Lloyd’s of London syndicates are not liable for an accident where a hunter fell from a faulty ladder and broke his back, a divided federal appeals court said Monday, in affirming a lower court ruling.

The majority opinion by the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati agreed with a lower court that the coverage provided by the syndicates was for a hunting club, and the injured man was not a club member.

Brent Russcher had arranged a hunting expedition with Mark Thompson, who operated both a hunting outfitting business, Ohio Whitetail Adventures, and a hunting club, the Mark & Tommy Hunt Club, according to the ruling in Brent Russcher; Jamie Russcher, Holland Community Hospital v. Outdoor Underwriters, Inc; Certain Underwriters at Lloyd’s, London et al.

Hunting outfitters act as professional hunting guides, while hunt clubs are private groups that leased…