THOMPSON, Circuit Judge.
This is an insurance case grounded on diversity. The parties agree that the policy in question provides coverage for a particular loss of perishable foodstuffs. So that's the easy part. What the parties need us to decide is exactly how much coverage there is — $500,000 or $25,000? For the reasons below, we agree with the district court's answer: $25,000.
The underlying facts are undisputed and not particularly numerous. Based in Puerto Rico, Economy International Systems, Inc. ("Economy") provides cold-storage for its clients' food products until they are ready for distribution to customers.
During the summer of 2010, Economy was keeping more than a million dollars worth of foodstuffs — things like seafood, beef, and chicken — on ice for appellants AJC International, Inc. and AJC Logistics, LLC.
The United States Department of Agriculture stepped in and ordered the destruction
Having suffered a loss in excess of one million dollars, AJC sought recovery under Economy's insurance policy issued by appellee Triple-S Propiedad, Inc. ("Triple-S"). The parties agree that the nature of the loss was in the manner of food spoilage, and that the spoilage was caused by a mechanical breakdown of Economy's freezers. And they both agree that the Triple-S policy provides coverage for AJC's loss as "personal property of others." Though they agree on this much, the parties couldn't reach an accord as to the amount of coverage — AJC believes it is entitled to $500,000, while Triple-S says the most AJC can get out of it is $25,000.
Invoking diversity jurisdiction, AJC filed suit against Triple-S in the district court and sought a ruling that it may recover $500,000 under the policy.
The motions were referred to a magistrate judge, who issued a detailed report and recommendation. The magistrate judge found the Policy's terms clear and unambiguous and concluded that language in the Policy's coverage for losses caused by equipment breakdown limited AJC's recovery to $25,000. Accordingly, the magistrate judge recommended that Triple-S's motion be granted and AJC's denied. The district judge adopted the magistrate judge's findings and recommendations in full, denied AJC's motion for summary judgment, and granted Triple-S's. Unsatisfied, AJC appealed.
Cross-motions for summary judgment require the district court to "consider each motion separately, drawing all inferences in favor of each non-moving party in turn." D & H Therapy Assocs., LLC v. Bos. Mut. Life Ins. Co., 640 F.3d 27, 34 (1st Cir.2011) (citing Merchs. Ins. Co. of N.H., Inc. v. U.S. Fid. & Guar. Co., 143 F.3d 5, 7 (1st Cir.1998)). But see P.R. Am. Ins. Co. v. Rivera-Vazquez, 603 F.3d 125, 133 (1st Cir.2010) (noting that when "cross-motions for summary judgment are filed simultaneously, or nearly so, the district court ordinarily should consider the two motions at the same time," but if it "opts to consider them at different times, it must at the very least apply the same standards to each").
Our review is de novo. Sch. Union No. 37 v. United Nat'l Ins. Co., 617 F.3d 554, 558 (1st Cir.2010). We follow the familiar summary judgment rules and affirm summary judgment "only if the record discloses no genuine issue as to any material fact and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law." Tropigas de P.R., Inc. v. Certain Underwriters at Lloyd's of London, 637 F.3d 53, 56 (1st Cir.2011) (citations omitted). "[W]e are not straitjacketed by the [district] judge's reasoning — quite the contrary, we are free to uphold [the court's] order on any basis present in the record." Stor/Gard, Inc. v. Strathmore Ins. Co., 717 F.3d 242, 247 (1st Cir.2013).
The parties do not dispute that Puerto Rico law applies in this diversity case.
Under Puerto Rico's Insurance Code, P.R. Laws Ann., tit. 26, § 101, et seq., "[e]very insurance contract shall be construed according to the entirety of its terms and conditions as set forth in the policy, and as amplified, extended, or modified by any lawful rider, endorsement, or application attached to and made a part of the policy." Id. § 1125. As the Puerto Rico Supreme Court has explained
Pagán Caraballo v. Silva Delgado, 22 P.R. Offic. Trans. 96, 101 (1988) (quoting Morales Garay v. Roldán Coss, 10 P.R. Offic. Trans. 909, 916 (1981)). "[E]xclusionary clauses are not favored, [and] should be strictly construed and in such a way that the policy's purpose of protecting the insured is met." Id.
Any ambiguities in the policy language "shall be resolved in favor of the insured." Id. This is because "[t]he interpretation of obscure stipulations of a contract must not favor the party occasioning the obscurity." Meléndez Piñero v. Levitt & Sons of P.R., Inc., 129 P.R. Dec. 521, 546 (1991). Further, when a Puerto Rico insurance contract is ambiguous, "the insurance policy stipulations are construed strongly against the insurer and liberally in favor of the insured." Id. at 547; see also Quiñones López v. Manzano Pozas, 141 P.R. Dec. 139, 155 (1996) ("[N]ice constructions that would allow insurers to dodge liability are not favored.").
On the other hand, Puerto Rico law does "not compel constructions in favor of the insured when a clause favors the insurer, and its meaning and scope is [sic] clear and unambiguous." Quiñones López, 141 P.R. Dec. at 155 (citing cases); cf. Little-field v. Acadia Ins. Co., 392 F.3d 1, 8 (1st Cir.2004) (applying New Hampshire law and observing that "we may not find a term ambiguous merely because it eliminates coverage"). "In such cases, it [i.e., the unambiguous clause] should be held as binding on the insured." Quiñones López, 141 P.R. Dec. at 155; see also Nieves v. Intercontinental Life Ins. Co. of P.R., 964 F.2d 60, 63 (1st Cir.1992) ("If the wording of the contract is explicit and its language is clear, its terms and conditions are binding on the parties." (citing cases)).
To set the stage for the rest of our discussion, we begin with a run-down of the Policy language relevant to this appeal.
First, the very basics. The Policy defines the words "you" and "your" to mean the "Named Insured shown in the Declarations." Turning to those Declarations, we see the Named Insured is "Manuel Espinosa DBA Economy International Services." Thus, when reading the Policy, "you" and "your" mean Economy, and only Economy.
This case deals with a claim of loss to AJC's property while it was stored in Economy's freezers. The Policy includes "Personal Property of Others" as a category of "Covered Property." More specifically (and excising language not germane to our analysis) Triple-S agreed to cover such property as follows:
Per the Declarations, the limit of coverage for "Personal Property of Others" is $500,000.
The Policy goes on, though, to exclude certain causes of loss from coverage. Excluded from coverage — meaning that Triple-S "will not pay for loss or damage caused directly or indirectly" by a particular cause — is any "loss or damage caused by or resulting from ... [m]echanical breakdown." From now on, we'll call this the "Mechanical Breakdown Exclusion."
But because Economy wanted the Policy to cover losses caused by mechanical breakdown, it sought, and Triple-S added, an endorsement which specifically provided "Equipment Breakdown Coverage." The resulting Equipment Breakdown Endorsement, as relevant here, provides:
To keeps things clear, from now on we'll call the coverage for spoilage of perishable goods added by this Endorsement "Spoilage Coverage." We'll also refer to the $25,000 limit referenced at the end of the Spoilage Coverage the "Spoilage Sublimit."
The added Endorsement provides its own exclusions:
One of the referenced, now-inapplicable exclusions to Equipment Breakdown Coverage is Exclusion B.2.d.(6) — the Mechanical Breakdown Exclusion.
The Endorsement sets forth other, new exclusions to its specific Equipment Breakdown Coverage that are not found in the main body of the Policy. For example, things such as structures, foundations, insulating material, sprinkler piping, and sewer piping are not "covered equipment." Also excluded is any "damage caused by or resulting from" Economy's "failure to use all reasonable means to protect the `perishable goods' from damage following an `accident,'" along with damage caused by or resulting from "any defect, virus, loss of data or other situation within `media.'" Additionally, the Endorsement modifies some of the exclusions found in the Policy's main body by adding or subtracting language.
This run-down is sufficient to get the lay of the land. Other relevant provisions will be identified and discussed as needed below.
Now for the parties' arguments on appeal. In pursuit of its coverage claim, AJC does not take the position that the Policy is ambiguous. Instead, it relies on the Policy's plain language to say that the Equipment Breakdown Endorsement deleted the Mechanical Breakdown Exclusion found in the original Policy. It pins this argument on Section B.1(a)(i) of the Equipment Breakdown Endorsement, which states that "[a]ll exclusions and limitations apply except" for certain specifically-enumerated ones — including the Mechanical Breakdown Exclusion — listed immediately after. AJC urges us to find that this contractual language deletes those exclusions from the original Policy. And with the exclusion deleted, AJC reasons,
Not surprisingly, Triple-S disagrees with AJC, telling us that the "clear and unambiguous terms of the Triple-S Policy provide a $25,000 sub-limit for spoilage of `perishable goods' caused by or resulting from equipment breakdown." Appellee Br. at 18. Thanks to the Policy's exclusion of losses caused by mechanical breakdown (as happened here), Triple-S says, instead of $500,000 being available for loss to the Personal Property of Others, $0 is. In other words, the main body of the Policy provides no coverage for AJC's loss. But, Triple-S explains, the Equipment Breakdown Endorsement added coverage for losses stemming from equipment breakdown back to the Policy, including situations like here where an equipment breakdown results in loss of perishable goods. Furthermore, Triple-S argues that the Endorsement's Spoilage Coverage comes with its own $25,000 limit, which caps AJC's recovery at $25,000.
Now that we've laid out the applicable law, Policy provisions, and the parties' arguments, we can get to the bottom of this dispute.
Because neither party contends the Policy or its Mechanical Breakdown Exclusion is ambiguous, we will not go out of our way to find ambiguity. In the absence of claimed ambiguity, our job under Puerto Rico law is to simply apply the provisions as written. We begin, as we must, with the plain language.
As noted, the parties agree on the essential facts: AJC's perishable goods spoiled while in Economy's care, resulting in financial loss to AJC. They agree the spoilage resulted from a mechanical breakdown of Economy's freezers, and that AJC's goods, as Personal Property of Others, fall under the Policy's definition of Covered Property.
Turning to the Policy itself, we see that Triple-S agreed it would "pay for direct physical loss of or damage to Covered Property ... caused by or resulting from any Covered Cause of Loss." Policy, Building and Personal Property Coverage Form, § A. This type of policy, "called, in insurance lingo, an `all risks policy' — covers all physical loss to the [specified] property unless `caused by or resulting from' an excluded peril." Stor/Gard, 717 F.3d at
Significantly, though, the Policy is individualized so as to contain the Equipment Breakdown Endorsement, which adds "Equipment Breakdown Coverage" back to the Policy. Under this coverage, Triple-S agreed to pay for certain losses "caused by or resulting from an `accident' to `covered equipment.'" Policy, Equipment Breakdown Endorsement ("Endorsement") § A.(2). The Endorsement also explicitly adds coverage for a "loss of `perishable goods' due to spoilage," id. at § A.(2)(c)(i), which is what we've been calling Spoilage Coverage.
In light of the agreed upon facts, it is clear from the Endorsement's plain language that Spoilage Coverage applies to AJC's loss. There is no dispute about this. The question is, just how much coverage is available? The Spoilage Coverage itself, setting forth its own Sublimit, suggests an answer: "The most we will pay for loss or damage under this coverage is $25,000 unless otherwise shown in a Schedule." Id. at § A.(5)(c).
AJC raises a couple of arguments as to why we should interpret the Policy and Equipment Breakdown Endorsement as providing $500,000 of coverage for its loss. Neither, we believe, has merit.
We start with AJC's contention that the Equipment Breakdown Endorsement "expressly deleted" the Mechanical Breakdown Exclusion altogether. AJC relies (almost exclusively) on our opinion in Fidelity Co-Operative Bank v. Nova Casualty Co., 726 F.3d 31 (1st Cir.2013), to say that we have already decided language similar to that in the Endorsement deletes an exclusion.
Although AJC makes Fidelity the centerpiece of its argument, it is of no assistance. The long and short of it is that the policy and endorsement at issue there involved quite different language than appears in the Triple-S Policy. In Fidelity, an amendatory endorsement provided simply that certain "[e]xclusions are deleted." 726 F.3d at 37 (emphasis added). This clear text, we found, resulted in the deletion of the "entire exclusion" at issue there. Id. at 37 n. 2.
The contractual language here is not even close to what we had before us in Fidelity. Most obviously, the Equipment Breakdown Endorsement does not say that it deletes the Mechanical Breakdown Exclusion. It provides instead that "[a]ll exclusions and limitations apply except" for those specifically designated, including the Mechanical Breakdown Exclusion. And, per the plain language, the exceptions referred to are inapplicable only insofar as the reestablished additional coverage provided by the Endorsement is concerned.
Having disposed of its Fidelity-based argument, AJC is left with the bald assertion that the Endorsement "expressly deleted the [M]echanical [B]reakdown [E]xclusion." Appellant Br. at 18. Beyond citing to Fidelity, AJC does not explain how the Endorsement does so. Since nowhere does the Endorsement state that it deletes the Exclusion, this omission is practically enough on its own to doom AJC's position. And what's more, we find that AJC's take doesn't jibe with the Policy's overall structure or plain language.
First, by setting forth new "Additional Coverages" previously unknown to the Policy (including Spoilage Coverage), the Endorsement acts as a sort of "mini-policy." Like the Policy itself, the Endorsement sets forth an insuring agreement complete with its own definitions, detailed conditions, and deductible. The Endorsement even has something to say about exclusions. As we have seen, it specifies that certain existing exclusions do not apply to the Endorsement's coverage, it modifies other exclusions, and it adds still others that are only applicable to the Endorsement's brand of Equipment Breakdown Coverage.
Furthermore, and perhaps most telling of all, the Endorsement does explicitly delete a portion of one of the original exclusions in certain situations. And — unlike the policy we construed in Fidelity — the Endorsement explicitly limits the effect of that deletion to coverage under the Endorsement itself. Specifically, the Endorsement states that
Endorsement § B.(2)(c) (emphasis added).
In essence, AJC's position that the Endorsement deleted the Exclusion effectively asks us to redraft the Policy's clear and unambiguous language. Accepting this invitation would contravene the well-established tenets of Puerto Rico's insurance law requiring us to interpret and apply unambiguous provisions of an insurance contract as they are written. We, therefore, reject AJC's argument that the Equipment Breakdown Endorsement deletes the Mechanical Breakdown Exclusion.
Let's take stock of what this means for coverage. The Mechanical Breakdown Exclusion continues to exist in the Policy. And the only coverage to which the Exclusion does not apply is that additional coverage set forth in the Equipment Breakdown Endorsement. So, coverage for AJC's loss must flow from that Endorsement because any potential alternative source of coverage falls prey to the Mechanical Breakdown Exclusion. Thus, the only coverage available for AJC's loss is provided by the Spoilage Coverage, as set forth in the Equipment Breakdown Endorsement.
This brings us to AJC's final argument.
As we mentioned, the Endorsement's Spoilage Coverage comes with its own $25,000 Spoilage Sublimit. See Endorsement § A.(2)(c) ("The most we will pay for loss or damage under this coverage is $25,000 unless otherwise shown in a Schedule."). Although it is not particularly clear from its brief (or oral argument), AJC seems to be arguing that even if coverage for its loss is found in the Endorsement's Spoilage Coverage rather than the main Policy, the $500,000 coverage limit in the Declarations nevertheless prevails over the lower Spoilage Sublimit. This is because, in AJC's view, the Sublimit applies only to spoilage of goods owned by the Named Insured, Economy, and not goods owned by Economy's clients. AJC asserts that, since the $25,000 Spoilage Sublimit does not apply to its loss, the $500,000 limit set forth in the Declarations becomes available to it.
To unravel this question, we return to the Endorsement's language. The relevant part of the Spoilage Coverage provision states the following: "We will pay for your loss of `perishable goods' due to spoilage." Recall that "you" and "your" refer only to the Named Insured, Economy. Thus, what this provision says is that Triple-S will pay up to $25,000 for "Economy's loss of `perishable goods' due to spoilage." Since AJC's goods spoiled while in Economy's freezers, this $25,000 Sublimit kicks in to limit AJC's recovery.
Attempting to get out from under the Spoilage Sublimit, AJC urges us to add a "your" to the sentence and read it to say that Triple-S will only pay for "Economy's loss of Economy's `perishable goods' due to spoilage." This interpretation simply cannot be squared with the Endorsement's plain and unambiguous language.
According to its terms, the $25,000 Sublimit comes into play where Economy is responsible for the spoilage of perishable
Here, it is uncontested that AJC suffered a loss to its perishable goods as a result of Economy's malfunctioning freezers. We have already determined that coverage for this loss is provided by the Spoilage Coverage set forth in the Equipment Breakdown Endorsement. Thus, pursuant to the clear terms of the Spoilage Sublimit, the most that Triple-S is required to pay out due to this loss is $25,000. Any other conclusion would be contrary to the Endorsement's plain language and run afoul of basic precepts of Puerto Rico insurance law. We, therefore, apply the Endorsement and Spoilage Sublimit as written, and we conclude that the most AJC may recover for Economy's loss of AJC's perishable goods is $25,000.
For the foregoing reasons, the district court's judgment is
The proposed stipulation states, "Triple-S admits that the coverage under Personal Property of Others and its Limit of $500,000.00 is available for damage caused by an equipment breakdown." Recall that the Equipment Breakdown Endorsement provides more than just Spoilage Coverage. See, e.g., Endorsement, § A.(1)(a) (providing coverage for a mechanical breakdown of covered equipment). Because we hold that coverage for AJC's loss is found solely by way of the Endorsement's Spoilage Coverage, the door remains open to the possibility that claims falling under different coverage provisions in the Endorsement could be covered up to $500,000. There is simply nothing inconsistent between the Triple-S admission and our holding today.
