Office football pools are a way of American life. Most states even allow this minor form of gambling. I was invited to play in a co-counsel’s office pool this week.
Here are the winning picks for week two:
Last week’s winner was a paralegal assistant, Colleen (I’ll keep the last name silent because I doubt she is going to let the IRS know about her winnings). Since we all know that the last bastion of male superiority lies in sports prognosticating, I asked how she destroyed and embarrassed the male egos in her firm. She said she liked sports, followed ESPN, and listened to Mike and Mike to get tips on the matchups.
Hopefully, I can restore some respect to the men in that law firm. Colleen, like many women in the legal business, seems pretty tough and bright. It will be a battle.
Following my bet, I was then asked whether the loss of money from gambling is a fortuitous event covered under a property insurance policy. Regardless of the existence of exclusions, gambling losses are not covered under property damage because there is no physical damage to property. In What Constitutes "Direct Physical Loss" When It’s Not Defined in the Policy?, Ken Kan noted:
[A] direct physical loss “contemplates an actual change in insured property then in a satisfactory state, occasioned by accident or other fortuitous event directly upon the property causing it to become unsatisfactory for future use or requiring that repairs be made to make it so."
I would also suggest that gambling losses are not "fortuitous" in the sense that the owner voluntarily made a transactional "risk" transfer rather than suffer an involuntary "risk" to money that might come from theft or embezzlement.
Good luck with your office pool and have a fantastic weekend.
