Joe Postel And Haley Loutfy Obtain Judgment On The Pleadings In Construction Defect Case
LPP attorneys Joe Postel and Haley Loutfy obtained a judgment on the pleadings for Acuity in a construction defect coverage case in federal court. Cornice & Rose International v. Acuity, no. 21 C 6112, 2022 WL 4481448 (N.D. Ill., September 27, 2022).
The case involved a dispute about coverage for an architect for a multi-story office building in Charles City, Iowa. The architect had responsibilities at the design, construction documents, and construction phases of the project. The building owners filed a suit alleging numerous “defective, incomplete and architectural problems with the building.” Acuity issued a CGL policy to the architect.
The court found that Acuity owed no duty to defend because the suit did not allege property damage caused by an occurrence, which are conditions to coverage. Rather, the suit alleged the natural and ordinary consequences of the architect’s work being done improperly, rather than an occurrence, and economic loss rather than property damage.
Read the full opinion here: Doc. 26 – Memorandum Opinion and Order.pdf