By: Derek Hawkins//September 18, 2017//
WI Court of Appeals – District III
Case Name: Auto-Owners Insurance Company v. City of Appleton, et al.
Case No.: 2016AP1227
Officials: Stark, P.J., Hruz and Seidl, JJ.
Focus: Statutory Interpretation – Raze Order
Auto-Owners Insurance Company appeals an order denying its motion for an injunction prohibiting the razing of Lowell and Carol McLartys’ home following a garage fire. While unclear, it appears Auto-Owners argues the raze order in this case was invalid because the relevant provisions of the raze order statute, WIS. STAT. § 66.0413 (2015-16), do not authorize a building damaged as a result of a sudden fire to be razed. Auto-Owners also argues the raze order was unreasonable because the home could be repaired at a reasonable cost, the raze order was issued as a result of the insured’s inquiry to the municipality, and the building inspector did not personally inspect the premises before issuing the raze order. Finally, Auto-Owners contends that smoke and water damage remediation must be excluded when calculating a building’s “cost of repair.” We reject each of Auto-Owners’ arguments, primarily because they are unsupported by the statute’s plan language and evident purpose, and because they produce an absurd result. Accordingly, we affirm.
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