MORGANTOWN — The Monongalia County Commission and insurance broker P.M. Long & Son are being sued by the Monongalia County Development Authority (MCDA).
In a civil suit dated Dec. 7, MCDA legal counsel Rocky Gianola claims both defendants provided false information which misled the MCDA to believe it was covered under the county’s insurance.
The assurances came in the wake of a 2016 lawsuit filed against the MCDA and its former executive director, Holly Childs, by SouthCo Development LLC pertaining to the removal of coal beneath a portion of the planned I-68 commerce park development near the Morgantown Municipal Airport.
The MCDA’s civil suit includes five counts, including promissory estoppel — meaning a promise can be enforceable by law — negligent misrepresentation, negligence, breach of fiduciary duty and negligent misrepresentation.
The suit claims the county commission “had a duty to accurately communicate the insurance coverage it had purchased” on behalf of the MCDA and that it “breached its duty of care” in failing to provide coverage and/or failing to notify the MCDA that it was not covered.
The commission had yet to be served as of the end of business on Friday and issued the following statement.
“To the best of our knowledge we have not been served with any such filing. Therefore, at this time we defer any comment regarding any apparent filing until we have had ample time to receive the filing and consult with our legal counsel.”
When the MCDA was sued in 2016, the commission filed a claim to one of two Traveler’s insurance policies — purchased from Long & Son. When that claim was denied, it was transferred to another policy where it was again denied.
In December of 2017, the MCDA filed a suit in circuit court against the various Traveler’s companies. That case has since been moved to the federal court for the Northern District of West Virginia, where it is being litigated.
In its suit against the commission, the MCDA claims damages resulted from repeated assurances from the commission that the development authority was covered as an arm of county government.
Further, the suit claims the commission was provided false information by Long & Son regarding the MCDA’s exposure under the county’s policies. It also states the insurance broker should have known that both the county commission and MCDA would rely on its expertise on such matters.
The suit says the MCDA relied on the “representations and promises” of both the insurance broker and the commission to its detriment and has suffered damages in excess of $7,500 as a result.
This issue was the topic of an exchange during a March 2017 commission meeting attended by Gianola and Childs.
During that meeting the commission claimed that it believed all of its boards were covered under its insurance, but admitted that upon closer examination the answer of who was actually covered was “clear as mud.”
Gianola asked the commission to either verify MCDA’s coverage or allow MCDA to pursue its own coverage with the understanding the cost would be paid by the commission.
During that meeting, Gianola said litigation was likely unless the situation was handled carefully.
“Part of our purpose in being here is to let you know that we truly believe … my law firm truly believes, as counsel for the development authority, that your carrier is putting you in a very difficult situation, and before the end of the year, I think that situation is going to come to a head,” Gianola said. “Just so everybody’s cards are on the table.”
The MCDA lawsuit requests a trail by jury and is seeking coverage of its damages, court and attorney fees and any further relief deemed appropriate by the court.
