Richard Costantino v. Stanley Skolnick — Palmer, J., dissenting

Summary

Justice Palmer, dissenting, would have required the trial court to decide the plaintiff's declaratory-judgment claim concerning whether the insurer owed offer-of-judgment interest exceeding the policy limits. He reasoned that the parties' stipulation created a justiciable controversy and supplied a proper basis for resolving their rights, even though no actual trial occurred. The dissent contends that the majority improperly treated the claim as an application for an award under the interest statute rather than as a request for declaratory relief based on the stipulation.