Joseph Cole Provides Insight for Law360 on an Upcoming Ohio Supreme Court Decision involving COVID-19 Insurance Coverage

Partner Joe Cole comments in a recent Law360 article on an insurance coverage case currently pending before the Ohio Supreme Court, which is likely to have a significant impact on policyholders across Ohio that suffered losses due to COVID-19. Yesterday, Ohio’s highest court heard oral arguments in Neuro-Communication Services Inc. v. The Cincinnati Insurance Co. et al., where the Court has been asked to determine whether the presence of COVID-19 causes “direct physical loss or damage” to property triggering coverage under policies issued by Cincinnati Insurance.

In the article titled “Policyholder Attys Eye Ohio Justice’s Role In COVID-19 Fight,” Joe discusses how important this case is for the “survival and viability of many Ohio businesses.” Joe notes that a ruling in favor of insurers “could leave Ohio policyholders with hundreds of millions, if not billions, in losses” and “the insurers are asking the Ohio Supreme Court justices to be epidemiology experts and ignore the science which finds that the property can be transformed into disease vectors.” He added, “the facts might not be sufficiently developed yet for the Ohio Supreme Court to make a definitive ruling.”

For more information on the case and to read the full article, click here (subscription required).