It’s official: the negligent hiring and supervision of an employee who goes on to intentionally injure a third party may constitute an “occurrence” that triggers coverage under a general liability insurance policy, according to Liberty Surplus Insurance v. Ledesma & Meyer Construction Co., 418 P. 3d 400 (2018).

Readers may recall that, in 2010, a 13-year-old plaintiff sued Ledesma & Meyer Construction Co. Inc. (L&M) for its negligent hiring, retention and supervision of an employee that sexually assaulted the plaintiff at one of L&M’s projects. During the relevant time period, Liberty Surplus Insurance Corp. issued L&M a commercial general liability policy providing coverage for “bodily injury” caused by an “occurrence.” The policy defined “occurrence” as “an accident, including continuous or repeated exposure to substantially the same general harmful conditions.”