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Buckley Towers Condo., Inc v. QBE Ins. Corp.

Buckley Towers Condo., Inc v. QBE Ins. Corp.

United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit

September 14, 2010, Decided; September 14, 2010, Filed

No. 09-13247

Opinion

 [*661]  MARCUS, Circuit Judge:

Appellee/cross-appellant Buckley Towers Condominium, Inc. (Buckley Towers), the owner of a pair of condominium buildings in Miami-Dade County, Florida, purchased hurricane insurance from appellant/cross-appellee QBE Insurance Corp. (QBE), but when Hurricane Wilma struck South Florida in October 2005, QBE did not pay. Buckley Towers sued and, after trial in federal district court, a jury awarded it nearly $20 million in  [**2] damages. At issue in this case is whether the district court erred in denying QBE's post-trial motion for judgment as a matter of law, motion to amend or alter the judgment, and motion for a new trial.

The insurance contract clearly required that Buckley Towers make actual repairs before seeking Replacement Cost Value (RCV) and law and ordinance damages. Although Buckley Towers made no such repairs, the district court held that the doctrine of prevention of performance permitted Buckley Towers to recover RCV and law and ordinance damages. QBE asserts that this was reversible error under Florida law. We agree, and hold that Buckley Towers had no right to recover these damages under the policy. We also agree with QBE that the contract between these parties did not allow for the provision of prejudgment interest, and hold that it was error for the district court to award it as well.

QBE further claims that it was error for the district court to allow Actual Cost Value (ACV) damages, because there was no evidence that Buckley Towers ever submitted a proper claim for ACV damages. As we read the trial record, however, there was sufficient evidence to sustain the jury's award as to ACV damages.  [**3] Moreover, it was not an abuse of discretion for the district court to deny QBE's motion for a new trial on the basis of juror misconduct. Accordingly, we reverse the district court's judgment in part, affirm it in part, and remand in part for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.

Hurricane Wilma hit South Florida in October 2005, badly damaging Buckley Towers, a pair of condominium buildings in Miami-Dade County. Buckley Towers first contacted QBE about the loss it sustained in February 2006, four months after the hurricane hit. Buckley's public adjuster, Denise Valderamma, sent a letter to QBE asking for an "advance payment due to the amount of major and structure damage the property suffered due to Hurricane Wilma accordingly [sic] to the policy provisions and endorsements."

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395 Fed. Appx. 659 *; 2010 U.S. App. LEXIS 19144 **

BUCKLEY TOWERS CONDOMINIUM, INC., Plaintiff-Appellee-Cross-Appellant, versus QBE INSURANCE CORPORATION, Defendant-Appellant-Cross-Appellee.

Notice: PLEASE REFER TO FEDERAL RULES OF APPELLATE PROCEDURE RULE 32.1 GOVERNING THE CITATION TO UNPUBLISHED OPINIONS.

Subsequent History: Magistrate's recommendation at, Costs and fees proceeding at Buckley Towers Condo., Inc. v. QBE Ins. Corp., 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 23484 (S.D. Fla., Mar. 1, 2011)

Subsequent appeal at, Decision reached on appeal by Buckley Towers Condo., Inc. v. QBE Ins. Corp., 2012 U.S. App. LEXIS 23338 (11th Cir. Fla., Nov. 14, 2012)

Prior History:  [**1] Appeals from the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida. D. C. Docket No. 07-22988-CV-RWG.

Buckley Towers Condo. v. QBE Ins. Corp., 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 45038 (S.D. Fla., May 26, 2009)

Disposition: REVERSED in part, AFFIRMED in part, and REMANDED in part for proceedings consistent with this opinion.

CORE TERMS

damages, repair, district court, insurance contract, prevention of performance, ordinance, juror, prejudgment interest, sworn proof of loss, new trial, replace, terms, depreciation, insured, actual cash value, replacement cost, obligations, Hurricane, motion for judgment as a matter of law, voir dire, condominium, misconduct, performing

Business & Corporate Compliance, Contracts Law, Standards of Performance, Substantial Performance, Insurance Law, Claim, Contract & Practice Issues, Policy Interpretation, Plain Language, Ambiguous Terms, Unambiguous Terms, Contract Conditions & Provisions, Conditions Precedent, Property Insurance, Coverage, Replacement Costs, Contract Formation, Reformation, Civil Procedure, Appeals, Standards of Review, Clearly Erroneous Review, General Overview, Remedies, Damages, De Novo Review, Judgment Interest, Prejudgment Interest, Trials, Judgment as Matter of Law, Abuse of Discretion, Judgments, Relief From Judgments, Motions for New Trials, Jury Trials, Jurors, Misconduct