Commercial Bank of Bluefield v. St. Paul Fire & Marine Insurance

McHUGH, Justice:

This case is before this Court upon certified questions from the Circuit Court of Mercer County, West Virginia. It presents some questions of first impression in this jurisdiction regarding the liability of an employee fidelity insurer to a third party.

Data Services Corporation [hereinafter, “the insured”] performed payroll services for the Commercial Bank of Bluefield [hereinafter, “the bank”]. An employee of the insured, through a check kiting scheme, misappropriated the insured’s checking account funds in two banks, including the bank herein. The misappropriation of funds…