DiTullio v. LM General Ins. Co.

Citations

• 210 Conn. App. 347

Syllabus

The plaintiff sought to confirm an arbitration award against the defendant arising out of a separate action in which she sought to recover damages from the insurer L for underinsured motorist benefits. The plaintiff previously had received a $20,000 settlement from a tortfeasor in connec- tion with injuries she sustained in a motor vehicle collision. In bringing the underinsured motorist action against L, the plaintiff alleged that the $20,000 settlement was insufficient to fully compensate her and that L was legally responsible for damages in excess of the underinsured motorist's coverage. The plaintiff, the defendant and L ultimately agreed to settle the case by means of binding arbitration and entered into a written arbitration agreement. Thereafter, an arbitrator issued an award in the amount of $33,807.50. The arbitrator made no findings regarding collateral sources, which were to be deducted from the total damages pursuant to the parties' arbitration agreement. The parties subsequently agreed with each other as to the amounts of collateral sources, but disagreed as to whether the $20,000 settlement should be deducted from the award. The defendant filed an objection to the plaintiff's application to confirm the award, in which it argued, inter alia, that it was legally responsible only for damages exceeding the $20,000 settlement that the plaintiff already had received from the tortfeasor. The defendant did not otherwise file a motion to modify or to correct the award. Thereafter, upon the parties' request, the arbitrator issued an articulation stating that the award of $33,807.50 was a full value award, which did not take into account any collateral sources or offsets, or the $20,000 settlement. Subsequently, the trial court rendered judgment confirming the award with deductions of $1020.02 in collateral sources and $20,000 to offset the prior settlement, from which the plaintiff appealed to this court. Held: 1. The trial court properly deducted $20,000 from t