What began as a lawsuit filed against Church Mutual Insurance Company on a $1 million-plus claim dispute turned into a potential $2 million award against a contractor after a jury found the contractor intentionally interfered with the insurance contract and caused the litigation.
The case, The Calvary Baptist Church of Denver and Church Mutual Insurance Company V. Skyyguard Corp., came about after it was discovered a contractor orchestrated an inflated appraisal process. That prompted the church to settle with Church Mutual for $50,000 and side with the carrier.
In a counterclaim that played out in the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado, the church sued the contractor for breach of contract and negligent misrepresentation, and the insurer sued for fraud and intentional interference of the insurance contract causing a breach of the misrepresentation clause and punitive damages…