Mr. Bickford's claim was subject to a $25,000 limit for assault claims under an endorsement to a commercial general liability insurance policy issued to Polynesian by Northfield Insurance Company.

Polynesian also had an excess liability insurance policy from Starstone National Insurance Company, which was a "following form" policy that provided no coverage where the coverage in the followed policy (that is, the Northfield policy) was subject to a "sublimit of liability."

Starstone went to court, contending that the $25,000 limit for assault claims was a "sublimit of liability" and, therefore, that its policy did not provide coverage for assault claims — and, more particularly, for the claim arising from the assault on Mr. Bickford.

For its part, Polynesian contended that the lower assault and battery limit was a standalone limit, not a sublimit, and, therefore, that the Starstone policy provided coverage for any assault claims exceeding the $25,000 in coverage provided by the Northfield policy.

The parties moved for summary judgment.

The District Court's Decision

The district court, applying Florida law, granted summary judgment in favor of Starstone.

In its decision, the district court observed that the Starstone policy did not define "sublimit" or "sublimit of liability."

The district court then found that the "plain and ordinary meaning" of the term "sublimit" was reflected in the International Risk Management Institute definition of "sublimit" as:

A limitation in an insurance policy on the amount of coverage available to cover a specific type of loss. A sublimit is part of, rather than in addition to, the limit that would otherwise apply to the loss. In other words, it places a maximum on the amount available to pay that type of loss, rather than providing additional coverage for that type of loss.

In this interpretation, the district court continued, the term "sub-" was used in a way that was synonymous with "under," "below," or "beneath." In addition, the district court continued, it aligned with the way "sublimit of liability" had been used in case law – as a limit on a subcategory of liability.

The district court then concluded that, as a matter of law, the Northfield policy's $25,000 in coverage for bodily injury caused by an assault or battery offense was a "sublimit of liability" as that term was used in the Starstone policy and, accordingly, the Starstone policy did not cover the Bickford claim.

The case is Starstone National Ins. Co. v. Polynesian Inn, LLC, No: 6:18-cv-1048-Orl-31EJK (M.D. Fla. Aug. 26, 2019). Attorneys involved include: For StarStone National Insurance Company, Plaintiff: Rory Eric Jurman, Steven S. Cula, Viviana Arango Loshak, LEAD ATTORNEYS, Hinshaw & Culbertson, Ft Lauderdale, FL. For Polynesian Inn, LLC, doing business as Days Inn of Kissimmee, Defendant: Mark Andrew Nation, Gregory D. Swartwood, LEAD ATTORNEYS, Nation Law Firm, Longwood, FL. For Andrew James Bickford, Defendant: Karina de Oliviera Rodrigues, Kelley Uustal, PLC, LEAD ATTORNEY, Ft Lauderdale, FL; Stuart Scott Busby, LEAD ATTORNEY, Busby Negin, Inc., Atlanta, GA. For Polynesian Inn, LLC, Counter Claimant: Mark Andrew Nation, Gregory D. Swartwood, LEAD ATTORNEYS, Nation Law Firm, Longwood, FL. For StarStone National Insurance Company, Counter Defendant: Rory Eric Jurman, Steven S. Cula, Viviana Arango Loshak, LEAD ATTORNEYS, Hinshaw & Culbertson, Ft Lauderdale, FL.