Farmers Insurance Company, Inc. Missouri Cases

Farmers Insurance Company appealed the trial court's grant of summary judgment in favor of the Sykoras on their equitable garnishment claim, which the trial court certified as final for appeal under Rule 74.01(b). This was Farmers' second attempt to appeal the judgment. The appellate court dismissed the appeal for lack of jurisdiction, holding that the trial court's Rule 74.01(b) certification was ineffective because the judgment did not dispose of a distinct "judicial unit," as the Sykoras' bad faith failure to settle claim against Farmers remained pending and arose from the same facts and transactions.

Farmers Insurance Company appealed the trial court's dismissal of its amended petition for interpleader. The underlying dispute involved multiple claims against Farmers' insured arising from a car accident, where Farmers sought to resolve the distribution of its policy limits among the claimants. The trial court dismissed the petition for failure to state a claim. The appellate court reversed and remanded, holding that Farmers had sufficiently pleaded the necessary elements for an interpleader action under Missouri law.

Farmers Insurance Company, Inc., appealed the circuit court's grant of summary judgment in favor of Tracy Sykora, et al., on a petition for equitable garnishment. The underlying dispute involved a wrongful death judgment against Joseph Surratt, whose parents held an automobile insurance policy with Farmers. The circuit court determined Farmers had a duty to defend Joseph but did not determine the amount of damages. The appellate court dismissed the appeal for lack of appellate jurisdiction, finding the judgment below was not final because it determined liability without specifying damages.

Loretta Purk sued Farmers Insurance Company, Inc. for uninsured motorist (UM) coverage after she and her husband were injured in an auto accident with an uninsured driver. The trial court granted partial summary judgment for Mrs. Purk, finding she was entitled to $300,000 in UM coverage under three Farmers policies. The appellate court reversed, holding that the policies were not ambiguous and that an owned-vehicle exclusion limited stacked UM coverage to $150,000, comprising $100,000 from the policy covering the accident vehicle and $25,000 from each of the other two policies, consistent with Missouri's Financial Responsibility Law.