Harleysville Insurance Company v. Certified Testing Laboratories Inc.
- 1:22-cv-02764
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 1
Harleysville v. Certified Testing, the court entered default judgment declaring no coverage duties and limiting rights under the policy.
Harleysville Insurance Company, Certified Testing Laboratories Inc., and Edgar Tobar. The judgment declared Harleysville’s defense and indemnity obligations and Edgar Tobar’s rights under Certified’s policy.
What happened
Harleysville Insurance Company v. Certified Testing Laboratories Inc. concerned insurance coverage for an underlying action involving Certified Testing Laboratories Inc. and Edgar Tobar.
The court adopted a report and recommendation in full and granted Harleysville’s motion for default judgment. The opinion does not describe the underlying action’s allegations in detail.
The court entered judgment against Certified and Edgar Tobar, declaring that Harleysville had no duty to defend or indemnify Certified, could withdraw from its 50% contribution to Certified’s defense, and did not owe Edgar Tobar third-party rights under Certified’s policy for any award or judgment connected to the underlying action. The court also stated that the lack of timely objections prevented appellate review and closed the case.
The detailed version
- Harleysville Insurance Company v. Certified Testing Laboratories Inc. · No. 1:22-cv-02764
- July 10, 2023
Background
Harleysville Insurance Company brought this insurance-coverage case against Certified Testing Laboratories Inc. and Edgar Tobar. The opinion refers to an underlying action and to a policy issued to Certified, but it does not provide the underlying action’s detailed allegations.
Ruling
The court stated that, for the reasons in its July 7, 2023 order, it adopted the Report and Recommendation in its entirety and granted Harleysville’s motion for default judgment. A default judgment is a judgment entered against a party that has not successfully defended the case; the opinion does not provide additional details about the defendants’ default.
The Clerk was directed to enter judgment against Certified Testing Laboratories Inc. and Edgar Tobar in favor of Harleysville, declaring that:
- Harleysville had no duty to defend or indemnify Certified in connection with the underlying action.
- Harleysville could withdraw from its 50% contribution to Certified’s defense.
- Edgar Tobar had no third-party rights, as a beneficiary or otherwise, under the policy issued to Certified for any award or judgment related to the allegations in the underlying action.
The court further stated that the absence of timely objections, despite the notice provided in the Report, precluded appellate review, and it ordered that the case be closed.
Read the full 1-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.