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Amy Smithv.Georgia Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Company

CourtCourt of Appeals of Georgia
Docket No.A14A1824
DecidedMarch 30, 2015
Reporter331 Ga. App. 780; 771 S.E.2d 452
JudgesCourt of Appeals of Georgia, First Division; Chief Judge Phipps, Presiding Judge Ellington, and Judge McMillian; Chief Judge Phipps authored the opinion
Tags
CivilInsurance LawInsurance CoverageContract InterpretationSummary JudgmentStatutory InterpretationSpecial Concurrence
Case Summary

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.

Opinion

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