Lloyd’s Insurers Win in First U.S. Trial Over Covid Loss Payouts (1)

Lloyd’s of London underwriters won a state court ruling to avoid covering a New Orleans restaurant’s pandemic-linked financial losses, ending a first-of-its kind trial to determine insurers’ obligation to business policyholders.

Cajun Conti LLC’s high-profile lawsuit, filed in March 2020, was the first business interruption insurance case tied to Covid-19 and state and local orders restricting travel and dine-in eating. It’s also the first of these disputes to head to trial in the U.S., making it a test case for the roughly 1,500 lawsuits policyholders have since filed against their insurers.

At issue is whether shutdown orders meant to mitigate ...