Opinion ID: 1645406
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: The Assignability of the Fiduciary-Duty Claim

Text: I agree with the majority that, in Florida, the proper test for determining whether a given fiduciary-duty [7] claim is assignable or wholly personal involves a case-by-case inquiry with regard to the relationship and duties between the assignor-principal and the alleged tortfeasor-agent. See majority op. at 987-89. However, I disagree that the duty involved in this case is similar to that owed by an insurer to an insured in a bad-faith action, as this case does not involve an insurer. Rather, here, Wachovia indisputably acted as an insurance broker. See Toomey, 450 F.3d at 1227 (Wachovia was the insurance broker for IMC. (emphasis supplied)); see also Essex Ins. Co. v. Zota, 985 So.2d 1036, 1046 (Fla.2008) ([A]n insurance broker [generally] acts as an agent of the insured, not the insurer, where the broker is employed by the insured to procure insurance. (some emphasis supplied) (quoting 3 Lee R. Russ & Thomas F. Segalla, Couch on Insurance § 45:5 (3d ed.2007))). As we explained in Cope II: The essence of a bad faith insurance suit (whether it is brought by the insured [i.e., first-party] or by the injured party standing in his place [i.e., third-party]), is that the insurer breached its duty to its insured by failing to properly or promptly defend the claim (which may encompass its failure to make a good faith offer of settlement within the policy limits)all of which results in the insured being exposed to an excess judgment. 462 So.2d at 460 (emphasis supplied) (quoting Kelly, 411 So.2d at 904). Hence, Wachovia, as an insurance broker, did not owe IMC a duty to defend with regard to the underlying litigation; rather, Wachovia owed IMC a duty to properly procure requested insurance coverage and to properly advise IMC concerning its coverage needs and potential risk exposure. See, e.g., Romo v. Amedex Ins. Co., 930 So.2d 643, 654 (Fla. 3d DCA 2006) ([W]here an insurance agent or broker undertakes to obtain insurance coverage for another person and fails to do so, he may be held liable for resulting damages to that person for breach of contract or negligence. (quoting Klonis v. Armstrong, 436 So.2d 213, 216 (Fla. 1st DCA 1983))), review denied, 949 So.2d 197 (Fla.2007); see generally 30 Fla. Jur.2d Insurance § 620 (2002). In contrast to the majority, I would analyze the duty prong of our case-by-case assignability test by recognizing that the allegations falling under Holman and Toomey's assigned fiduciary-duty cause of action are akin to negligent-procurement claims, not bad-faith claims. For example, the majority states: Holman and Toomey asserted that Wachovia had breached its duty to IMC by (1) failing to adequately explain to IMC that the Employment Practices Liability Insurance Policy covered claims alleging the breach of a written employment contract as well as defense costs for such claims; (2) failing to obtain proper approval from IMC to add the endorsement excluding coverage for breach of written employment contract claims to the Policy; (3) failing to advise IMC about the impact of the proposed Endorsement on IMC's risk exposure and existing employment relationships; (4) failing to ask IMC about the existence of any written employment contracts between IMC and any of its employees; (5) failing to ask IMC about existing or pending claims or litigation alleging the breach of a written employment contract; (6) failing to seek or offer replacement coverage or other alternatives by which IMC could preserve coverage for breach of written employment contract claims; (7) failing to explain to IMC that the proposed Endorsement would preserve defense costs for breach of written employment contract claims; (8) failing to protect IMC from reasonably anticipated liability; or (9) engaging in a conspiracy to eliminate IMC's insurance coverage for breach of written employment contract claims. Majority op. at 988 n. 3. With the possible exception of claim (9), each of these claims relates to Wachovia's alleged negligent failure to obtain requested insurance coverage for the breach of written employment contracts. Further, such claims are assignable in Florida. See, e.g., Forgione v. Dennis Pirtle Agency, 701 So.2d 557, 560 (Fla.1997) ([W]e conclude that public policy considerations do not preclude the assignment of an insured's claim for negligence against an insurance agent.), receded from on other grounds by Cowan Liebowitz & Latman, P.C. v. Kaplan, 902 So.2d 755, 757 (Fla.2005). Accordingly, I would modify the majority's holding with regard to issue II as follows: Because the insurance broker-insured relationship between IMC and Wachovia was not a confidential relationship, and because the [fiduciary-]duty claim against Wachovia was essentially a [negligent-procurement] claim, the cause of action ... is assignable by IMC to Holman and Toomey. Majority op. at 989 (emphasis supplied). For this reason, I concur in the result only with regard to the majority's analysis of issue II.