Owner Not Covered by Tenant's Insurance

Facts: An employee of a shopping center tenant died as a result of a criminal assault committed in the tenant's space. Because the victim was the tenant's employee, all claims surrounding her death were handled by the tenant's workers’ compensation insurance.

Later, the victim's family sued the owner for wrongful death, alleging that: 1) The assault took place in the common area of the shopping center; 2) The owner was in control of the common area; 3) The owner should have known of the criminal activity that took place there; and 4) The owner failed to provide security for that area.

The owner then sued the tenant and the tenant's insurer, claiming that because he was included on the insurance policy that covered the tenant's space, he should be covered in the wrongful death lawsuit. The owner also argued that if the tenant's insurance policy did not cover him in the wrongful death lawsuit, the tenant had failed to get adequate insurance. The tenant and the insurer argued that the owner was properly included on the policy that covered the tenant's space, but the lease also required the owner to provide his own insurance coverage for the common areas. The trial court ruled for the owner. The tenant and insurer appealed.

Decision: A Tennessee appeals court ruled for the tenant and insurer.

Reasoning: The court reviewed the terms of the lease and determined that the owner and tenant were required to have insurance coverage only for the areas within their control. There was nothing in the lease that required the tenant to have insurance coverage against lawsuits in which the owner was allegedly at fault in the common areas.

• Union Realty Company, Ltd. v. Family Dollar, November 2007