HNRK Coverage Corner

Last month, in CITGO Petroleum Corp. v. Ascot Underwriting Ltd., Case No. 24-0227-cv, the Second Circuit affirmed a victory for CITGO Petroleum Corporation (“CITGO”) when it held that oil seized in Venezuela was covered by a marine cargo reinsurance policy (the “Policy”) that provided coverage for losses caused by an “insurrection.”  On appeal, the Reinsurers argued Venezuela’s instability did not qualify as an insurrection, and they also urged a proximate-cause standard (rather than but-for) for the loss.

Background

In October 2012, Hugo Chávez won reelection ...

Today at the Coverage Corner, we examine a Fifth Circuit decision that ponders a fundamental question: What is a “suit”? A complaint filed in court or arbitration demand seeking money damages should qualify. But what about a pre-lawsuit ADR procedure? Like all questions of policy interpretation, the answer lies in the policy language, construed in accordance with the established rules of policy interpretation (including, for example, the canon that ambiguities are construed “in favor of the insured”).

At issue in BPX Prod. Co. v. Certain Underwriters at Lloyd’s ...