Rimes v. State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co.
Wisconsin Supreme Court
316 N.W.2d 348 (1982)
- Written by Noah Lewis, JD
Facts
Palmer Rimes (plaintiff) was injured in a car accident. Rimes’s insurance company, State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co. (State Farm) (defendant), paid him nearly $10,000 under a medical-pay provision. In accepting the payment, Rimes signed a subrogation agreement that allowed State Farm to exercise the same recovery rights against third-party tortfeasors as Rimes and required Rimes to do nothing to prejudice State Farm’s right to recover. Rimes sued the tortfeasors and their insurance companies. State Farm, seeking its $10,000, was joined to the action. The trial court held a mini-trial, determining Rimes’s damages exceeded $300,000, which included $27,000 for medical expenses. The trial court found that State Farm was not entitled to recovery because Rimes’s settlement of $125,000 with the tortfeasors did not make him whole. State Farm appealed to the court of appeals, which petitioned the supreme court to take the case directly.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Heffernan, J.)
Dissent (Coffey, J.)
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