Arizona Supreme Court Finds Multiple Thefts to be One Occurrence
The Arizona Supreme Court handed down an interesting number of occurrences decision last week. Employers Mut. Cas. Co. v. DGG & CAR, Inc., 2008 Ariz. LEXIS 20 (Feb. 14, 2008). The court found multiple thefts to constitute a single occurrence. The decision, however, was shaped by language peculiar to the fidelity insurance policy: an Occurrence means “all loss caused by, or involving, one or more ‘employees,’ whether the result of a single act or series of acts.” It was also interesting to note the rule of interpretation that the court followed: “In interpreting an insurance policy, we apply ‘a rule of common sense’ thus, ‘when a question of interpretation arises, we are not compelled in every case of apparent ambiguity to blindly follow the interpretation least favorable to the insurer.’" Can’t argue with common sense, right? Wrong, I expect policyholder advocates to criticize the common sense rule sharply.
