Stone Container Corporation v. Hartford Steam Boiler Inspection and Insurance Company
United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
165 F.3d 1157 (7th Cir. 1999)
One of Stone Container's (plaintiff) sealed pulp digesters exploded, killing workers and causing over $80 million in losses that shut its plant down for months; Stone's boiler and machinery policy with Hartford (defendant) excluded explosions but carved out an exception for explosions of seven enumerated objects, including steam boilers. Hartford denied Stone's claim, and the district court granted Stone summary judgment, finding the exception's scope ambiguous and interpreting that ambiguity in Stone's favor; Hartford appealed.
Whether, where an insurance policy is ambiguous, the insured is entitled to a judgment in its favor before the insurance company has had an opportunity to clarify the ambiguity.