Mississippi Partner Hiawatha Northington II obtained dismissal of a multiple-count complaint against the firm's client, a small, family-owned insurance agency in Mississippi.
In this case, the decedent passed away following an automobile accident involving a customer of the insurance agency. The decedent’s daughter initiated a lawsuit in state court in Mississippi against not only the customer and the customer’s business but also the insurance agency and the insurance company providing coverage to the customer. In her lawsuit, the plaintiff alleged that the customer caused the accident and that the agency and the insurance company were negligent in allowing the customer to purchase an insufficient amount of insurance to cover the plaintiff’s claim for damages. The plaintiff argued that she was a third-party beneficiary to the contract of insurance which provided coverage for the accident, and as such, she was entitled to compensatory and punitive damages against the insurance agency for an alleged breach of duty under the theories of “negligent undertaking” and “negligent underwriting” in allowing the sale of the policy to occur.
On behalf of the insurance agency, Mr. Northington immediately filed a motion to dismiss in response to the complaint. In doing so, he argued that the plaintiff had no standing to assert claims against the insurance agency, and further, that Mississippi law did not recognize the causes of action alleged by the plaintiff against the insurance agency. Following a hearing, the trial court agreed, finding that the plaintiff failed to state a claim for negligence as to the agency, and dismissed the case against the agency with prejudice.