U.S. District Judge Lewis J. Liman of the Southern District of New York said a director-and-officer liability policy required that defense costs be paid directly to counsel and did not constitute a debt that could be attached as a property interest under New York civil practice rules.
The ruling, from Justice Timothy S. Driscoll of the Supreme Court's Commercial Division, was the first written decision by a New York state court to address COVID-19 coverage in an insurance dispute, an attorney for one of the defendants said.
Jerome Block, a partner with Levy Konigsberg who represented the plaintiffs at trial, said Friday his clients were satisfied with the outcome and "look forward to moving this case toward completion." The adjustment took down the ratio of punitive damages to compensatory damages.
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