01-3523 MIAMI-DADE COUNTY V. ASSOCIATED AVIATION UNDERWRITERS, ET AL.,

State: Florida

Court: Florida Third District Court

Docket No: 01-3523 MIAMI-DADE COUNTY V. ASSOCIATED AVIATION

Case Date: 12/26/2002

Preview:NOT FINAL UNTIL TIME EXPIRES TO FILE REHEARING MOTION AND, IF FILED, DISPOSED OF.

IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF APPEAL OF FLORIDA THIRD DISTRICT JULY TERM, 2002

MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, FLORIDA, Appellant, vs. ASSOCIATED AVIATION UNDERWRITERS, et al., Appellees.

** ** ** ** ** CASE NO. 3D01-3523 LOWER TRIBUNAL NO. 98-29969

Opinion filed December 26, 2002.

An Appeal from a final order from the Circuit Court for Miami-Dade County, Amy N. Dean, Judge. Greenberg Traurig, Elliot H. Scherker, Peter M. Gillon and Mitchell J. Rotbert (Washington, D.C.), and Reginald L. Bouthillier, Jr. (Tallahassee), for appellant. Steel Hector & Davis, Alvin B. Davis, John T. Butler and Gabriel E. Nieto; Lord Bissell & Brook, Gary Westerberg, Don W. Fowler, and Christopher R. Barth (Chicago, Illinois); Siboni Hamer & Buchanan and Michael C. Siboni (Ocala); London Fischer and Julius A. Rousseau, III (New York, New York); and Phelps Dunbar and Jay Russell Sever (New Orleans, Louisiana), for appellees.

Before JORGENSON, COPE and GODERICH, JJ.

PER CURIAM. In the underlying declaratory action, Miami-Dade County appeals from final orders denying insurance coverage. After

carefully reviewing the record, we find that the policies at issue were unambiguous and that Miami-Dade County was not an "additional insured" under some of the policies and that the pollution exclusion precluded coverage under the other policies where the County was listed as an insured. that the remaining issues lack merit. Accordingly, the orders under review are affirmed. Further, we find

2

Miami-Dade County v. Associated Aviation Underwriters, et al. Case No. 3D01-3523

COPE, J. (specially concurring). I agree with the result, but disagree on reasoning. For the years 1990-92, Miami-Dade County was listed as an additional insured on the insurance policies issued by appellees liability to Pan American covered, World Airways other ("Pan Am"). Pan the The Am's some of the

policies

among

things,

operations at the Miami International Airport.

The policy years

at issue on this appeal are 1970-71 and 1987-92. For the pre-1990 policy years, the County was not listed as an additional insured. However, the effect of the County's

bankruptcy settlement with Pan Am was to assign to the County Pan Am's claims under the insurance policies. Thus, the County

has stepped into Pan Am's shoes with respect to the alreadyaccrued claims. On the merits, the pollution exclusions for the policy years now before us exclude the County's claims. The policies at

issue here were, at a minimum, of a unique character such that they did not require approval by the Florida Department of Insurance. See

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