EIGHTH CIRCUIT AFFIRMS DISMISSAL OF CONTRACT DISPUTE BETWEEN INSURER AND REINSURANCE BROKER
In a contract dispute between an insurer and its reinsurance broker on which we previously reported, the Eighth Circuit affirmed the district court’s dismissal of the insurer’s complaint for failure to state a claim. The brokerage sharing agreement at issue required the reinsurance broker to pay an annual fee to the insurer in exchange for status as the insurer’s exclusive broker and included a forfeiture provision which discontinued the broker’s obligation to make the annual payment upon notice of the insurer’s decision to terminate or replace the broker. The insurer replaced the reinsurance broker, the broker refused to pay the annual fee, and the insurer sued for breach of contract. On appeal, the insurer argued that the district court misconstrued several key terms in the agreement, that the terms were ambiguous, and that theories of equity therefore applied. Applying Minnesota law, the Eighth Circuit determined that an “integrated definition” of a key term and the forfeiture provision were unambiguous, the broker was no longer obligated to make annual payments after receiving notice from the insurer that the broker was being replaced, and equitable relief was not available since the contract was clear and unambiguous. Olympus Ins. Co. v. AON Benfield, Inc., No. 12-1974 (8th Cir. Ap. 1, 2013).
This post written by Abigail Kortz.
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