United States Tenth Circuit

Because an aviation insurance policy clearly provided coverage for all persons suffering from mental anguish as a result of aircraft operation, the decedents' families' mental anguish claims are not limited by the $100,000 "each person" limitation, but are limited by Colorado statute that prohibits recovery for noneconomic loss or injury in wrongful death cases in excess of $250,000; in the absence of a comparable express exclusion in an accompanying policy that denies coverage to a shareholder or officer of the company owning the aircraft, such individuals are not excluded from coverage.

Appellate Information

• Decided 03/15/2002
• Published 03/15/2002

Judges

• GARTH, Circuit Judge., Before TACHA, Chief Judge, GARTH, and BRISCOE, Circuit Judges.

Court

• United States Tenth Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• John W. Grund;  Della S. Nelson, with him on the briefs, Grund & Breslau, P.C., Denver, CO, for Plaintiff-Appellant.


• For Appellees:
  
• Zane R. Moseley of Zarlengo, Mott, Zarlengo & Winbourn, P.C., Denver, CO, for Defendant-Appellee Durango Air Service, Inc.;  John D. McClune of Schaden, Katzman, Lampert & McClune, Broomfield, CO, for the Ross Defendants-Appellees;  Reed L. Winbourn of Zarlengo, Mott, Zarlengo & Winbourn, P.C., Denver, CO;  Bruce A. Lampert of Schaden, Katzman, Lampert & McClune, Broomfield, Colorado;  and G. Raymond Goodwin of Watrous Ehlers Mielke & Goodwin, P.C., Littleton, CO, with them on the briefs, for Defendants-Appellees.