Amy Smithv.Georgia Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Company
Amy Smith, individually and as next friend of her daughter, sued landlord Bobby Chupp, alleging that the child suffered injuries from lead-based paint in Chupp’s rental home. Georgia Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Company sought a declaration that its commercial general-liability policy excluded coverage and imposed no duty to defend Chupp. The Court of Appeals held that the policy’s pollution exclusion did not clearly encompass the alleged lead-paint injuries and that the allegations potentially fell within coverage, triggering a duty to defend. It therefore reversed summary judgment for the insurer in both Smith’s and Chupp’s related cases. Judge Ellington concurred in the judgment only; Judge McMillian specially concurred but disagreed with the majority’s reasoning and stated that the decision was nonbinding physical precedent.
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