The Wisconsin Supreme Court has initiated its 2018-19 term with oral arguments beginning last week in several cases.
Of note, the justices heard arguments on Sept. 5 in SECURA Insurance v. Ray Duerr Logging LLC, which will decide whether multiple occurrences may arise from a single cause for insurance coverage purposes. In this case, SECURA argued that a fire spreading across multiple property lines was a single occurrence and thus coverage for Ray Duerr Logging, which started the fire, would be capped at the per-occurrence limit of $500,000. On the other hand, Ray Duerr Logging argued that a separate occurrence began each time the fire crossed into another property. Thus, coverage would be capped at $500,000 per property damaged, up to the policy’s $2 million aggregate limit. The circuit court and appeals court sided with Ray Duerr Logging, and SECURA appealed to the Supreme Court.
The court also heard oral arguments on Sept. 7 in three cases, including Koss Corp. v. Park Bank. That case involves the application of a process to assess “bad faith” in violation of Wisconsin’s Uniform Fiduciaries Act.
The court will continue oral arguments on Sept. 24 and 25. Other notable upcoming cases to be heard in September include:
- Michael Engelhardt v. City of New Berlin – government ministerial duties immunity (Sept. 24)
- Philip Myers v. Department of Natural Resources – amending of previously issued construction permit (Sept. 25)