Christina Connelly, as Assignee of Ronald B. Brown, Jr., Plaintiff Below-Appellant v. State Farm Mutual Automobile…

Summary

The court held that a bad-faith failure-to-settle claim against an insurer accrues when an excess judgment against the insured becomes final and non-appealable, rather than when the insurer rejects a settlement offer. The court reasoned that the insured cannot plead the required damages before a final excess judgment and that delayed accrual avoids conflicts of interest, premature litigation, and waste of judicial resources. The dismissal as untimely was therefore reversed.