Travelers Property Casualty Company of America v. Mountain Movers Engineering Company, Inc. et al

Filing 60

ORDER: Granting, in Part, and Denying, in Part, Plaintiff's 50 Motion to Dismiss (2) Denying Plaintiff's 51 Motion to Strike. Signed by Judge Marilyn L. Huff on 6/23/2017. (ag)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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Case No.: 3:16-cv-02127-H-WVG

TRAVELERS PROPERTY CASUALTY
COMPANY OF AMERICA, a
Connecticut corporation,

ORDER:

Plaintiff,

(1) GRANTING, IN PART, AND
DENYING, IN PART, PLAINTIFF’S
MOTION TO DISMISS

v.
MOUNTAIN MOVERS ENGINEERING
COMPANY, INC., a California
corporation; et al.,

(Doc. No. 50)

Defendants.

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(2) DENYING PLAINTIFF’S
MOTION TO STRIKE

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(Doc. No. 51)

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On April 3, 2017, Defendants Old Republic General Insurance Corporation

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(“ORGENCO”) and Pacific Building Group (“PBG”) (collectively, “Defendants”), filed a

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motion for leave to file counterclaims. (Doc. No. 41.) Plaintiff Travelers Property

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Casualty Company of America (“Plaintiff”) opposed Defendants’ motion, arguing the

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motion should be denied as futile. (Doc. No. 43.) On May 4, 2017, the Court granted

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Defendants’ motion in part, allowing them to file nine of their counterclaims. (Doc. No.

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46.)
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On May 11, 2017, Defendants filed their counterclaims. (Doc. No. 47.) On May

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25, 2017, Plaintiff filed a motion to dismiss two of Defendants’ claims and their prayer

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for punitive damages. (Doc. No. 50.) On the same day, Plaintiff also moved to strike

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allegedly privileged material from Defendants’ counterclaims. (Doc. No. 51.)

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Defendants filed their oppositions on June 1, 2017. (Doc. Nos. 53, 54.) Plaintiff filed a

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reply on June 16, 2017. (Doc. No. 57.)

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BACKGROUND
The following facts are taken from the allegations in Defendants’ counterclaims.
(Doc. No. 47.) Defendant PBG was the general contractor hired to complete an

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improvement of real property located in Carlsbad, California (the “Carlsbad Property”).

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(Id. ¶ 11.) PBG subsequently contracted Mountain Movers Engineering Company, Inc.

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(“Mountain”) to perform work in connection with the improvement. (Id. ¶ 13.) As part

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of the agreement between PBG and Mountain, Mountain agreed to indemnify PBG for

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any claims arising from Mountain’s performance. (Id. ¶ 14.) Mountain also agreed to

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reimburse PBG for any loss, including extra expenses and attorneys’ fees, related to

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Mountain’s failure to perform. (Id. ¶ 15.) As part of its contractual obligations,

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Mountain obtained a commercial general liability insurance policy, No. DTE-CO-

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9323B76 (the “Traveler’s Policy”), from Plaintiff. (Id. ¶ 16.)

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On September 8, 2012, while working at the Carlsbad Property, Mountain

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damaged a sewer cleanout, causing a sewer backup and flooding an adjacent building.

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(Id. ¶¶ 17-18.) Plaintiff was notified promptly of the damage but did not participate in, or

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fund, the repairs. (Id. ¶ 20.) The total cost of the damage was $141,880.61, of which

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ORGENCO paid $131,880.61 (representing the cost minus a $10,000 deductible). (Id.

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¶ 22.) Mountain agreed to reimburse PBG for the $10,000 deductible. (Id. ¶ 23.)

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On October 8, 2012, Plaintiff informed Mountain that the Traveler’s Policy did not

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cover the September 8, 2012 damage because the policy included a Pollution Exclusion,

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as well as a Bacteria/Fungi Exclusion. (Id. ¶ 24.) On October 19, 2012, Defendants

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submitted a claim to Plaintiff for the costs they incurred and were told that Plaintiff was
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in the process of investigating the claim. (Id. ¶¶ 25-26.) On December 11, 2012,

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Plaintiff informed Defendants the Pollution Exclusion precluded coverage under the

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Traveler’s Policy because the accident involved sewage. (Id. ¶ 27.)

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Following the denial of coverage, Defendants filed suit in state court, seeking

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indemnification and reimbursement from Plaintiff and Mountain. (Id. ¶ 28.) Mountain

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retained The Law Offices of Gregory Hout to defend it and, although Plaintiff agreed to

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pay for Mountain’s defense, Plaintiff’s payments were late and sporadic. (Id. ¶ 31.)

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Throughout the course of the litigation, Plaintiff repeatedly claimed that the September 8,

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2012 incident was excluded from coverage and refused Defendants’ settlement offers.

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(Id. ¶¶ 36-41.)

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On May 31, 2016, Defendants offered to settle with Mountain for a stipulated

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judgment of $372,000 against Mountain in exchange for a covenant not to execute the

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judgment against Mountain. (Id. ¶ 46.) Mountain reviewed the settlement offer and

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forwarded it to Plaintiff. (Id. ¶¶ 47-48.) Plaintiff refused to fund the settlement offer and

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threatened to sue Mountain if it settled with Defendants. (Id. ¶ 49.) On August 2, 2016,

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Mountain entered into the Settlement Agreement with Defendants. (Doc. No. 48-2 at 4-

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14.) As part of the Agreement, Mountain also assigned all of its claims against Plaintiff

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to ORGENCO. (Id. at 10.)

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Defendants now seek to assert Mountain’s assigned claims, as well as their own

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claim as judgment creditor, against Plaintiff. Plaintiff moves to (1) dismiss certain claims

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and relief and (2) to strike confidential information in the counterclaims.

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DISCUSSION
I.

MOTION TO DISMISS
A. LEGAL STANDARD
A motion to dismiss, pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6), tests the

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legal sufficiency of the pleadings and allows a court to dismiss a complaint if the

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claimant has failed to state a claim upon which relief can be granted. Conservation Force

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v. Salazar, 646 F.3d 1240, 1241 (9th Cir. 2011). A complaint will survive a motion to

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dismiss if it contains “enough facts to state a claim to relief that is plausible on its face.”

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Bell Atl. Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 570 (2007). “A claim has facial plausibility

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when the plaintiff pleads factual content that allows the court to draw the reasonable

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inference that the defendant is liable for the misconduct alleged.” Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556

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U.S. 662, 678 (2009). The pleadings must go beyond “labels and conclusions” and the

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“[f]actual allegations must be enough to raise a right to relief above the speculative

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level.” Twombly, 550 U.S. at 555. A “formulaic recitation of the elements” is not

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enough. Id.; accord Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 678 (“Threadbare recitals of the elements of a

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cause of action, supported by mere conclusory statements, do not suffice.”).

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When reviewing a motion to dismiss, a district court must accept as true all facts

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alleged in the complaint, and draw all reasonable inferences in favor of the claimant.

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Retail Prop. Trust v. United Bhd. of Carpenters & Joiners of Am., 768 F.3d 938, 945 (9th

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Cir. 2014). The court need not, however, accept “legal conclusions” as true. Iqbal, 556

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U.S. at 678. Thus, pleadings unsupported by factual allegations are not entitled to a

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presumption of truth. Id. (“It is the conclusory nature of respondent’s allegations . . . that

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disentitles them to the presumption of truth.”).

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B. GOOD FAITH AND FAIR DEALING CLAIMS
“Implied in every contract is a covenant of good faith and fair dealing that neither

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party will injure the right of the other to receive the benefits of the agreement.” PPG

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Indus., Inc. v. Transamerica Ins. Co., 20 Cal.4th 310, 314 (1999). “The precise nature

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and extent of the duty imposed by such an implied promise will depend on the
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contractual purposes.” Egan v. Mutual of Omaha Ins. Co., 24 Cal.3d 809, 818 (1979).

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California courts have interpreted the covenant of good faith and fair dealing to include

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both a duty to reasonably indemnify, e.g., Howard v. Am. Nat. Fire Ins. Co., 187

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Cal.App.4th 498, 531 (2010) (“American also acted in bad faith in refusing to indemnify

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the Bishop after judgment was entered”), and a duty to reasonably settle claims, e.g., PPG

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Indus., Inc., 20 Cal.4th at 315 (“This covenant imposes a number of obligations upon

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insurance companies, including an obligation to accept a reasonable offer of

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settlement.”). An insurer’s breach of the implied covenant is actionable in tort and the

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insurance company is liable for all proximate damages. Id. at 315. Actions for bad faith

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are generally assignable. Essex Ins. Co. v. Five Start Dye House, Inc., 38 Cal.4th 1252,

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1263 (2006) (“Actions for bad faith against an insurer have generally been held to be

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assignable.”).

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Plaintiff moves to dismiss Defendants’ claims of (1) breach of implied covenant of

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good faith and fair dealing for failure to indemnify and (2) breach of implied covenant of

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good faith and fair dealing for failure to settle, arguing these claims fail as a matter of

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law. (Doc. No. 50-1 at 2.) Plaintiff is incorrect.

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1. Failure to Indemnify Claim
“Liability insurance obligates the insurer to indemnify the insured against third

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party claims covered by the policy by settling the claim or paying any judgment against

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the insured.” Howard, 187 Cal.App.4th at 512-13. Typically, “a stipulated judgment

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between the insured and the injured claimant, without the consent of the insurer, is

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ineffective to impose liability upon the insurer.” Safeco Ins. Co. v. Superior Court, 71

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Cal. App.4th 782, 787 (1999). However, a stipulated judgment may bind the insurer if

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the insurer “wrongfully refuse[d] to defend” or unreasonably refused to settle. Id. at 788;

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accord Wright v. Fireman’s Fund Ins. Cos., 11 Cal.App.4th 998 (1992) (collecting cases).

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As such, an insurer’s duty to indemnify may arise from a stipulated judgment and, thus,

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trigger their covenant of good faith and fair dealing. Howard, 187 Cal.App.4th at 531.

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As the Court previously noted in its order granting leave to file the counterclaims,

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(Doc No. 46), Defendants’ counterclaims allege sufficient facts to establish, at the

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pleadings stage, that Plaintiff may be liable for the stipulated judgment between

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Defendants and Mountain. As the Court explained:

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Defendants allege that Plaintiff failed to promptly pay Mountain’s defense

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counsel and, at the time of the settlement, Mountain had no assurances that

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Plaintiff would continue paying defense counsel. (Doc. No. 41-1 ¶ 45.)

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Furthermore, Defendants allege that Plaintiff refused to consider their

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settlement offers and maintained a “zero offer” settlement position

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throughout the course of litigation. (Id. at ¶¶ 42-44.) Accepting these facts

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as true, and drawing all reasonable inferences in Defendants’ favor,

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Defendants have adequately alleged that Plaintiff wrongfully refused to

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defend Mountain or unreasonably refused to settle. Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 678.

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As such, questions of fact remain as to whether the stipulated judgment is

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binding on Plaintiff.

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(Doc. No. 46 at 7.)

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Taking Defendants’ alleged facts as true, and making all reasonable inferences in

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their favor, Plaintiff may be bound by the stipulated judgment between Defendants and

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Mountain. And if bound, Plaintiff would be obligated to indemnify Mountain, the

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insured, for the judgment against it. Howard, 187 Cal.App.4th at 512-13; see also Buss

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v. Superior Court, 16 Cal.4th 35, 45 (1997) (“The insurer’s duty to indemnify runs to

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claims that are actually covered, in light of the facts proved.”). Thus, Plaintiff may have

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violated its covenant of good faith and fair dealing if it unreasonably refused to

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indemnify Mountain. Howard, 187 Cal.App.4th at 498.

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Plaintiff’s argument that it had no duty to indemnify Mountain because the

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stipulated judgment contained a covenant not to execute is unavailing. (See Doc. No. 50-

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1 at 6.) As the California Courts have stated “the fact the insured’s settlement with the

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injured party included a covenant not to execute against the insured does not prevent the
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judgment from being binding on the insurer.” Wright, 11 Cal.App.4th at 1017. Indeed,

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the California Courts have expressly endorsed such a covenant not to execute:

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[T]he rule is settled in other jurisdictions that where the insurer has

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repudiated its obligation to defend a defendant in the absence of fraud may,

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without forfeiture of his right to indemnity, settle with the plaintiff upon the

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best terms possible, taking a covenant not to execute. Moreover, the giving

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of such a covenant by plaintiff (the injured party) does not bar his

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subsequent action directly against the insurer. The reason for the rule, rather

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obviously, is that the injured party should not be penalized for an attempt to

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minimize his damages. We adopt it as applicable in California.

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Zander v. Casualty Ins. Co. of Cal., 259 Cal.App.2d 793, 802-03 (1968); accord Pruyn v.

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Agric. Ins. Co., 36 Cal.App.4th 500, 516-17, 521-22 (1995); Samson v. Transamerica Ins.

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Co., 30 Cal.3d 220, 240-41 (1981) (citing Zander, 259 Cal.App.2d at 802). The language

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in Zander clearly negates Plaintiff’s argument and Plaintiff has identified no cases that

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suggest the rule has changed.

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2. Failure to Settle Claim
“[The covenant of good faith and fair dealing] imposes a number of obligations

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upon insurance companies, including an obligation to accept a reasonable offer of

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settlement.” PPG Indus., Inc., 20 Cal.4th at 314-15; accord Crisci v. Security Ins. Co. of

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New Haven, Conn., 66 Cal.2d 425, 430-31 (1967) (“it may not be unreasonable for an

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insured who purchases a policy with limits to believe that a sum of money equal to the

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limits is available and will be used so as to avoid liability on his part”). Most commonly,

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claims for bad faith refusal to settle arise from judgments that exceed the insurance

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policy’s limit. E.g., Samson, 30 Cal.3d at 237. An excess judgment, however, is not

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necessary. Howard, 187 Cal.App.4th at 527 (“An insurer’s wrongful failure to settle may

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be actionable even without rendition of an excess judgment.”); accord Camelot by the

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Bay Condo. Owners’ Assn. v. Scottsdale Ins. Co., 27 Cal.App.4th 33, 48 (“Finally, there

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is no explicit requirement for bad faith liability that an excess judgment is actually
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suffered by the insured”). Whether a decision to refuse to settle was reasonable is

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necessarily a question of fact. See Peak-Las Positas Partners v. Bollag, 172 Cal.App.4th

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101, 106 (2009) (“Good faith and objective reasonableness are questions of fact, based on

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all the circumstances.”).

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Defendants’ counterclaim allege that Plaintiff unreasonably refused to accept the

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settlement offers Defendants extended to Mountain. (Doc. No. 47 ¶¶ 76-82.) In

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particular, Defendants allege that Plaintiff repeatedly asserted that Mountain’s claim was

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not covered under the policy, refused to offer any money to settle the action by

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Defendants against Mountain, and tried to prevent Mountain from settling through the

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threat of lawsuit. (Id. ¶ 33.) Furthermore, Defendants allege that Plaintiff improperly

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used confidential information from Mountain’s defense counsel to further its own

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interests. (Id. ¶ 94.) Defendants allege Plaintiff engaged in such conduct for the

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malicious purpose of harming Mountain and pressuring it into a course of litigation

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conduct that served Plaintiff’s interests. (Id. ¶ 117.) And as a result of Plaintiff’s

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conduct, Defendants allege to have suffered additional damages arising from the delay in

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resolving Mountain’s claim. (Id. ¶¶ 109, 116.) These facts are enough to plead a breach

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of the covenant of good faith and fair dealing for failure to reasonably settle claims.

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“An insured may recover for bad faith failure to settle, despite the lack of an excess

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judgment, where the insurer’s misconduct goes beyond a simple failure to settle within

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policy limits or the insured suffers consequential damages apart from an excess

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judgment.” Howard, 187 Cal.App.4th at 527. For example, in Bodenhamer v. Superior

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Court, 192 Cal.App.3d 1472 (1987), a California appeals court held that an insurer

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breached its covenant of good faith and fair dealing when it unreasonably delayed in

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settling a case, thereby injuring the insured’s good will. Id. at 1480. Similarly, in

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Larraburu Bros., Inc. v. Royal Indem. Co., 604 F.2d 1208 (9th Cir. 1979), the Ninth

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Circuit held that an insurer breached its covenant of good faith and fair dealing where an

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unreasonable refusal to settle damaged the insured’s credit. Id. at 1215 (“An

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unreasonable refusal to accept a settlement offer causes the insurer to be liable for
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consequential damages, such as mental suffering or economic loss, unless the insurer

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takes some action to eliminate the injury its earlier conduct otherwise would have

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caused.”). Accepting Defendants’ allegations as true, and making all reasonable

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inferences in their favor, Defendants have sufficiently plead facts establishing that

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Plaintiff’s conduct “[went] beyond a simple failure to settle within policy limits” and they

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suffered consequential damages. Howard, 187 Cal.App.4th at 527.

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As Defendants have properly pled both challenged causes of action, the Court
denies Plaintiff’s motion to dismiss Defendants’ bad faith claims. (Doc. No. 50.)

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C. Punitive Damages

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Plaintiff also moves to dismiss Defendants’ prayer for punitive damages. (Doc.

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No. 50-1 at 9-10.) First, Plaintiff argues that punitive damages are not available under

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Defendants’ assigned causes of action because punitive damages cannot be assigned.

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Second, Plaintiff argues that punitive damages are also unavailable under Defendants’

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creditor judgment claim. The Court agrees with Plaintiff.

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Punitive damages arising from bad faith conduct in connection with an insurance

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policy cannot be assigned. Murphy v. Allstate Ins. Co., 17 Cal.3d 937, 942 (1976) (“And

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because a purely personal tort cause of action is not assignable in California, it must be

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concluded that damage for emotional distress is not assignable. The same is true of a

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claim for punitive damages.”) (citation omitted); accord Essex Ins. Co. v. Five Star Dye

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House, Inc., 38 Cal.4th 1252, 1263 (2006) (“Although some damages potentially

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recoverable in a bad faith action, including damages for emotional distress and punitive

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damages, are not assignable, the cause of action itself remains freely assignable as to all

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other damages.”) (citation omitted); see also California Practice Guide: Insurance

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Litigation Ch. 13-C, § 13:199 (2016) (“Unless otherwise provided by statute, punitive

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damages are recoverable only by the immediate person injured, and not by an assignee.”).

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As such, Defendants’ prayer for punitive damages cannot rest on Mountain’s assigned

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claims.

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Similarly, Defendants’ prayer for punitive damages cannot rest on their judgment

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creditor claim. Punitive damages are only available for actions arising in tort. Cal. Civ.

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Code § 3294 (“[Plaintiff may recover punitive damages] in an action for the breach of an

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obligation not arising from contract”); see also Cates Constr., Inc. v. Talbot Partners, 21

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Cal.4th 28, 61 (1999) (“In the absence of an independent tort, punitive damages may not

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be awarded for breach of contract even where the defendant’s conduct in breaching the

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contract was wilful, fraudulent, or malicious.”) (internal quotation marks omitted);

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California Practice Guide: Insurance Litigation Ch. 13-C, § 13:194 (“Plaintiff must

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therefore plead and prove a tortious breach of the implied covenant or other tort before

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punitive damages are available.”). Here, Defendants’ have not plead a personal tort claim

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against Plaintiff and, thus, have asserted no basis for punitive damages.

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Defendants’ only cause of action brought on their own behalf—as opposed to those

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assigned to them by Mountain—is a judgment creditor action. (Doc. No. 47 ¶¶ 56-61.)

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However, this judgment creditor action arises from the insurance contract between

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Plaintiff and Mountain. Cal. Ins. Code § 11580(b)(2) (“whenever judgment is secured

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against the insured . . . then an action may be brought against the insurer on the policy”);

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Phillips v. Noetic Specialty Ins. Co., 919 F.Supp.2d 1089, 1096 (2013) (“Once a party

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has a final judgment against the insured, the claimant becomes a third-party beneficiary

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of the insurance policy and may enforce the terms which flow to its benefit pursuant to

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§ 11580.”); Doak v. Superior Court for Los Angeles County, 257 Cal.App.2d 825, 829

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(1968) (“[Section 11580] created a contractual relation between the insurer under a

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liability insurance policy and third persons who are negligently injured by the assured”).

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Thus, a judgment creditor action sounds in contract, not in tort, and cannot justify a

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prayer for punitive damages. Cal. Civ. Code § 3294.

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This is not to say that a judgment creditor can never seek punitive damages. See,

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e.g., Jones v. St. Paul Travelers, 496 F.Supp.2d 1079, 1087 (N.D. Cal. 2007) (“The Court

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concludes that even though California Insurance Code § 11580 does not explicitly create

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a judgment creditor action for punitive damages, plaintiffs are not barred from bringing
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such claim under California Civil Code § 3294.”); Gelfand v. North Am. Capacity Ins.

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Co., 2013 WL 6662501, *5 n.6 (N.D. Cal. Dec. 17, 2013) (“As a threshold matter, while

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section 11580 does not explicitly provide for punitive damages, a judgment creditor is not

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barred from bringing such a claim under California Civil code § 3294.”); Ham v. Cont’l

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Ins. Co., 2009 WL 513474, *4 (N.D. Cal. March 2, 2009). However, the judgment

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creditor must plead a tort action sufficient to support a claim for punitive damages. E.g.,

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Jones, 496 F.Supp.2d at 1087 (judgment creditor could pursue a bad faith claim against

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insurer for unreasonably withholding payment); accord Hand v. Farmers Ins. Exchange,

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23 Cal.App.4th 1847, 1857 (1994) (“the duty not to withhold in bad faith payment of

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adjudicated claims runs not only in favor of the insured but also in favor of a judgment

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creditor such as plaintiff here”). Here, Defendants have not pled a bad faith claim on

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their own behalf and, thus, cannot seek punitive damages. As such, the Court grants

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Plaintiff’s motion and strikes Defendants’ prayer for punitive damages.

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II.

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MOTION TO STRIKE
Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(f) provides that a “court may strike from a

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pleading an insufficient defense or any redundant, immaterial, impertinent, or scandalous

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matter.” Courts have relied on Rule 12(f) to strike pleadings that include inadmissible or

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privileged information. See, e.g., Fodor v. Blakey, 2012 WL 12893986, *5 (C.D. Cal.

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Dec. 31, 2012); Todd v. STAAR Surgical Co., 2015 WL 13388227, *4 (C.D. Cal. Aug.

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21, 2015). Whether to strike portions of a pleading is left to the sound discretion of the

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trial court. Neighbors of Cuddy Mountain v. Alexander, 303 F.3d 1059, 1070 (9th Cir.

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2002).

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Plaintiff moves to strike four passages from Defendants’ pleadings because they

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allegedly contain privileged communications in connection with a mediation proceeding.

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(Doc. No. 51-1 at 3.) In their entirety, the challenged passages state:

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Paragraph 43: “Travelers refused to offer any money to settle the case,

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claiming there was no coverage, and effectively did not participate.”

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Paragraph 43: “On information and belief, Counterclaimants allege that

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Travelers attended the mediation solely to threaten and pressure Mountain

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not to settle directly with Counterclaimants for Travelers’ own purposes and

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to the detriment of Mountain.”

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Paragraph 79: “Travelers . . . refused to mediate in good faith[.]”

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Paragraph 108: “[T]he McCloskey firm on behalf of Travelers . . . engaged

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in other tactics intended to delay the Underlying Action and run up costs,

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including but not limited to . . . agreeing to continue the trial for a mediation

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in which it did not participate in good faith[.]”

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(Doc. No. 51-1 at 3-4.) None of these passages should be stricken.
Many of the facts Plaintiff seeks to strike were previously introduced by Plaintiff

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in this litigation. On October 7, 2016, Plaintiff requested the Court take judicial notice of

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the stipulated judgment between Defendants and Mountain. (Doc. No. 13-2 at 2.) This

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stipulated judgment contains many of the now-challenged facts. For example, the

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stipulated judgment clearly states that “[Plaintiff] refused to offer any money to settle the

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case claiming there was no coverage. No White Waiver was conveyed to [Plaintiff]

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during the mediation.” (Doc. No. 13-3 ¶ 2.21.) Plaintiff did not object to this

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information when it was first introduced—indeed, it requested the Court take notice of it.

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As such, Plaintiff cannot now object to introduction of the same material by Defendants.

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See Chevron Corp. v. Pennzoil Co., 974 F.2d 1156, 1162 (9th Cir. 1992) (a party may not

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use privilege as both a sword and a shield).

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Furthermore, much of the allegedly confidential information included in

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Defendants’ counterclaims is not protected. Plaintiff challenges this information under

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California Evidence Code § 1119, which protects as confidential various forms of

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communication made for purpose of, in the course of, or pursuant to mediation. Cal.

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Evid. Code § 1119. This privilege, however, does not extend beyond communications.

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See, e.g., Long Beach Mem’l Med. Center v. Superior Court, 172 Cal.App.4th 865, 875

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(2009) (“we may not consider the statements made during mediation, although we may
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consider oral statements of the settlement terms”). Thus, for example, the allegation that

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“[Plaintiff] attended the mediation solely to threaten and pressure Mountain” is not

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protected because it does not disclose anything communicated during the mediation; it

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simply alleges a motivation. Similarly, the statement that “[Plaintiff] . . . refused to

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mediate in good faith” contains no protected communications. Thus, the Court,

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exercising its sound discretion, denies Plaintiff’s motion to strike the pleadings pursuant

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to Rule 12(f).

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CONCLUSION
For the foregoing reasons, the Court grants, in part, and denies, in part, Plaintiff’s

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motion to dismiss. (Doc. No. 50.) The Court strikes Defendants’ prayer for punitive

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damages as it is unsupported by their pleadings but allows Defendants’ bad faith claims.

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Furthermore, the Court denies Plaintiff’s motion to strike. (Doc. No. 51.)

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IT IS SO ORDERED.
DATED: June 23, 2017
Hon. Marilyn L. Huff
United States District Judge

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