Adventures in the Law: Chiquita Banana Loses Appeal.

Chiquita International Brands attempted to appeal a decision that required them to make payments to a known terrorist group. The terrorist group had approached Chiquita in 1989, demanding payment for "protection," and Chiquita ended up paying them for 15 years. However, the U.S. government viewed these payments as ongoing funding support for a designated foreign terrorist organization (FTO), which is a crime. Chiquita pleaded guilty to supporting international terrorism and paid a $25 million criminal fine. They were also sued by victims of the terrorist group and settled some of the claims. Chiquita then sought coverage from their insurers for defense costs and settlements, but the insurers denied the claims, arguing that the payments were not covered by the policies. The trial court ruled in favor of the insurers, and Chiquita appealed. The Ohio Court of Appeals ruled against Chiquita, stating that their actions were intentional and not accidental, therefore not constituting "occurrences" as defined in the policies. Chiquita was later found liable for eight murders committed by the terrorists and ordered to pay $38.3 million to the victims' relatives. The article concludes by emphasizing the lesson that paying extortionists never leads to a happy ending and can result in criminal and civil liability. [Extracted from the article]