Safeco Insurance v. Laskey

Defendant, Laskey (insured), appeals from the trial court’s judgment in favor of her insurer, Safeco of Illinois (Safeco), on cross-motions for summary judgment, declaring that insured was not entitled to recover underinsured motorist (UIM) benefits from Safeco for damages sustained in an auto accident, and dismissing her counterclaims. The trial court concluded that insured was precluded from litigating liability for the underlying accident because she had previously (and unsuccessfully) litigated that issue in a third-party action. We conclude that the trial court correctly applied issue…