# Bouton v. USAA Casualty Ins. Co.

Canonical: https://californiapersonalinjurylaws.com/cases/bouton/

Supreme Court of California, 2008. 43 Cal.4th 1190, pp. 1193–1202.

Reviewed by Andrew (Andy) R. Gillin; publisher reported approval 2026-11-04. The original review date was not supplied.

## Case background

The court heard two insurance disputes. Each raised a question about who was covered. The parties also disputed who should decide that question.

## Question before the court

Does a court decide who is covered, or must that dispute go to an arbitrator?

## What the court decided

The court kept some coverage questions for the court. It distinguished those from the fault and damage issues sent to arbitration. The type of dispute matters.

## Limits

This does not prove that a given person is covered. The policy, law, and kind of dispute matter.

## Opinion

https://scocal.stanford.edu/opinion/bouton-v-usaa-casualty-ins-co-33165/