Me. Rev. Stat. » Title 14
Maine Revised Statutes

Me. Rev. Stat. tit. 14, § 8116 (2026)

Liability insurance

✓ current as of May 2026
Find cases: SyfertCases citing this section ME-LEGlegislature.maine.gov JustiaTitle on Justia CornellLII Search CasesGoogle Scholar
The legislative or executive body or any department of the State or any political subdivision may procure insurance against liability for any claim against it or its employees for which immunity is waived under this chapter or under any other law. If the insurance provides protection in excess of the limit of liability imposed by section 8105, then the limits provided in the insurance policy shall replace the limit imposed by section 8105. If the insurance provides coverage in areas where the governmental entity is immune, the governmental entity shall be liable in those substantive areas but only to the limits of the insurance coverage. Reserve funds, excess insurance or reinsurance contracts maintained by a governmental entity, by an insurer providing liability insurance or by a public self-funded pool to meet obligations imposed by this Act shall not increase the limits of liability imposed by section 8105.   [PL 1987, c. 740, §15 (AMD).]
A governmental entity or a public self-funded pool, which self-insures against the obligations and liabilities imposed by this Act, shall designate funds set aside to meet such obligations and liabilities as self-insurance funds. Any such governmental entity which self-insures under this Act or any entity that is a member of a public self-funded pool shall maintain as part of its public records a written statement which shall include a provision setting forth the financial limits of liability assumed by the governmental entity, those limits to be no less than the limits imposed in this Act, and a provision setting forth the scope of the liability assumed by the governmental entity, or the pool, that scope to be no less than that imposed in this Act.   [PL 1985, c. 713, §2 (AMD).]
A governmental entity may purchase insurance or may self-insure on behalf of its employees to insure them against any personal liability for which a governmental entity is obligated or entitled to provide defense or indemnity under section 8112.   [PL 1987, c. 740, §16 (RPR).]
Any insurance purchased by the State under this section must be purchased through the Department of Administrative and Financial Services, Risk Management Division.  
SECTION HISTORY
PL 1977, c. 2, §§2,5 (NEW). PL 1977, c. 578, §§5,5-A (AMD). PL 1977, c. 591, §6 (AMD). PL 1979, c. 68, §5 (AMD). PL 1981, c. 602, §§1,2 (AMD). PL 1985, c. 599, §3 (AMD). PL 1985, c. 713, §§1,2 (AMD). PL 1987, c. 740, §§15,16,17 (AMD). PL 2007, c. 466, Pt. A, §37 (AMD).
The Revisor's Office cannot provide legal advice or interpretation of Maine law to the public.
If you need legal advice, please consult a qualified attorney.
Notes of Decisions
Cited in 57 cases (5 in the last 5 years), 1987–2022 · leading case: Michael Fortin v. Jacob Titcomb, 2013 ME 14 (Me. 2013).
Sort: Relevance Newest Treatment
Michael Fortin v. Jacob Titcomb, 2013 ME 14 (Me. 2013). · cites it 9× “§ 8105(1) or 14 M.R.S. § 8116. Title 14 M.R.S. § 8105(1), entitled “Limitation on damages,” states: Limit established.”
Claire Dean Perry v. William T. Dean Jr., 2017 ME 35 (Me. 2017). · cites it 5× “[¶ 13] The MTCA expressly waives immunity for particular tort actions, including negligent operation of vehicles, negligent building and road construction and maintenance, and negligent discharge of pollutants.”
Moore v. City of Lewiston, 596 A.2d 612 (Me. 1991). · cites it 4× “Moore argued that summary judgment was premature, in that she had not yet received in discovery a copy of the City's liability insurance policy, and thus a factual issue potentially remained as to the extent to which the City had waived immunity pursuant to 14 M.R.S.A. § 8116.…”
Robinson v. Washington Cnty., 529 A.2d 1357 (Me. 1987). · cites it 3× “Plaintiff contends, as she did in Superior Court, that defendants are insured against liability pursuant to 14 M.R.S.A. § 8116 4 and that she may maintain this action, notwithstanding that the defendants’ alleged acts or failures to act fall outside the scope of the exceptions…”
Gomes v. Univ. of Maine Sys., 304 F. Supp. 2d 117 (D. Me. 2004). · cites it 2× “Defendant University of Maine System moves to dismiss the Plaintiffs’ tort claims on the ground it is immune from suit under the Maine Tort Claims Act, 14 M.”
Fortin v. Titcomb, 671 F.3d 63 (1st Cir. 2012). · cites it 4× “2 Although insurance coverage may affect the availability and amount of damages under the MTCA, see Me.Rev. Stat. Ann. tit. 14, § 8116, Titeomb argued that the Town’s insurance policy, which provided coverage for the officer, did not affect the applicability of § 8104-D.”
Maguire v. Mun. of Old Orchard Beach, 783 F. Supp. 1475 (D. Me. 1992). · cites it 4× “33 Under Maine law, 14 M.R.S.A. section 8116, a municipality will waive immunity in those substantive areas in which it has procured liability insurance.”
Maynard v. Comm'r of Corr., 681 A.2d 19 (Me. 1996). · cites it 3× “The plaintiffs seek a declaratory judgment that the State had insurance coverage for the claims they brought in a separate complaint, 3 and thus waived its sovereign immunity pursuant to 14 M.R.S.A. § 8116 (Supp.1995). The defendants in this matter initially were represented by…”
Noel v. Town of Ogunquit, 555 A.2d 1054 (Me. 1989). · cites it 4× “Because the Town had a $300,000 liability insurance policy, and because 14 M.R.S.A. § 8116 3 provides that a governmental entity waives the immunity provided by the Tort Claims Act to the extent that it carries liability insurance, up to a sum of $300,000, the judgment was…”
Wilcox v. City of Portland, 970 A.2d 295 (Me. 2009). · cites it 2× “” By operation of 14 M.R.S. § 8116, the Maine Tort Claims Act immunity protections would not apply to any claims against the City that are covered by insurance acquired by the City or on the City’s behalf.”
Day's Auto Body, Inc. v. Town of Medway, 2016 ME 121 (Me. 2016). “Unlike 14 M.R.S. § 8116, which expressly states that a governmental entity that possesses insurance coverage “in areas where the governmental entity is immune .”
Richards v. Town of Eliot, 2001 ME 132 (Me. 2001). “14 M.R.S.A § 8116 (Supp.2000); Napier v. Town of Windham, 187 F.”
Show all 57 citing cases →
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.