Breci v. St. Paul Mercury Ins. Co.

A credit union sued former members of the credit union’s board of directors. The former directors submitted the lawsuit to the credit union’s insurer, seeking coverage under the policy. The insurer denied coverage. The former directors sued, seeking a declaratory judgment that the policy covered the credit union’s claims. The district court ruled in favor of the former directors but later reconsidered and granted summary judgment to the insurer. The former directors settled with the credit union while reconsideration was pending. The Supreme Court affirmed the grant of summary judgment for the insurer, holding that the district court did not abuse its discretion in (1) vacating its earlier judgment granting the former directors’ motion for declaratory judgment, as the former directors did not establish that they were entitled to summary or declaratory judgment; and (2) allowing the insurer to amend its answer, as the settlement potentially gave rise to new policy-based defenses that were not barred by equitable estoppel. View "Breci v. St. Paul Mercury Ins. Co." on Justia Law