07/14/2008 Council Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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• • • torts ... The insurance may provide protection in excess of the limit of liability imposed by Section 466.04.... The procurement of such insurance constitutes a waiver of the limits of governmental liability under Section 466.04 only to the extent that valid and collectible insurance ... exceeds those limits and covers the claim. Procurement of commercial insurance, participation in a self - insurance pool pursuant to Minn. Stat. §471.981, or provision for an individual self-insurance plan ... shall not constitute a waiver of any governmental immunities or exclusions. Minn. Stat. §466.04. b. Membership in Self - Insurance Pool and Waiver of Tort Cap Minn. Stat. §471.981 allows for cities to by ordinance or resolution self - insure or join a self - insurance pool such as LMCIT to provide insurance coverage for damages resulting from its torts. The statute specifically provides a [city] may by ordinance or resolution of its governing body extend the coverage of its self insurance to afford protection in excess of any limitations on liability established to law but unless expressly provided in the ordinance or resolution extending the coverage, the statutory limitation on liability shall not be deemed to have been waived. Minn. Stat. §471.981, subd. 1. The Minnesota Federal District Court has held that even if cities do not enact an ordinance or resolution indicating that they are self - insured or members of a self - insurance pool, if the evidence establishes membership in LMCIT or other self - insurance pool, then the statutory tort caps are applicable unless expressly waived by the city. See Reimer v. City of Crookston and Crookston Public School District #593, 2003 WL 22703218 (D. Minn. 2003). The LMCIT policy documents specifically state that although the city may have elected to purchase coverage in excess of the statutory limits [to cover non -tort or federal claims], the city has opted to not waive the tort cap limits Thus, -unless city expressly waives tort cap liability limits, purchase of excess or additional coverage will not affect the statutory tort cap limit Please refer to the attachment entitled "LMCIT Liability Coverage Options, Liability Limits, Coverage Limits and Waiver" for complete discussion on these issues. 4. Multiple Claimants and the Municipal Tort Caps: The Holidazzle and St. Paul Gas Line Explosion Cases. a. The Holidazzle case: McCarty, et. al. v. City of Minneapolis, et. al., 654 N.W.2d 353 (Minn. App. 2002). Facts: On December 4, 1998, at the Holidazzle parade in downtown Minneapolis, Minneapolis police officer Thomas Sawina accidentally depressed the accelerator rather than the brake pedal on a police van. The van lurched into a crowd of parade goers, causing two deaths and numerous serious injuries. One girl, age seven, was severely injured, which required the amputation of her right arm at the elbow. 7 29