The insured, an actor/director and husband of actress Lynn Redgrave for 30 years, stored her memorabilia in two rented spaces in a Los Angeles commercial building while he prepared to write a book about their life together. A leak occurred in a fire sprinkler system in the adjacent space causing a minor flood. The city responded and supposedly shut off the water to allow for repairs. Two days later a second breach in the same system caused a massive flood damaging or destroying most of the insured’s property. The building management failed to advise the insured of either flood. A subrogation waiver applied to one of the two spaces limiting recovery for property loss against the building owner.
A theory of liability was created against the building owner based on failure to warn, and against the city based on inverse condemnation since it appeared that a city shutoff valve had malfunctioned preventing the water shutoff.
The case was resolved through private mediation.