Lucarell v. Nationwide Mut. Ins. Co. (Slip Opinion)

Citations

• 2018 Ohio 15
• 97 N.E.3d 458
• 152 Ohio St. 3d 453

Syllabus

Contracts-Breach of contract-Punitive damages-Implied duty of good faith and fair dealing-Release of liability-Prevention-of-performance doctrine-Fraud-Punitive damages are not recoverable in a breach-of-contract action-When a breach of contract involves conduct that also constitutes a tort, punitive damages may be awarded only for the tort, not for the breach, and any punitive damages awarded are subject to the statutory limitations on punitive damages imposed in R.C. 2315.21-A party to a contract does not breach the implied duty of good faith and fair dealing by seeking to enforce the agreement as written or by acting in accordance with its express terms, nor can there be a breach of the implied duty unless a specific obligation imposed by the contract is not met-An unconditional release of liability becomes effective upon execution and delivery and bars any claims encompassed within it unless it was procured by fraud, duress, or other wrongful conduct-A party seeking to avoid a release of liability on the basis that it was procured under duress is required to prove duress by clear and convincing evidence-The prevention-of-performance doctrine, which states that a party who prevents another from performing a contractual obligation may not rely on that failure of performance to assert a claim for breach of contract, is not a defense to a release of liability and therefore cannot be asserted as a defense to a release-A fraud claim cannot be predicated on predictions or projections relating to future performance or on misrepresentations made to third parties.