Fifth District Court of Appeals Adopts Majority Approach to Waiver of Subrogation Clause in AIA Contract

In Westfield Ins. Group v. Affinia Dev. LLC, 2012-Ohio-5348 (Nov. 14, 2012), the Fifth District Court of Appeals, Knox County, adopted the majority approach under Ohio law with respect to whether the waiver of subrogation clause between owner and contractor as contained in AIA A101‑2007 applied to the damages caused by fire to the work done by the defendants or applied to damage occurring to both work done and non-work items located at the project where the insurance policy covers damage to the entire property.  A minority of courts in Ohio take the position that distinguishes between work and non-work property, allowing the waiver only with respect to work done by the defendants.  The Court held that the majority approach would be followed and the waiver of subrogation would apply to the entire scope of the property insured by the policy.