The U.S. Supreme Court denied a petition for a review of an appeals court ruling that American Family Insurance agency owners are independent contractors.

The Supreme Court's decision means the case is the sixth to conclude that American Family Insurance agency owners are independent contractors, the company said, adding that the move "essentially ends the litigation," pending final proceedings in an Ohio U.S. District Court where the case started in 2013.

In late January, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit ruled that American Family Insurance agents are independent contractors and not company employees. This reversed a lower-court decision from 2017.