The insurance company that paid out $350m to Maryland following the collapse of Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge has reached a settlement of the same amount with the owner and operator of the container ship Dali, in one of the first deals to be struck ahead of a landmark civil trial set to begin June 1.

ACE American Insurance Company, a subsidiary of Chubb, announced the settlement with Grace Ocean and Synergy Marine Group at a federal court hearing in Baltimore on Thursday. Details of the deal were not disclosed. ACE American had paid $350m to Maryland within two months of the March 2024 disaster, one of shipping’s most high-profile accidents this decade, reaching the limit of the state’s insurance policy.

The settlement does not end the litigation. Maryland and a range of other parties – including local businesses and families of the six construction workers killed when the Dali struck the bridge – continue to pursue claims against the shipowner and manager. The cost of rebuilding the bridge is expected to top $5bn, with completion now pushed back to 2030.

The central legal question to be resolved at trial is whether Grace Ocean and Synergy Marine can invoke a centuries-old maritime law to cap their total liability at approximately $44m – a fraction of the actual damages. The companies previously settled with the US Department of Justice for $102 million. 

The National Transportation Safety Board found last year that a loose wire caused electrical failures aboard the Dali, though its findings cannot be directly cited at trial.