In Westchester General Hospital, Inc. v. Evanston Ins. Co., 48 F.4th 1298 (11th Cir. 2022), applying Florida law, the Court found that a professional services exclusion contained within a hospital general liability policy was not applicable to a claim arising out of the rape of a patient. Under the facts of the case, a patient brought suit against the hospital for negligent hiring, training, and supervising an employee who sexually assaulted the patient while she was asleep. The Court found that neither the employee’s assault nor the hospital’s oversight of the employee were professional in nature.
The Court noted that the policy’s professional service exclusion broadly applied in situations where a claim “in any way” involved services of a professional nature. Nevertheless, the Court found that some relationship had to exist between the claim and acts which required a high level of proficiency in training. The patient’s assault injuries stemmed either from the employee’s sexual assault or the hospital’s negligence in hiring, training, and supervising the employee. Neither of these involved services of a professional nature. The fact that the patient was receiving medical treatment in the hospital at the time of the alleged assault was insufficient to trigger the exclusion. At the time of the assault, the employee was not treating the patient.