Marines Archives - PolicyFind

Written by David A. O’Neill, JD, Director of Investigations, PolicyFind

Liberty Mutual, the third largest property/casualty insurer in the United States has announced that it has entered into a retroactive reinsurance agreement with National Indemnity Company (“NICO”), a Berkshire Hathaway Inc. subsidiary. Under what is known in the industry as an aggregate adverse cover agreement, Liberty Mutual will transfer $3.2 billion of its existing environmental, asbestos and workers compensation liabilities to NICO in exchange for approximately $3 billion.

The agreement is retroactive to January 1, 2014 and covers substantially all of Liberty Mutual’s domestic environmental and asbestos related liabilities arising under insurance and reinsurance policies with effective dates before January 1, 2005. Also covered are its U.S. workers compensation liabilities for injuries or accidents occurring prior to January 1, 2014. NICO will assume responsibility for claims handling relating to Liberty’s asbestos and environmental claims while Liberty continues to handle its workers compensation claims. Continue reading “LIBERTY MUTUAL SHEDS ENVIRONMENTAL, ASBESTOS AND WORKERS COMP CLAIMS IN RETROACTIVE REINSURANCE AGREEMENT WITH NATIONAL INDEMNITY COMPANY”

Written by David A. O’Neill, JD, Director of Investigations, PolicyFind

The U.S. Supreme Court heard oral argument in the case styled CTS Corp. v. Waldburger on April 23, 2014. At issue was whether the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals had rightly concluded that the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) preempted a North Carolina statute setting a date after which a law suit against a polluter could be brought following the detection of damage from environmental contamination. The Court’s decision is expected in June.

The case involves the recent discovery of dangerous levels of carcinogenic solvents in drinking water wells in Asheville, North Carolina. From 1959 to 1985, CTS Corp. had manufactured electronic parts in a nearby factory and stored these solvents on-site. When soil and groundwater contamination was discovered in 2009, the present landowner sought a ruling from the U.S. District Court that CTS was responsible for property damage and for removing the contaminants. The District Court, however, ruled for CTS, citing a state statute imposing a date certain for when such suits could no longer be brought. It stated that this “statute of repose” barred suits brought more than ten years after CTS’s “last act or omission” at the site. Continue reading “Supreme Court Ruling Expected on North Carolina Statute May Bar Camp Lejeune Marines Contamination Lawsuit”