Miller v. Hartford Life Insurance Co.

Opinion of the Court by

DUFFY, J.

The United States District Court for the District of Hawai'i (District Court) certified the following questions of law to this court:

1. If an insurer commits bad faith, must an insured prove she suffered substantial economic or physical loss caused by the bad faith to recover emotional distress damages caused by the bad faith?

2. If an insured must suffer substantial economic or physical loss to qualify for emotional distress damages caused by insurer bad faith, what does Hawai'i law require as to how that loss must be proven?

3. If a plaintiff must prove…