Covington Secures Insurance Recovery Appellate Victory for Merck

WASHINGTON —Covington served as lead trial and appellate counsel for Merck in securing an appellate affirmance in New Jersey of the trial court’s ruling granting summary judgment to Merck that the war exclusion in its property policies did not apply to Merck’s large NotPetya cyber losses.

Covington led this litigation from the outset, when Merck filed a complaint in 2018 seeking coverage against over 30 insurers for losses from the 2017 NotPetya cyber event under property policies that expressly cover cyber losses. In December 2021, after extensive briefing and two days of oral argument on a dozen dispositive motions, the trial court ruled for Merck and rejected the insurers’ war-exclusion defense as a matter of law. On May 1, 2023, the New Jersey Appellate Division affirmed this ruling.  More than 20 insurers have settled; the litigation remains pending against seven remaining insurers.

The Covington trial team representing Merck was led by Anna Engh and Mark Herman, and Mark Mosier led the appellate team and argued the appeal.