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Michael Cetta Inc. v. Admiral Indem. Co.

Restaurant's Closure Did Not Trigger Coverage Premised on Physical Loss to Property

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OPINION AND ORDER Plaintiff Michael Cetta, Inc. d/b/a Sparks Steak House (“Sparks”) filed this putative class action alleging that Defendant Admiral Indemnity Company (“Admiral”) breached its obligation to provide coverage for losses that resulted from governmental orders to close restaurants due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Before the Court is Admiral’s Motion to Dismiss the Complaint under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6). For reasons that follow, the Court grants the Motion to Dismiss. I. Background The following factual allegations are taken from the Complaint. In the present posture, the Court accepts the Complaint’s allegations as true and draws all reasonable inferences in Sparks’s favor. See Harris v. Mills, 572 F.3d 66, 71 (2d Cir. 2009). The Court at this stage may also consider statements or documents incorporated into the Complaint by reference, such as coverage provisions in the insurance contract at issue. See Kleinman v. Elan Corp., 706 F.3d 145, 152 (2d Cir. 2013); La Vigne v. Costco Wholesale Corp., 284 F. Supp. 3d 496, 501 (S.D.N.Y. 2018). A. The Insurance Policy Sparks Steak House is a restaurant in Midtown Manhattan. Complaint, Dkt. 1 (“Compl.”) 14. Sparks purchased an all-risk commercial property insurance policy from Admiral that ran from June 26, 2019 to June 26, 2020. Id. 16; Defendant Admiral Indemnity Company’s Memorandum of Law in Support of Its Motion to Dismiss the Complaint, Dkt. 25 (“Motion to Dismiss”), Exh. A (“Policy”). The Policy insured the restaurant against a wide range of losses. Compl.

33-35. Three of these coverage provisions are at the center of the instant dispute. Id.

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