Stoner v. Southern Farm Bureau Casualty Insurance ( 2014 )

United States Court of Appeals
For the Eighth Circuit
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No. 13-2488
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Jennie Lee Stoner
lllllllllllllllllllll Plaintiff - Appellee
v.
Southern Farm Bureau Casualty Insurance Company
lllllllllllllllllllll Defendant - Appellant
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Appeal from United States District Court
for the Eastern District of Arkansas - Helena
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Submitted: June 10, 2014
Filed: July 11, 2014
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Before RILEY, Chief Judge, BYE and KELLY, Circuit Judges.
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RILEY, Chief Judge.
Despite our sympathy for Mrs. Jennie Stoner’s loss, whose home of 50 years
suffered significant damage from flooding of the White River in Phillips County,
Arkansas, we must follow the law. Mrs. Stoner did not submit the one-page proof of
loss form required by the federal standard flood insurance policy. See 44 C.F.R. pt.
61, app. A(1), art. VII(J)(4); Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Proof
of Loss, Form No. 086-0-9 (Oct. 2010), available at http://www.fema.gov/media-
library-data/20130726-1601-20490-7838/086_0_9_previously_ff81_42.pdf. “When
people seek benefits from a taxpayer-funded program, it is fair to require them to fill
out the correct form.” McCarty v. S. Farm Bureau Cas. Ins. Co., ___ F.3d ___, ___,
No. 13-2490, slip op. at 5 (8th Cir. July 11, 2014). For the reasons set forth in
McCarty, Mrs. Stoner’s failure to complete and submit the proof of loss form
precludes coverage as a matter of federal statutory, regulatory, and common law. See
id. at ___, slip op. at 5-8.
We cannot make an exception. As Judge Richard S. Arnold said in his
elegantly straightforward way, we judges cannot “make law because we think a
certain rule of law is a good thing.” Richard S. Arnold, Address at the Eighth Circuit
Judicial Conference: The Art of Judging (Aug. 8, 2002). Federal flood insurance
coverage is contingent on the timely submission of a rather simple one-page proof of
loss form. See 44 C.F.R. pt. 61, app. A(1), art. VII(J)(4); FEMA Adjuster Claims
Manual VII-7(P) (2010). Mrs. Stoner did not satisfy this “condition precedent” to
coverage. Gunter v. Farmers Ins. Co., 736 F.3d 768, 773 (8th Cir. 2013).
In accordance with explicit federal law governing the National Flood Insurance
Program, we reverse and remand for entry of judgment in favor of Farm Bureau.
Exercising our discretion under Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 39(a), we
decline to tax Farm Bureau’s costs against Mrs. Stoner.
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