Source: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-azd-2_11-cv-00836/USCOURTS-azd-2_11-cv-00836-1/pdf.json

Nature of Suit Code: 110
Nature of Suit: Insurance
Cause of Action: 28:1446 Breach of Contract- Insurance

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1

The parties’ request for oral argument is denied because the parties have had an

adequate opportunity to present their written arguments, and oral argument will not aid the

Court’s decision. See Lake at Las Vegas Investors Grp., Inc. v. Pac. Malibu Dev., 933 F.2d

724, 729 (9th Cir. 1991).

WO

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

FOR THE DISTRICT OF ARIZONA

James J. Everett,

Plaintiff,

v.

American Family Mutual Insurance Co.,

Defendant. 

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No. CV-11-836-PHX-SMM

MEMORANDUM OF DECISION AND

ORDER

Before the Court is Plaintiff’s Motion for Partial Summary Judgment (Doc. 59) and

Defendant’s Motion for Summary Judgment (Doc. 61). On January 1, 2013, the Court

ordered the parties to submit further briefing pursuant to Rule 56(f)(2), FED.R.CIV.P. (Doc.

77.) The matter is now fully briefed. (Docs. 66, 67, 72, 74, 78, 79.) After reviewing the

briefs and having determined that oral argument is unnecessary,1

 the Court will deny

Plaintiff’s motion for partial summary judgment, and grant Defendant’s motion for summary

judgment in part, and deny in part.

BACKGROUND

Plaintiff was insured by Defendant under a policy that contained, among other

provisions, a clause guaranteeing him against loss caused by theft. (Doc. 59 at 6.) The

policy excluded from coverage theft committed by Plaintiff’s “spouse who is a resident of

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[Plaintiff’s] household.” (Id. at 7.) 

On December 28, 2008, Plaintiff informed his then-wife, Ms. Colleen Brusseau, that

he intended to move out of the marital residence “sometime soon.” (Doc. 62 ¶ 10.) Ms.

Brusseau filed for divorce from Plaintiff on February 2, 2009. (Id. ¶ 12.) On February 14,

2009, Plaintiff visited his Prescott vacation home; the last time Plaintiff had visited the

residence prior to this occasion was in November of 2008. (Id. ¶¶ 3-4.) Upon entering the

Prescott home, Plaintiff allegedly discovered that a large amount of personal property was

missing. (Id. ¶ 3.)

Plaintiff called the Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office that same day, February 14, to

report the property missing. (Id. ¶ 5.) Officer Murray of the Yavapai County Sheriff’s

Office took a report. (Doc. 62-1 at 47.) Plaintiff informed Officer Murray that among the

items missing were four Honda “Quads” and a Honda motorcycle, which were registered to

him in Arizona. (Id. at 48.) The officer checked and found that no Hondas were registered

to Plaintiff in Arizona. (Id.) The officer then checked the Vehicle Identification Numbers

of the Hondas, and found that they were all registered to Ms. Brusseau. (Id.)

Officer Murray called Plaintiff back and informed him that the Hondas were

registered to Ms. Brusseau. (Id.) Plaintiff informed the officer that Ms. Brusseau was his

wife, but that they were separated. (Id.) The officer later contacted Ms. Brusseau by

telephone on March 15, 2009, and she told the officer that she took the items from the

Prescott property, and that Plaintiff knew she had done so. (Id. at 49.)

On February 20, 2009, Plaintiff’s attorney O’Connor sent a letter to Ms. Brusseau’s

attorney. (Doc. 62 ¶ 16.) The letter stated: “It appears your client has taken 95% of the

furnishings from the Prescott residence. Demand is made for return of these items

immediately since its [sic] my clients [sic] sole and separate property.” (Doc. 62-1 at 72.)

At the divorce hearing, Ms. Brusseau again admitted to taking various items from the

Prescott property. (Doc. 62 ¶ 17.) A Decree of Dissolution of Marriage from the Superior

Court of Maricopa County was entered in June of 2010. (Doc. 69 ¶ 18.) As part of that

decree, the court found that “with two exceptions, the tangible personal property [Brusseau]

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took from the Prescott house consisted of her sole and separate property . . . and an equitable

portion of the community property in that house.” (Doc. 62-2 at 12.) The two exceptions

found by the court were a washer and dryer, and the four Hondas; the court thus ordered Ms.

Brusseau to reimburse Plaintiff for the value of these items. (Id.) 

On March 2, 2009, prior to the entry of the divorce decree, Plaintiff submitted a claim

with Defendant for theft of the personal property taken from the Prescott residence. (Id. at

2.) Defendant eventually denied Plaintiff’s claim. (Id. at 5.) Plaintiff thereupon brought this

action in the Maricopa County Superior Court, alleging one count of breach of contract and

one count of breach of the duty of good faith and fair dealing. (Doc. 1.) Defendant timely

removed to this Court. (Id.) 

On June 1, 2012, Defendant brought its motion for summary judgment, arguing that

there exists no genuine issue of material fact and that judgment in its favor is appropriate as

a matter of law. (Doc. 59.) Defendant contends that there is no question that: (1) Plaintiff’s

ex-wife was a member of Plaintiff’s “household” at the time of the theft and thus the theft

is not covered under the policy; (2) Plaintiff breached the cooperation clause of the policy;

(3) Plaintiff violated the material misrepresentation/fraud clause of the policy; (4) Defendant

acted in good faith in adjusting Plaintiff’s claim; and (5) there is no evidence to support

Plaintiff’s punitive damages claim. (Id. at 1.) In its additional briefing, Plaintiff also argues

that Ms. Brusseau did not commit any “theft” to trigger coverage under the policy. (Doc.

79.)

Plaintiff simultaneously brought his motion for partial summary judgment, arguing

that the undisputed facts show that his ex-wife was not a member of his household at the time

she took the property from the Prescott residence. (Doc. 61.)

LEGAL STANDARD

I. Motion for Summary Judgment

A court must grant summary judgment if the pleadings and supporting documents,

viewed in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party, “show[] that there is no genuine

dispute as to any material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.”

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Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(a); see Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 322-23 (1986); Jesinger v.

Nev. Fed. Credit Union, 24 F.3d 1127, 1130 (9th Cir. 1994). Substantive law determines

which facts are material. See Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, 477 U.S. 242, 248 (1986); see also

Jesinger, 24 F.3d at 1130. “Only disputes over facts that might affect the outcome of the suit

under the governing law will properly preclude the entry of summary judgment.” Anderson,

477 U.S. at 248. The dispute must also be genuine, that is, the evidence must be “such that

a reasonable jury could return a verdict for the nonmoving party.” Id.; see Jesinger, 24 F.3d

at 1130.

A principal purpose of summary judgment is “to isolate and dispose of factually

unsupported claims.” Celotex, 477 U.S. at 323-24. Summary judgment is appropriate

against a party who “fails to make a showing sufficient to establish the existence of an

element essential to that party’s case, and on which that party will bear the burden of proof

at trial.” Id. at 322; see also Citadel Holding Corp. v. Roven, 26 F.3d 960, 964 (9th Cir.

1994). The moving party need not disprove matters on which the opponent has the burden

of proof at trial. See Celotex, 477 U.S. at 323-24. The party opposing summary judgment

need not produce evidence “in a form that would be admissible at trial in order to avoid

summary judgment.” Id. at 324. However, the nonmovant must set out specific facts

showing a genuine dispute for trial. See Matsushita Elec. Indus. Co., Ltd. v. Zenith Radio

Corp., 475 U.S. 574, 585-88 (1986); Brinson v. Linda Rose Joint Venture, 53 F.3d 1044,

1049 (9th Cir. 1995).

II. Breach of Contract

In an action for breach of contract, the plaintiff has the burden of proving “the

existence of a contract, breach of the contract, and resulting damages.” Chartone, Inc. v.

Bernini, 207 Ariz. 162, 170, 83 P.3d 1103, 1112 (App. 2004) (citing Thunderbird

Metallurgical, Inc. v. Ariz. Testing Lab., 5 Ariz.App. 48, 423 P.2d 124 (1976)).

Provisions of insurance contracts should be construed according to their plain and

ordinary meaning. National Bank v. St. Paul Fire & Marine Ins. Co., 193 Ariz. 581, 584, 975

P.2d 711, 714 (App. 1999). The interpretation of an insurance contract is a question of law,

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as is the question of whether the contract’s terms are ambiguous. Id. In Arizona, courts must

construe a clause which is subject to differing interpretations by “examining the language of

the clause, public policy considerations, and the purpose of the transaction as a whole.” State

Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co. v. Wilson, 162 Ariz. 251, 257, 782 P.2d 727, 733 (1989).

“Where the contract language is unclear and can be reasonably construed in more than

one sense, an ambiguity is said to exist and such ambiguity will be construed against the

insurer.” Sparks v. Republic Nat’l Life Ins. Co., 132 Ariz. 529, 534, 647 P.2d 1127, 1132

(1982). To determine whether such an ambiguity exists, the contract language “should be

examined from the viewpoint of one not trained in law or in the insurance business.” Id.

Moreover, an insurance policy must be read as a whole to give “‘reasonable and harmonious

meaning and effect to all its provisions.’” National Bank, 193 Ariz. at 584, 975 P.2d at 714

(quoting Federal Ins. Co. v. P.A.T. Homes, Inc., 113 Ariz. 136, 139, 547 P.2d 1050, 1053

(1976)).

III. Bad Faith

An insurance contract differs from ordinary commercial contracts in that “‘implicit

in the contract and the relationship is the insurer’s obligation to play fairly with its insured.’”

Zilisch v. State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co., 196 Ariz. 234, 237, 995 P.2d 276, 279 (2000)

(quoting Rawlings v. Apodaca, 151 Ariz. 149, 154, 726 P.2d 565, 570 (1986)). The insurer

is obligated to conduct a prompt and adequate investigation, to act reasonably in evaluating

the insured’s claim, and to promptly pay a legitimate claim. Zilisch, 196 Ariz. at 238, 995

P.2d at 280.

An insurer commits the tort of bad faith by intentionally and without reasonable basis

denying, failing to process, or failing to pay a claim. Noble v. National Am. Life Ins. Co.,

128 Ariz. 188, 190, 624 P.2d 866, 868 (1981). To show bad faith on the part of the insurer,

the insured must show: (1) that the insurer acted unreasonably toward the insured; and (2)

that the insurer “acted knowing that it was acting unreasonably or acted with such reckless

disregard that such knowledge may be imputed to it.” Trus Joist Corp. v. Safeco Ins. Co.,

153 Ariz. 95, 104, 735 P.2d 125, 134 (App. 1986) (emphasis in original). 

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An insurer “may challenge claims which are fairly debatable,” but “its belief in fair

debatability ‘is a question of fact to be determined by the jury.’” Zilisch, 196 Ariz. at 280,

995 P.2d at 279 (citing Sparks, 132 Ariz. at 529, 647 P.2d at 1127) (internal citation omitted).

Furthermore, “breach of an express covenant is not a necessary prerequisite to an action for

bad faith.” Deese v. State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co., 172 Ariz. 504, 509, 838 P.2d 1265,

1270 (1992). Thus, a plaintiff may prevail on a bad faith claim even where they may fail on

a breach of contract claim. Id.

IV. Punitive Damages

To decide whether a defendant has a valid claim for punitive damages, the court must

look to the alleged wrongdoer’s mental state. Linthicum v. Nationwide Life Ins. Co., 150

Ariz. 326, 330, 723 P.2d 675, 679 (1986). Recovery of punitive damages requires more than

the mere commission of a tort. Id. (citing Rawlings, 151 Ariz. at 162, 726 P.2d at 578).

Punitive damages are reserved for “only those limited classes of consciously malicious or

outrageous acts of misconduct where punishment and deterrence is both paramount and

likely to be achieved.” Linthicum, 150 Ariz. at 331, 723 P.2d at 680.

The “evil mind” of the wrongdoer is what distinguishes conduct worthy of the

imposition of punitive damages, but “[i]n whatever way the requisite mental state is

expressed, the conduct must also be aggravated and outrageous.” Id.; see Rawlings, 151

Ariz. at 162, 726 P.2d at 578 (finding that punitive damages are appropriate in bad faith tort

actions “when, and only when, the facts establish that defendant’s conduct was aggravated,

outrageous, malicious or fraudulent.”).

While the question of whether to impose punitive damages is left to the jury if

reasonable evidence will support them, the evidence “must be more than slight and

inconclusive such as to border on conjecture.” Farr v. Transamerica Occidental Life Ins. Co.,

145 Ariz. 1, 9, 699 P.2d 376, 384 (1984). Moreover, a plaintiff bears the burden of proving

that a defendant acted with the requisite “evil mind” by clear and convincing evidence.

Linthicum, 150 Ariz. At 332, 723 P.2d at 681.

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DISCUSSION

I. Defendant’s Motion for Summary Judgment

A. Plaintiff’s Breach of Contract Claim

Defendant argues that there is no genuine issue of material fact which would entitle

Plaintiff to prevail on his claim for breach of contract, and thus that judgment in Defendant’s

favor is appropriate as a matter of law. According to Defendant, Plaintiff cannot establish

that Defendant committed any breach, in that Ms. Brusseau’s removal of items from the

Prescott property was not a covered loss because: (1) Ms. Brusseau was a member of

Plaintiff’s household at the time of the taking; and (2) Ms. Brusseau’s taking did not

constitute a theft under the policy. Because the Court finds that Defendant’s second

argument is dispositive, it need not decide whether Ms. Brusseau was a member of Plaintiff’s

household at the time of the incident.

Defendant purported to cover direct physical loss caused by theft of Plaintiff’s

personal property. (Doc. 62-1 at 16.) When the word “theft” is not defined in an insurance

policy, Arizona courts will give the term its “common and ordinary meaning according to the

understanding of persons in ordinary walks of life.” Pac. Indem. Co. v. Kohlhase, 9

Ariz.App. 595, 598, 455 P.2d 277, 280 (1969). Theft is thus “any wrongful deprivation of

property of another without claim or color of right, . . . the fraudulent and wrongful taking

of the property of another.” Almadova v. State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co., 133 Ariz. 81, 84,

649 P.2d 284, 287 (1982) (quoting Kohlhase, 9 Ariz. App. at 598, 455 P.2d at 280).

In Arizona, theft is defined by ARIZ. REV. STAT. § 13-1802(A), which provides that

“[a] person commits theft if, without lawful authority, the person knowingly: 1. Controls

property of another with the intent to deprive the other person of such property . . . .”

“Property of another” is defined as “property in which any person other than the defendant

has an interest on which the defendant is not privileged to infringe, including property in

which the defendant also has an interest . . . .” A.R.S. § 13-1801(A)(13).

ARIZ. REV. STAT. § 25-214 sets forth Arizona law regarding control and disposition

of property during marriage:

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2

 As noted above, the superior court found that the only items of Plaintiff’s that Ms.

Brusseau removed were a washer and dryer, and four Honda quads. Plaintiff did not make

a claim under the policy for the Hondas, because they were undisputedly not covered. Any

claim Plaintiff may have had under the policy for the washer and dryer was extinguished

when the superior court ordered Ms. Brusseau to reimburse Plaintiff for the cost of those two

items.

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A. Each spouse has the sole management, control and

disposition rights of each spouse’s separate property.

B. The spouses have equal management, control and disposition

rights over their community property and have equal power to

bind the community.

C. Either spouse separately may acquire, manage, control or

dispose of community property or bind the community, except

that joinder of both spouses is required in any of the following

cases: 

1. Any transaction for the acquisition, disposition

or encumbrance of an interest in real property

other than an unpatented mining claim or a lease

of less than one year.

2. Any transaction of guaranty, indemnity or

suretyship.

3. To bind the community, irrespective of any

person’s intent with respect to that binder, after

service of a petition for dissolution of marriage,

legal separation or annulment if the petition

results in a decree of dissolution of marriage,

legal separation or annulment.

The Court agrees with Defendant that Ms. Brusseau’s removal of community property

and her separate property from the Prescott home was not a theft under Arizona law, and thus

was not a covered loss. 

Ms. Brusseau’s taking of her own separate property clearly was not a theft triggering

coverage under the policy, because it was not “property of another.” Similarly, her taking

of items of community property was not a theft, because she did not wrongfully deprive

Plaintiff of the property “without claim or color of right.” It is undisputed that Plaintiff and

Ms. Brusseau were not divorced or legally separated at the time she took the property from

the home, nor was there any order issued by any court concerning distribution of their

community property. The decree later entered in the Superior Court of Maricopa County

expressly found that nearly all of the property Ms. Brusseau took was her own private

property or an equitable share of the community property.2

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Pursuant to ARIZ. REV. STAT. § 25-214(B), both Ms. Brusseau and Plaintiff were

equally privileged to manage, control, and dispose of their community property, and none

of the three exceptions requiring the joinder of both spouses applied. Thus, Ms. Brusseau

had lawful authority to remove the community property from the Prescott home.

Accordingly, Ms. Brusseau’s taking of these items of community property and her own

separate property was not a theft triggering coverage under the policy. Defendant was

justified in denying Plaintiff’s claim for theft of these items, and Plaintiff’s claim for breach

of contract fails as a matter of law.

However, Plaintiff argues that regardless of whether Ms. Brusseau’s taking of

community property was lawful, his claim under the policy included many items which Ms.

Brusseau stated that she did not take, and that Defendant therefore breached the terms of the

policy by failing to cover his loss for those items. (Doc. 78 at 5.) Defendant responds to this

claim by arguing that the character of the property removed from the Prescott home was

fairly and fully litigated during Plaintiff’s divorce proceedings, and thus that Plaintiff is

precluded by collateral estoppel from re-litigating that issue here. (Doc. 79 at 8-10.)

“Collateral estoppel or issue preclusion is applicable when the issue or fact to be

litigated was actually litigated in a previous suit, a final judgment was entered, and the party

against whom the doctrine is to be invoked had a full opportunity to litigate the matter and

actually did litigate it, provided such issue or fact was essential to the prior judgment.”

F.D.I.C. v. Adams, 187 Ariz. 585, 593, 931 P.2d 1095, 1103 (App. 1996) (quoting Chaney

Building Co. v. City of Tucson, 148 Ariz. 571, 573, 716 P.2d 28, 30 (1986)); see also

Restatement (Second) of Judgments § 27. When those elements are present, Arizona permits

a new defendant in a subsequent case to use the doctrine defensively to preclude relitigation

of an issue. Bridgestone/Firestone N. Am. Tire, L.L.C. v. Naranjo, 206 Ariz. 447, 452, 79

P.3d 1206, 1211 (App. 2003). 

During the divorce proceedings, Plaintiff argued before the superior court that Ms.

Brusseau took property from the Prescott home that was not her separate property or

community property, but was in fact his own separate property. (Doc. 79-1 at 1-5.) Plaintiff

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testified that the total value for all property taken from the Prescott home was approximately

$100,000, and thus argued that Ms. Brusseau should reimburse him for half that amount,

approximately $50,000. (Id. at 4-5.) Despite that Ms. Brusseau testified at the divorce

proceedings that she did not take some of the items which Plaintiff claimed were missing

from the home, Plaintiff did not reduce his request for reimbursement from the court. (Id.)

In other words, Plaintiff’s position before the superior court was that Ms. Brusseau was

responsible for the removal of all the property taken from the home, and thus that she was

required to pay for any portion of that property which was either Plaintiff’s separate property

or was not her share of the community property.

The superior court’s divorce decree was a final judgment, and the issue of whether the

property taken from the Prescott home was lawfully taken or not, by Ms. Brusseau or others,

was fairly and fully litigated during the divorce proceedings. Therefore, Plaintiff is now

precluded from re-litigating this issue here and attempting to recover for property which the

superior court already adjudicated was not unlawfully taken. Accordingly, the removal of

the items Plaintiff alleges Ms. Brusseau did not take was not a theft triggering coverage

under the policy, and Defendant did not breach the terms of the insurance contract by

denying Plaintiff’s claim. 

Because the Court finds that Defendant did not breach the contract by denying

Plaintiff’s claim, the Court need not reach Defendant’s remaining contentions that Plaintiff

breached both the policy’s cooperation clause and its material misrepresentation/fraud clause.

B. Plaintiff’s Claim for Bad Faith

Defendant argues that it is also entitled to summary judgment on the matter of

Plaintiff’s claim for breach of the covenant of good faith and fair dealing. According to

Defendant, Plaintiff cannot establish that Defendant acted unreasonably and knew that its

conduct was unreasonable. (Doc. 61 at 15.)

Plaintiff alleges that Defendant committed bad faith by acting unreasonably toward

him in regards to prompt and adequate investigation, evaluation, and processing of his claim,

and that Defendant knew that its conduct was unreasonable. (Doc. 66 at 14-16.) In support

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of his claims, Plaintiff cites to emails from Defendant, and Defendant’s claim management

logs, as evidence that Defendant forced him to go through unnecessary and unreasonable

steps by repeatedly requesting that he re-submit itemized lists of the missing property in

different formats. (Doc. 71-1 at 2-6.) Plaintiff also asserts that Defendant knowingly acted

unreasonably by assuming that Ms. Brusseau was telling the truth that all property she took

was her own, despite inconsistencies in her statements. (Doc. 66 at 15.) Finally, as

mentioned above, Plaintiff argues that Defendant was unreasonable in denying his entire

claim despite the fact that Ms. Brusseau reported that she did not take many of the items he

reported stolen. (Id. at 16.)

The Court notes that Defendant disputes whether these facts amount to evidence that

Defendant acted unreasonably, and the Court does not weigh the sufficiency of the evidence.

However, as the Arizona Supreme Court in Zilisch stated:

while fair debatability is a necessary condition to avoid a claim

of bad faith, it is not always a sufficient condition. The

appropriate inquiry is whether there is sufficient evidence from

which reasonable jurors could conclude that in the investigation,

evaluation, and processing of the claim, the insurer acted

unreasonably and either knew or was conscious of the fact that

its conduct was unreasonable.

196 Ariz. at 238, 995 P.2d at 280. Moreover, an insurer’s belief that its actions were fairly

debatable is a question of fact for the jury. Id. 

 After taking account of all disputed and undisputed facts, and making all reasonable

inferences from those facts in favor of Plaintiff, the Court finds that Plaintiff meets his

burden of raising a genuine dispute of material fact suitable for trial on his claim of bad faith.

Plaintiff’s allegations that Defendant’s investigation of his claim was inadequate are

supported by some evidence in the form of deposition testimony by Ms. Brusseau, and the

transcript of Ms. Brusseau’s interview with Defendant’s claims adjuster. Likewise,

Plaintiff’s contention that Defendant imposed arbitrary requirements in an effort to

discourage his pursuit of the theft claim is supported by evidence showing that Defendant did

require Plaintiff to re-submit information in multiple formats, perhaps unnecessarily.

Whether or not this is truly sufficient evidence from which a reasonable jury could find bad

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faith, the Court at this stage must make all reasonable inferences in Plaintiff’s favor, and thus

concludes that Plaintiff raises just enough of a sufficient material dispute to narrowly avoid

summary judgment. Therefore, because the jury must decide the question of whether

Defendant knowingly acted unreasonably toward Plaintiff in its investigation and handling

of his claim, and because Plaintiff has presented at least some reasonably competent

evidence, this Court must deny Defendant’s motion for summary judgment as to the bad faith

claim.

C. Plaintiff’s Claim for Punitive Damages

Defendant finally argues that Plaintiff’s claim for punitive damages fails as a matter

of law, because Defendant presents no genuine issue of fact by which a jury could find that

Defendant acted with the requisite purposeful “evil mind.” (Doc. 61 at 16.) 

The Court finds that Plaintiff fails to make a sufficient showing of facts which could

support imposition of punitive damages. Punitive damages are appropriate in bad faith cases

only when the facts establish by clear and convincing evidence that the defendant’s conduct

was “aggravated, outrageous, malicious or fraudulent.” See Rawlings, 151 Ariz. at 162, 726

P.2d at 578. The issue of whether to impose punitive damages will be submitted to the jury

for consideration only where a plaintiff has alleged reasonable evidence to support them, and

that evidence must be more than slight or inconclusive. See Farr, 145 Ariz. at 9, 699 P.2d

at 384.

Here, while Plaintiff alleges that Defendant acted with an evil mind discernible

through circumstantial evidence, he fails to allege any specific conduct by Defendant rising

to the level of aggravated, outrageous, malicious, or fraudulent. Plaintiff fails to allege

conduct beyond that required for commission of the tort of bad faith, and thus is not entitled

to have the issue of punitive damages presented to the jury. Therefore, the Court finds that

summary judgment in favor of Defendant on the issue of punitive damages is appropriate.

CONCLUSION

Accordingly, after considering the parties’ motions, including all responses, replies,

statements of fact, exhibits, and supplemental briefing,

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IT IS HEREBY ORDERED granting in part, and denying in part Defendant’s

Motion for Summary Judgment. (Doc. 61.) 

IT IS FURTHER ORDERED dismissing Plaintiff’s claim for breach of contract,

and dismissing Plaintiff’s claim for punitive damages.

IT IS FURTHER ORDERED denying as moot Plaintiff’s Motion for Partial

Summary Judgment. (Doc. 59.)

DATED this 12th day of March, 2013.

Case 2:11-cv-00836-SMM Document 80 Filed 03/12/13 Page 13 of 13