Opinion ID: 2386281
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: limits of the policy

Text: There is a certain sense of unreality about the manner in which this case was presented at trial by the parties. Ms. Ramos' right to recover from Allstate for breach of contract depends entirely on the provisions of an insurance policy which, if the certified copy in the record is correct, entitled her to receive no more than $25,000. Nevertheless, as we have noted, neither party introduced the insurance policy into evidence or apprised the trial judge of the policy's limitation on damages. After the evidence had been presented, Allstate moved to dismiss the action solely on the ground that Mr. Singleton had not been joined as a party defendant. Because, in this breach of contract case, both parties essentially ignored the provision of the contract governing damages, the alleged cap on the coverage of the policy was not disclosed to the judge in advance of trial. [3] If Allstate's belatedly submitted certified copy is genuine, and if the policy is capped at $25,000, there is no evidence in the record to support an award of damages for breach of contract in excess of that amount. Indeed, Ms. Ramos has shown no basis for requesting relief beyond the limits stated in the policy; her prayer in the complaint for an award of $30,000$15,000 less than the jury awarded, but $5,000 more than the policy capis not readily explicable. [4] Counsel for the plaintiff argued in this court that his client, as a third party beneficiary, was a stranger to the contract and could not be expected to know its contents. Putting to one side that the plaintiff is the wife of the insured and was riding in his automobile, it is difficult to suppose, in light of Super. Ct. Civ. R. 11, that able counsel would file an action for breach of contract without first familiarizing himself with the terms of the contract on which the suit was based. Cf. Nelson v. Allstate Ins. Co., 753 A.2d 1001, 1004 (D.C.2000) (affirming judgment after the trial court had ruled that the insured could not complain of surprise because he had filed suit under the contract and therefore must have known its terms). But whether the attorneys had read the policy or not, the verdict of the jury exceeded the alleged coverage of the policy by $20,000, and the trial ended without disclosure by anyone of this important fact. Unless the certified copy provided by Allstate after the trial was fabricated, inaccurate, or otherwise unreliable or unenforceable, judgment was entered upon the verdict under what can only be characterized as an illusory state of affairs.