Jurisdiction – Insurance – Damages

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7^th Circuit Court of Appeals

Case Name: Creation Supply, Inc. v. Selective Insurance Company of The Southeast

Case No.: 21-3172

Officials: ROVNER, HAMILTON, and SCUDDER, Circuit Judges.

Focus: Jurisdiction – Insurance – Damages

This litigation began in 2012 when insurer Selective Insurance refused to defend Creation Supply against an intellectual-property lawsuit. Since then, the parties have litigated across state and federal court on virtually every ground possible. It has been clear since 2015 that Selective Insurance owed Creation Supply a duty to defend and that Selective breached that duty and won damages in state court.

It now seeks additional damages in federal court under a different theory. Selective Insurance objects, saying that the doctrines of claim and issue preclusion bar Creation Supply’s federal lawsuit. The district court agreed. An Illinois state court expressly reserved Creation Supply’s right to file this claim in federal court, so Creation Supply’s suit is not precluded by its earlier state court litigation.

Reversed

Decided 10/19/22

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