Josephson, LLC d/b/a the Moinian Group v. Affiliated FM Insurance Company

Summary

The Supreme Court of Rhode Island affirmed the Superior Court’s partial summary judgment, holding that the policy’s Contamination Exclusion bars coverage for losses—including business‑interruption losses—arising from the presence of COVID‑19, because the exclusion’s plain language and definition of “contamination” encompass viruses. The Court assumed, without deciding, that COVID‑19 presence could constitute physical loss or damage but based its decision on the unambiguous exclusion.