BigLaw partner wasn’t working during commute and isn’t covered by law firm insurance

A former Hogan Lovells partner has failed to persuade the Virginia Supreme Court that his law firm’s insurance policy should cover an auto accident because he was working when driving to work.

The Virginia Supreme Court ruled (PDF) on Thursday in the coverage dispute involving lawyer H. Christopher Bartolomucci, now a partner at Bancroft, the Wall Street Journal Law Blog reports. Bartolomucci had argued he worked at home as well as at the law office, so his commute amounted to travel between work locations. He also claimed he was covered because he typically thought about work-related issues during the drive.

Bartolomucci looked to his law firm because his own liability coverage was capped at $100,000. An injured driver had sued for $1 million.

Hogan Lovells’ insurance policy covered partners’ vehicles only when they were “used in” the firm’s business or personal affairs. A jury had found in a special interrogatory that the policy covered Bartolomucci, but the trial judge set aside the finding as not supported by the evidence. The Virginia Supreme Court agreed with the judge.

“Personal affairs” refers to the law firm’s non-income-producing activities, and the phrase is not ambiguous, the state supreme court said. At the time of the collision, Bartolomucci’s commute to work was not a “use in” Hogan Lovells’s business or personal affairs, the court said.

Though Bartolomucci said he had his Blackberry within physical reach during the commute, having access to technology doesn’t transform the commute into company business, the court said. And merely thinking about work doesn’t make a commute “in” business, the court said. There is also no indication that Bartolomucci billed for work conducted in the car, the court added.