Harvell v. Ervin et al

Filing 32

MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER by Judge Charles R. Simpson, III on 1/26/2012. 8 motion to bifurcate the trial of the plaintiffs negligence claims from the third-party bad faith claim is GRANTED and the bad faith claim is STAYED. Discovery on the bad faith claim against Sentry Select Insurance Company is STAYED PENDING RESOLUTION OF THE NEGLIGENCE CLAIMS AGAINST TERRIS L. ERVIN AND BLAIR LOGISTICS, LLC.cc:counsel (TLB)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
WESTERN DISTRICT OF KENTUCKY
AT LOUISVILLE

ANTHONY HARVELL

PLAINTIFF

v.

CIVIL ACTION NO. 3:11CV-525-S

TERRIS L. ERVIN, et al.

DEFENDANTS

MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER

This action arose from injuries allegedly sustained in an automobile accident involving
vehicles operated by the plaintiff, Anthony Harvell, and the defendant, Terris L. Ervin. Harvell
brought negligence claims against Ervin and Blair Logistics, LLC, Ervin’s employer and the owner
of the vehicle. He also brought a claim against Sentry Casualty Company,1 the purported insurer
of Blair’s vehicle, for alleged bad faith in handling the underlying insurance claim.
The matter is presently before the court on motion of defendant Sentry to bifurcate the trial
and stay discovery on the bad faith claim against Sentry.
Bifurcation is usually warranted in actions in which the plaintiff asserts a claim for liability
against a defendant and a claim for bad faith against a defendant’s insurer. As stated by the Supreme
Court of Kentucky,
This [bifurcation] procedure “better protect[s] the rights” of the two different
defendants because it keeps out of the first trial “evidence which was relevant to the
issue of bad faith but unnecessary and possibly prejudicial...in the trial of the
preliminary question of liability.” [711 S.W.2d at 849]. While we see no
1

Harvell named the insurer as “Sentry Casualty Company” in both the complaint and amended complaint. Sentry Casualty
Company answered and denied that it provided any policy of insurance for Blair Logistics LLC. The motion to bifurcate indicates
that Sentry Select Insurance Company has been incorrectly identified in the complaint as Sentry Casualty Company. However the
plaintiff has not sought to correct the error. For purposes of this motion, the defendant will be referred to as “Sentry.”

impediment to the joinder of the claims in a single action, at trial the underlying
negligence claim should first be adjudicated. Only then should the direct action
against the insurer be presented. Liability insurance should not be interjected
needlessly into the trial of a negligence case.
Wittmer v. Jones, 864 S.W.2d 885, 891 (Ky. 1993). We see no reason to depart from this welltrodden path.2
Therefore, motion having been made and for the reasons set forth herein and the court being
otherwise sufficiently advised, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED AND ADJUDGED that:
(1) The motion of defendant Anthony Horvell, to bifurcate the trial of the plaintiff’s negligence
claims from the third-party bad faith claim (DN 8) is GRANTED and the bad faith claim is
STAYED.
(2) Discovery on the bad faith claim against Sentry Select Insurance Company is STAYED
PENDING RESOLUTION OF THE NEGLIGENCE CLAIMS AGAINST TERRIS L. ERVIN
AND BLAIR LOGISTICS, LLC.

IT IS SO ORDERED.

January 26, 2012

2

See, e.g., Grange Mutual v. Trude, 151 S.W.3d 803 (Ky. 2004); Sosa v. State Farm Ins. Co., No. 2005-CA-001864-MR,
2006 WL 2191131 (Ky.App. Aug. 4, 2006); Pollard v. Wood, No. 5:05CV-444-JMH, 2006 WL 782739 (E.D.Ky. March 27, 2006);
Reynolds v. Safeco Ins. Co., No. 5:06CV-322-JMH, 2007 WL 38348 (E.D.Ky. Jan. 5, 2007); BancInsure, Inc. v. First Bank, Inc.,No.
3:10CV-580-R, 2011 WL 781191 (W.D.Ky. Mar. 1, 2011).

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