Source: https://www.inquirer.com/, March 1, 2023 By: Kristen A. Graham Asbestos has closed a Philadelphia high school to in-person learning, officials said Wednesday. Inspectors discovered damaged asbestos-containing plaster and paint at Building 21, a district school in West Oak Lane, during a routine inspection Tuesday night, according to a letter sent to families by principal Brianne […]

Source: https://www.businessinsurance.com/, February 28, 2023 By: Judy Greenwald An insurer can deny coverage based on a policy’s pollution exclusion even though it did not raise that issue in its original denial letter, a federal appeals court said Monday in affirming a lower court. Read more.

Source: https://www.mercurynews.com/, March 1, 2023 By: Gabriel Greschler A well-known Bay Area construction materials firm has unleashed harmful pollutants into Guadalupe River and Coyote Creek, threatening sensitive species of fish, frogs and salamanders, a newly filed lawsuit alleges. The Santa Clara County District Attorney claims that Graniterock, an over-century-old Watsonville-based corporation, has discharged stormwater from […]

Source: https://www.insurancejournal.com/, March 1, 2023 According to a new survey from specialty broker Ames & Gough, insurers of professional liability for architects and engineers are planning additional rate increases to keep pace with rising claims costs, a backlog of litigation, worker shortages, and supply chain disruptions. Fifteen of 16 insurers – a significant representation of […]

Source: https://www.legalreader.com/, February 27, 2023 By: Sara E. Teller Asbestos exposure claims related to a former W. R. Grace & Co. mine have been settled for $18.5 million. In the small town of Libby, a mine that was in operation for several decades exposed not only workers but also residents to dangerous levels of the […]

Source: https://www.burlingtoncountytimes.com/, February 27, 2023 By: Joseph P. Smith The township is moving on two fronts to deal with reported contamination of its drinking water sources with chemical compounds found in fire suppression foams. Attorneys for the township filed a six-count lawsuit on Feb. 16 in Burlington County Superior Court against 29 companies, leaving room […]

Source: https://news.yahoo.com/, February 26, 2023 By: Michelle Mark Residents of Lincoln County are fed up with the black fungus covering their homes and cars. The stubborn “whiskey fungus” feeds on ethanol vapor from the Jack Daniel’s barrel houses. Locals are demanding an air-filtration system and an environmental-impact study. The sooty black mold smothers homes, porches, […]

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/, February 25, 2023 By: Carey Gillam Mike DeWine, the Ohio governor, recently lamented the toll taken on the residents of East Palestine after the toxic train derailment there, saying “no other community should have to go through this”. But such accidents are happening with striking regularity. A Guardian analysis of data collected by […]

Source: https://www.aspentimes.com/, February 23, 2023 By: Rick Carroll The Centennial Homeowners Association is renewing its litigation against three government entities to hold them financially responsible for structural repairs the organization blamed on “decades of water damage caused by shoddy construction and poor design.” A statement issued Wednesday evening by the association said its members had […]

Source: https://www.governmentconstructionlaw.com/, February 19, 2023 By: Joseph Darr When an owner provides design plans and specifications for building a project, there is an implied warranty that if the contractor follows those plans and specifications, a satisfactory result will be produced. This principle is called the Spearin doctrine, which comes from the United States Supreme Court case United States v. […]

Source: https://www.insurancejournal.com/, February 23, 2023 A Waltham-based construction contractor, Devens-based plumbing contractor, and Woburn-based demolition company will pay up to $325,000 in civil penalties to settle allegations of illegal asbestos work during a renovation project at Fitchburg State University (FSU) in the spring and summer of 2018, Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell said that […]

Source: https://news.yahoo.com/, February 21, 2023 By: Michael F. Gorman, Professor of Business Analytics and Operations Management, University of Dayton Less than two weeks after train cars filled with hazardous chemicals derailed in Ohio and caught fire, a truck carrying nitric acid crashed on a major highway outside Tucson, Arizona, killing the driver and releasing toxic chemicals into […]