There is a famous scene in The Pink Panther Strikes Again where inspector Clouseau asks a hotel clerk if his dog bites, to which the clerk responds “no.” When Clouseau goes to pet the dog, it viciously bites him on the hand. Clouseau says, “I thought you said your dog did not bite!” The clerk responds: “That is not my dog.” That’s sort of the situation in our first case. A homeowners policy excluded liability for injury arising out of the ownership, custody, or care of certain dog breeds, including pit bulls. The insured’s sister’s pit bull bit the plaintiff, and the insured sought coverage because the pit bull was not his dog. A California appellate court had to decide whether the exclusion was limited to the person seeking coverage or if applies when anyone engages in the excluded act.
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