martin/elias Properties, LLC v. Acuity, a Mutual Insurance Company

Summary

The Court affirmed the decision denying coverage under a contractor's commercial general liability policy for structural damage caused by faulty basement and foundation work. It held that an event is an accident, and therefore an occurrence, only when the insured did not intend the event or result and the event was a chance event beyond the insured's control; the contractor's work satisfied neither requirement. The Court concluded that this reasoning applied to damage throughout the property, not merely to the basement.