Boyd, Saindon & Grisham, P.L.L.C.: Jury Orders Allstate to Pay Millions in Bad Faith Verdict.Business Editors & Legal Writers DENTON, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 22, 2002 More than three years after filing their claim, Robert and Debbie Mason finally had their day in court. On April 18, 2002 a Denton County, Texas Denton County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. In 2000, its population was 432,976; in 2006 the U.S. Census Bureau estimated that its population had reached 584,238. jury ordered Allstate Texas Lloyds to pay actual and exemplary damages exemplary damages n. often called punitive damages, these are damages requested and/or awarded in a lawsuit when the defendant's willful acts were malicious, violent, oppressive, fraudulent, wanton, or grossly reckless. in excess of 3.8 million dollars. The case against Allstate, the Mason's insurance carrier, alleged that Allstate failed to pay the Mason's claim for damage to their home caused by plumbing leaks. Mr. & Mrs. Mason purchased their home in late 1992 and it began cracking apart in late 1998. Plumbing tests were performed which revealed massive leaks in the plumbing lines beneath the foundation. When the leaks were repaired, the damages soon stopped. After the claim was submitted to Allstate, an engineer hired by Allstate concluded the leaks caused no damage to the house. The Masons disagreed and filed suit against Allstate. Soil in the N. Texas region is commonly known as highly expansive clay Expansive clay is a clay that is prone to large volume changes that are directly related to changes in water content. Mitigation of the effects of expansive clay on structures built in areas with expansive clays is a major challenge in geotechnical engineering. soil. This means the soil has a tendency to expand in volume when subjected to moisture, or as in this case, water from plumbing leaks. The Mason's insurance policy provided coverage for damages to the home caused by the plumbing leaks. In a unanimous verdict, the jury of 12 found that the plumbing leaks resulted in damage to the home holding Allstate liable for breach of contract. The jury also found Allstate breached Texas ' common-law duty of good faith and fair dealing; knowingly engaged in unfair or deceptive de·cep·tive adj. Deceptive or tending to deceive. de·cep  tive·ness n. acts or practices, knowingly engaged in an unconscionable Unusually harsh and shocking to the conscience; that which is so grossly unfair that a court will proscribe it.When a court uses the word unconscionable to describe conduct, it means that the conduct does not conform to the dictates of conscience. action or course of action, and acted with malice malice, in law, an intentional violation of the law of crimes or torts that injures another person. Malice need not involve a malignant spirit or the definite intent to do harm. . The jury ordered Allstate to pay $163,159.76 for repair costs to the Mason's home, additional damages in the amount of 3.5 million finding Allstate acted knowingly and with malice, and attorney's fees attorney's fee n. the payment for legal services. It can take several forms: 1) hourly charge, 2) flat fee for the performance of a particular service (like $250 to write a will), 3) contingent fee (such as one-third of the gross recovery, and nothing if there is no . The Mason's attorneys, Stephen W. Boyd and Robert N. Grisham, II said that the jury's verdict should send a message to insurance carriers that they should spend less time focusing on profits and more time treating homeowners fairly. "The Masons only wanted what was fair," Grisham said. |
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