The Texas Supreme Court ordered that a Rule 30 (b) (6) deposition could go forward with appropriate limitations. In re USAA Gen. Indem. Co., 2021 Tex. LEXIS 540 (Tex. June 18, 2021).      Frank Wearden was insured under a automobile policy issued by USAA. Wearden was involved in a car accident with Michelle Bernal, who Wearden said was uninsured and at fault. Wearden settled with Bernal and then sued USAA for benefits under his policy's uninsured/underinsured  (UIM) coverage.     Wearden served a Rule 30 (b) (6) notice to depose a USAA representative on identified topics. USAA filed a motion to quash the notice and accompanying subpoena duces tecum. USAA conceded that Wearden was an insured, he was driving an insured vehicle under the policy, and the $100,000 per person UIM benefits were available if Wearden established his right to recover such benefits. In light of these concessions, USAA argued that neither how it investigated and evaluated Weaden's claim nor how it evaluated the lawsuit was probative of the only issues the jury would be required to decide.      The trial court denied the motion to quash. The court of appeals denied USAA's petition for writ of mandamus.     On appeal to the Texas Supreme Court, USAA argued the trial court abused it discretion in failing to quash the notice because no USAA employees had relevant personal knowledge regarding the disputed car wreck issues.     The Supreme Court found that the representative's deposition would be relevant. USAA had conceded some facts regarding coverage, but disputed both Bernal's liability for the underlying accident and the existence and amount of Wearden's damages. Presumably, USAA had information that supported its position on these issues. This information was discoverable unless privileged, regardless of its admissibility at trial. Therefore, the deposition was not categorically prohibited on relevance grounds. The deposition, however, could not exceed the bounds of the claims at issue.      Therefore, Wearden's inquiry into the "facts supporting USAA's legal theories and defenses," whether "Bernal was an uninsured/underinsured motorist," and USAA's "claims and defenses regarding Wearden's assertions in this lawsuit" were permitted because these topics were limited to disputed issues.      On the other hand, deposing USAA about all aspects of the UIM policy when USAA had already conceded the policy provided coverage for up to the $100,000 limits if Wearden established Bernal's liability and sufficient damages went too far. Also, a general inquiry into the UIM policy, Wearden's compliance with the policy's "contractual provisions," and the occurrence of and compliance with "all conditions precedent to recovery," exceeded the relevant subject matter of the suit and were improper.      Finally, inquiry into extracontractual matters such as the claims-handling process was improper before entitlement to benefits under the policy was established.      With these limits, the deposition of USAA's representative was permissible under the discovery rules. 

from Insurance Law Hawaii https://ift.tt/3iV4yr6