United States Fifth Circuit

In an interlocutory appeal arising from Hurricane Katrina's destruction of plaintiffs' home and defendant-State Farm's refusal to compensate plaintiffs for their losses under a policy, denial of State Farm's motion to dismiss the complaint under Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(6) is affirmed in part, but reversed in part and remanded where: 1) damage resulting to plaintiffs home from storm surges was an excluded peril that was not covered by the policy; 2) contrary to the holding below, an Anti-Concurrent-Causation (ACC) Clause was unambiguous and enforceable; 3) under binding precedent, the ACC Clause in the policy overrides the efficient proximate cause doctrine.

Appellate Information

• Decided 11/06/2007
• Published 11/07/2007

Judges

• GARWOOD, Circuit Judge:, Before GARWOOD, JOLLY and STEWART, Circuit Judges.

Court

• United States Fifth Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• Richard F. Scruggs, David Zachary Scruggs, B. Humphreys McGee, III, Scruggs Law Firm, Oxford, MS, Edward D. Robertson, Jr. (argued), Bartimus, Frickleton, Robertson & Obetz, Jefferson City, MO, for the Tuepkers., Robert C. Galloway, Butler, Snow, O'Mara, Stevens & Cannada, Gulfport, MS, Douglas Webber Dunham, Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, New York City, William N. Reed, W. Scott Welch, III, Amy Lewis Champagne, Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell & Berkowitz, John C. Henegan, Sr., Butler, Snow, O'Mara, Stevens & Cannada, Jackson, MS, Susan Marie Popik, Chapman, Popik & White, San Francisco, CA, Clarke Benbow Holland (argued), LHB Pac. Law Partners, Emeryville, CA, for State Farm Fire & Cas. Co., Joe Sam Owen, Ben F. Galloway, Robert P. Myers, Jr., Owen & Galloway, Gulfport, MS, for Owen & Galloway Plaintiffs, Amicus Curiae., William F. Merlin, Jr., Mary E. Kestenbaum, Merlin Law Group, Tampa, FL, John N. Ellison, Anderson, Kill & Olick, Philadelphia, PA, Amy Bach, United Policyholders, San Francisco, CA, for United Policyholders, Amicus Curiae.