New York Court Tosses Zurich Insurance Suit Against AXA Unit

A Zurich Insurance Group AG unit’s policy covering directors and officers of a former Lehman Brothers-backed Moroccan hotel operator hit with a criminal proceeding must be exhausted before other excess policies issued by an AXA SA unit are triggered, a federal court ruled.

XL Specialty Insurance Co. is off the hook for now because its policies expressly state that they are excess even over other excess policies, while Zurich Insurance Co. Ltd’s policy doesn’t, the US District Court for the Southern District of New York said in a Wednesday order dismissing Zurich’s claims against the AXA unit.

• The insurance dispute ...