St. Paul Reinsurance Company Limited London v. The Fort Miller Group, Inc. et al

Filing 153

ORDER FOR FURTHER BRIEFING. Signed by Magistrate Judge Bernard Zimmerman on 9/18/2008. (bzsec, COURT STAFF) (Filed on 9/18/2008)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 UNIONAMERICA INSURANCE CO., ) ) LIMITED, Successor-ininterest to ST. PAUL ) REINSURANCE, ) ) Plaintiff(s), ) ) v. ) ) THE FORT MILLER GROUP, INC.,) ) THE FORT MILLER CO. and ) BEECHE SYSTEMS CORP., ) Defendant(s). ) ) UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

No. C05-1912 BZ

ORDER FOR FURTHER BRIEFING

IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that the hearing on counterdefendant's motion to dismiss the first amended counterclaim is continued to October 29, 2008 at 10:00 a.m. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that by no later than September 29, 2008, counterdefendant shall file a brief addressing at least the following specific issues: 1. If the court rules that the underlying policy was

rescinded, would the insureds still be able to bring a claim for bad faith? 2. If the court finds that the policy was not

rescinded, would the insureds be able to bring a claim for 1

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bad faith? 3. Would the answers to questions 1. and 2. be

different if the insurer, who provided a defense and paid benefits, filed the rescission action in such a fashion as to impede the insured's ability to defend the underlying claims? 4. Assuming that the insureds can maintain their bad

faith counterclaim, what damages may they claim? 5. Would the public policy of encouraging insurers to

comply with their insurance obligations be advanced if an insurer could be subject to a claim based solely on the grounds that it filed an unsuccessful rescission action in bad faith? IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that counterclaimant shall file an opposition by no later than October 10, 2008. There will be

no further briefing unless specifically ordered by the court. All briefs shall be submitted in WordPerfect format on diskette or may be e-mailed to the following address: [e-mail] The parties are reminded to carefully heed the admonitions given by the court as to the focus of their briefs. Dated: September 18, 2008 Bernard Zimmerman United States Magistrate Judge

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