgment in favor of Mt. Hawley Insurance Company (“Mt.Hawley”) on Petrochem’s claim that Mt. Hawley had a duty to defend Petrochem against counterclaims brought by a competitor, Advantage Scaling Systems, Inc. (“Advantage”), in an underlying patent infringement suit. We affirm the judgment of the district court.

Mt. Hawley owed Petrochem a duty to defend if Advantage alleged any facts giving rise to the potential for coverage under the insurance agreement. See Waller v. Truck Ins. Exch., Inc., 11 Cal.4th 1 , 44 Cal.Rptr.2d 370 , 900 P.2d 619, 627 (1995). Even construing the “personal injury” coverage provisions broadly and the agreement’s “Exclusion—Intellectual Property Hazard” (“Exclusion”) narrowly, Petrochem has not demonstrated that Advantage alleged facts that could potentially have given rise to coverage under this policy. See State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co. v. Partridge, 10 Cal.3d 94 , 109 Cal.Rptr. 811 , 514 P.2d 123, 128 (1973) (requiring that courts construe insurance coverage provisions broadly and exclusions narrowly).

Advantage did allege facts that could be construed as a…