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Case No. 23-1308

John Dostart and Deena Dostart
v.
Columbia Insurance Group

Appellee

John Dostart and Deena Dostart

Appellant

Columbia Insurance Group

Attorney for the Appellee

Billy J. Mallory and Trevor A. Jordison

Attorney for the Appellant

Michael A. Carmoney and Allison J. Frederick

Court of Appeals

Court of Appeals Opinion

Opinion Number:
23-1308
Date Published:
Oct 30, 2024
Summary

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Polk County, Coleman McAllister, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Heard by Badding, P.J., Langholz, J., and Doyle, S.J.  Opinion by Langholz, J.  (14 pages)

            Columbia Insurance Group appeals an interlocutory order of the district court denying its motion for summary judgment on John and Deena Dostart’s claim under Iowa Code section 516.1 (2022) for payment of an unsatisfied consumer-fraud judgment against the company’s insureds who constructed the Dostarts’ new home.  Columbia argues the judgment is not covered by the commercial-general-liability insurance policy because: (1) the consumer fraud was not an occurrence under the policy; (2) the consumer fraud fell within the intentional-act exclusion of the policy; and (3) the judgment was not because of property damage.  OPINION HOLDS: This summary-judgment record lacks sufficient evidence to hold that the insurance policy Columbia issued does not cover the consumer-fraud judgment entered in favor of the Dostarts.  The jury verdict, jury instructions, and judgment entry are not enough to show as a matter of law that the judgment was based on intentional conduct that falls outside the definition of occurrence or within the intentional-act exclusion to the insurance policy nor evidence that the judgment was not from property damage. 

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