The United Farm Family Mutual Insurance v. Frye

              NO. 4-07-0495 Filed 4/21/08
IN THE APPELLATE COURT
OF ILLINOIS
FOURTH DISTRICT
THE UNITED FARM FAMILY MUTUAL INSURANCE ) Appeal from
COMPANY, an Indiana Corporation, ) Circuit Court of
Plaintiff-Appellee, ) Pike County
v. ) No. 06MR4
JOSEPH A. FRYE, as Personal )
Representative of the Estate of JOSEPH )
FRYE, Deceased; and JAMIE THOMPSON, as )
Special Representative of the Estate of ) Honorable
WILMA F. FRYE, Deceased, ) Richard D. Greenlief,
Defendants-Appellants. ) Judge Presiding.
_________________________________________________________________
JUSTICE KNECHT delivered the opinion of the court:
In July 2003, husband Joseph Frye (Joseph-deceased) and
wife Wilma F. Frye, both residents of Indiana, died as a result
of injuries sustained in an automobile collision on an Illinois
roadway. The accident occurred while the parties were in an
automobile insured under a policy issued in Indiana by plaintiff,
United Farm Family Mutual Insurance Company (Farm Bureau), an
Indiana corporation.
In July 2005, defendant, Joseph A. Frye (Joseph-es-tate),
personal representative of the estate of Joseph-deceased,
filed a wrongful-death action against Jamie Thompson, special
representative of Wilma's estate, in the Pike County circuit
court. Farm Bureau hired counsel, Larry Kuster, to represent
Wilma's estate in the wrongful-death action.
In February 2006, Farm Bureau filed its complaint for