Court Opinion

ID: 9631092
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-22 10:29:08.048177+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:07:48.825701
License: Public Domain

ANNE GARDNER, Justice,
concurring.
I agree with the majority’s result. But I respectfully disagree with its interpretation of the indemnity agreement. The majority adds terms that do not exist on the face of the agreement, that are unnecessary to resolve this appeal, and that could result in unintended consequences beyond the facts of this case.
To resolve this appeal, we must answer three questions: First, does the indemnity agreement pass the “express negligence” test; that is, is ARC ever obligated to indemnify Delta for Delta’s own negligence? Second, to what extent is ARC obligated to indemnify Delta for Delta’s own negligence? And third, do the facts presented trigger ARC’s contractual obligation to indemnify Delta? To answer these questions, I first look to the plain language of the indemnity agreement. The indemnity agreement consists of two sentences:
[ARC] shall indemnify ... Delta ... from ... all claims ... which in any way arise out of or result from any act(s) or omission(s) by [ARC] ... in the performance or nonperformance of services under this Agreement....
This section shall apply regardless of whether or not the damage, loss or injury complained of arises out of or relates to the negligence (whether active, passive or otherwise) of, or was caused in part by, [Delta].
1. The express negligence test.
The majority acknowledges that indemnity agreements similar to this one have been held to satisfy the express negligence test of Ethyl so as to require indemnification for the indemnitee’s own negligence. But the majority nevertheless states that “nowhere is there language that directly or indirectly says that ARC will indemnify Delta if Delta is solely at fault.” To the contrary, I believe the second sentence says exactly that: ARC will indemnify Delta regardless of whether the injury or *674damage “... arises out of ... the negligence ... of ... [Delta].”
In many cases, including those cited by the majority, provisions very similar to the indemnity agreement here have been held to meet the express negligence test so as to require indemnity for the indemnitee’s sole negligence. The second sentence of the indemnity agreement here is comparable to the language in those cases. I would hold that it meets the express negligence test so as to obligate ARC to indemnify Delta for claims resulting solely from Delta’s own negligence.
2. To What Extent Must ARC Indemnify Delta for Delta’s Own Negligence?
The majority writes that ARC is never obligated to indemnify Delta for claims that arise solely from Delta’s own negligence. The majority derives this conclusion from its observation that if Delta is solely at fault, then ARC cannot be at fault. This is true (though irrelevant to the indemnity question). The majority then reasons that if Delta is solely at fault for a claim, then the claim could not arise from any act or omission of ARC. I respectfully disagree. The majority adds two words to the indemnity agreement: “solely” and “fault.” Nothing in .the agreement says ARC must be at fault — solely or partially — before its indemnity obligation applies. So long as the claim arises from ARC’s act or omission — negligent or otherwise — ARC must indemnify Delta, even if Delta is wholly or partially at fault.1
3. Under What Circumstances Must ARC Indemnify Delta for Delta’s Own Negligence?
The first sentence of the indemnity agreement states that ARC will indemnify Delta for claims that “in any way arise out of or result from the act(s) or omissions(s) by [ARC] ... in the performance or nonperformance of services under this Agreement.” The majority assumes that this language limits ARC’s indemnity obligation only to claims arising out of ARC’s negligent acts or omissions, but no such limitation is expressed in the agreement. The words “acts or omissions” do not necessarily connote negligence and have not been interpreted in the manner suggested by the majority.2 Similar language exists in most indemnity agreements, as discussed in the cases cited by the majority. In other words, a claim could arise out of ARC’s non-negligent act or omission.
Likewise, “arising out of’ is not synonymous with “caused by.” “ ‘Arising out of are words of much broader significance than ‘caused by.’ ” Utica Natl Ins. Co. of Tex. v. Am. Indem. Co., 141 S.W.3d 198, 203 (Tex.2004) (citing Red Ball Motor Freight, Inc. v. Employers Mut. Liab. Ins. Co., 189 F.2d 374, 378 (5th Cir.1951)). “Arising out of’ means there is simply a causal connection or relationship and implies “but for” causation, but not necessarily direct or proximate causation. Id.
*675I can easily imagine a claim arising out of ARC’s non-negligent performance of contract services but solely caused by Delta’s negligence. Under the majority’s interpretation of the agreement, such a claim does not trigger ARC’s indemnity obligation. But the plain language of the indemnity provision compels the opposite conclusion: ARC must indemnify Delta for all claims arising from ARC’s acts under the contract, even if Delta’s negligence caused the injury.
The first sentence simply imposes a basic requirement of a nexus between the injuries or damage and the contract; that is, ARC’s contractual indemnity obligation is only triggered as to claims arising out of acts or omissions by ARC in the performance or nonperformance of services under its contract with Delta. See Coastal Mart, Inc. v. S.W. Bell Tel. Co., 154 S.W.3d 839, 845-46 (Tex.App.-Corpus Christi 2005, no pet. h.) (holding plain meaning of “arising from or connected with” is to require in-demnitee to establish “some nexus between [indemnitor’s] obligations under the contract and the detriment for which indemnity is sought”).
The majority nonetheless reaches the right result. While I would hold that the agreement, itself, passes the express negligence test, ARC’s indemnity obligation would still only be triggered by allegations in the underlying suit that the claimed injuries arose out of performance or nonperformance of ARC’s services under the contract.3 Because those pleadings were only in the alternative as to whether ARC’s or Delta’s employees were involved and any claim that ARC’s employees were performing services under the contract was abandoned, ARC’s indemnity obligation was not triggered as a matter of law.4 Therefore, I join the majority in affirming the summary judgment.

. The majority also assumes that ARC's indemnity obligation only exists where Delta is sued for ARC's negligent acts or omissions. Neither the language of the agreement nor the case law supports such a limitation of ARC's indemnity obligation to Delta's vicarious liability.

. In Jobs Bldg. Servs., Inc. v. Rom, Inc., an indemnity agreement was held not sufficiently specific to require indemnity for the contractor's own negligence that provided for indemnification of the contractor for "damage ... caused by ... the negligent act or omission of anyone ... for whose acts \or omissions] the contractor ... may be liable." 846 S.W.2d 867, 870 (Tex.App.-Houston [1st Dist.] 1992, writ denied) (emphasis added). If the indemnity agreement here had contained similar language, then I would agree with the majority's interpretation.

. If the indemnity agreement were enforceable as to the claim pleaded against Delta for its own negligence, it would likewise be enforceable as to defense costs and expenses incurred in defending against the pleaded claim, even though Delta was found not negligent. See Fisk Elec. Co. v. Constructors & Assocs., Inc., 888 S.W.2d 813, 815 (Tex.1994).

. See Banner Sign & Barricade, Inc. v. Price Constr., Inc., 94 S.W.3d 692, 697 (Tex.App.San Antonio 2002, pet. denied) (holding issue was one of law determined solely by allegations in underlying suit that injuries arose out of subcontractor's work).