KENTUCKY FARM BUREAU MUTUAL INSURANCE COMPANY; KENTUCKY FARM BUREAU INSURANCE AGENCY, INC.; KENNETH PATTON, INDIVIDUALLY; AND KENNETH PATTON, AGENT, SERVANT, AND EMPLOYEE v. DONALD COLLINS, INDIVIDUALLY, KIM COLLINS, INDIVIDUALLY, AND AS CO-ADMINISTRATORS OF THE ESTATE OF DANIEL METCALF
Annotate this Case
Download PDF
RENDERED:
AUGUST 24, 2001; 2:00 p.m.
NOT TO BE PUBLISHED
C ommonwealth O f K entucky
C ourt O f A ppeals
NO.
2000-CA-002775-MR
KENTUCKY FARM BUREAU MUTUAL INSURANCE COMPANY;
KENTUCKY FARM BUREAU INSURANCE AGENCY, INC.;
KENNETH PATTON, INDIVIDUALLY; AND
KENNETH PATTON, AGENT, SERVANT, AND EMPLOYEE
v.
APPELLANTS
APPEAL FROM LETCHER CIRCUIT COURT
HONORABLE SAMUEL T. WRIGHT, III, JUDGE
ACTION NO. 96-CI-00187
DONALD COLLINS, INDIVIDUALLY,
KIM COLLINS, INDIVIDUALLY,
AND AS CO-ADMINISTRATORS
OF THE ESTATE OF DANIEL METCALF
APPELLEES
OPINION AND ORDER
DISMISSING APPEAL
** ** ** ** **
BEFORE:
EMBERTON, MILLER, AND SCHRODER, JUDGES.
MILLER, JUDGE: Kentucky Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Company
(Farm Bureau) brings this appeal from a November 3, 2000, partial
summary judgment entered by the Letcher Circuit Court.
Civ. P. (CR) 54.02.
Ky. R.
We dismiss this appeal as being
interlocutory.
This is a case involving an underinsured motorist (UIM)
insurance claim.
On May 29, 1994, Eulah Maggard, a widow, died.
Maggard, at her death, owned a vehicle insured by Farm Bureau.
The circuit court found that also resident in Maggard's household
were her daughter, Kim Collins, her daughter's husband, Donald
Collins, her granddaughter, Shana Collins, and her grandson,
Daniel Metcalf.
On September 26, 1994, Daniel was killed while a
passenger in an automobile operated by one, Brian Adkins.
Daniel's mother, Kim Collins, and stepfather, Donald Collins were
appointed co-administrators of his estate.
As administrators,
the Collinses filed a wrongful death action against Adkins and
others seeking recovery of damages.
They also made claim for UIM
coverage against Farm Bureau under the terms of three liability
insurance policies which covered vehicles owned and maintained by
Donald and Kim, individually.
others were settled.
The claims against Adkins and
Farm Bureau paid to Daniel's estate
$100,000.00 representing all UIM coverage available under the
policies owned by Donald and Kim.
Later, the Collinses also made
a UIM claim under Maggard's automobile insurance policy.
That
claim was denied by Farm Bureau.
On June 28, 1996, the Collinses filed a complaint
against Farm Bureau, Farm Bureau Insurance Agency, Inc., and
Kenneth Patton, an insurance adjuster for Farm Bureau, as a
result of the denial of coverage.
After some pre-trial
discovery, Farm Bureau moved for summary judgment, and the
Collinses moved for summary judgment against Farm Bureau on the
issue of coverage.
The circuit court denied Farm Bureau's
-2-
summary judgment motion and granted a partial summary judgment in
favor of the Collinses on June 2, 1998.
This partial summary
judgment was interlocutory as the claim against Kenneth Patton,
the adjuster, remained.1
On November 3, 2000, the circuit court
entered, sua sponte, a second order which attempted to amend the
interlocutory judgment to the extent of making it final and
appealable under CR 54.02.
That order reads, in pertinent part;
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED AND ADJUDGED AS FOLLOWS:
That the Findings of Fact, Conclusions
of Law and Partial Summary Judgment entered
by the Court on June 2, 1998, is hereby
amended to reflect that it is a final and
appealable order. . . .
When multiple parties are involved in an action, the
court may grant final judgment as to less than all of the
parties; however CR 54.02 requires a determination that there is
“no just cause for delay,” and that the judgment is final and
appealable.
The judgment must include both recitations in order
to be final under CR 54.02.
In the absence of such recitals, any
order which adjudicates less than all the rights and liabilities
of all parties is interlocutory.
CR 54.02; Derby Road Building
Co. v. Louisville Gas & Elec. Co., Ky., 299 S.W.2d 122 (1957).
In the case sub judice, the order made a determination
only as to one party in this action.
The amended order did not
include a recitation that there was “no just cause for delay.”
As such, we view the November 3, 2000 partial summary judgment as
not final and appealable; therefore this Court is without
1
The Collinses, as co-administrators of the estate of Daniel
Metcalf, allege Patton misrepresented available insurance
coverage.
-3-
jurisdiction.
CR 54.01, CR 54.022;
American Fidelity & Casualty
Co. v. Patterson, Ky., 237 S.W.2d 57 (1951).
For the foregoing reasons, this appeal is hereby
DISMISSED.
ALL CONCUR.
ENTERED: August 24, 2001
John D. Miller
JUDGE, COURT OF APPEALS
BRIEFS FOR APPELLANTS:
BRIEF FOR APPELLEES:
Michael J. Schmitt
Paintsville, Kentucky
Donald F. Dotson
Whitesburg, Kentucky
2
Hook v Hook, Ky., 563 S.W.2d 716 (1978) contains a detailed
explanation of CR 54.02.
-4-
Some case metadata and case summaries were written with the help of AI, which can produce inaccuracies. You should read the full case before relying on it for legal research purposes.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.