Admiralty/Marine Insurance

In New York Marine & General Insurance Co. v. Tradeline LLC, 2000 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 7803 (S.D.N.Y. June 7, 2000), we represented an underwriter who had issued an Open Cargo Policy. The insured claimed that it was entitled to recover in excess of $1,500,000 in connection with damage to diamonium phosphate ("DAP"), that occurred when a cyclone struck the Port of Kandla, India. Specifically, the insured claimed that the Open Cargo Policy, which incorporated London ICC(c) terms, covered DAP damaged in lightering barges as well as DAP that had been discharged on to a pier. Our client argued that the insured was not entitled to recover damages because of material misrepresentations that were made by the insured when requesting an upgrade of coverage from the ICC(c) terms to include the risk of rain water. Our client also argued that the insured was not entitled to damages for the DAP that had already been unloaded from the vessel because it was no longer in transit. Although the District Court found that there were material misrepresentations that were made in requesting the upgrade, it severed the upgrade from the Open Cargo Policy. The District Court then agreed with our analysis concerning the scope of the ICC(c) coverage and awarded the insured less than one third of the amount of the claim. The insured has filed an appeal of this decision.