In light of the upcoming appeal, a federal judge in Camden, New Jersey, stayed proceedings in a separate business-interruption insurance case pending the outcome of the Supreme Court case.
"Here, Estep contends that his accident occurred while he was loading his car with luggage, which was part of a greater mission of returning home to Chesapeake with that luggage," Judge Frank K. Friedman wrote on behalf of the majority. "Simply put, transporting luggage is a valid and expected use of a vehicle, and one cannot transport the baggage without first packing the vehicle."
The W.Va. Supreme Court ruled that a circuit court erred in concluding that a policy's employer's liability exclusion was applicable in a wrongful death claim.