Source: USA Today, November 29, 2012 By: Peter Eisler, USA Today Deadly bacteria that defy drugs of last resort A new family of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, known as CRE, is raising concerns across the medical community because of its ability to cause infections that defy even the strongest antibiotics. The antibiotic resistance is spread by mobile […]

Source: Business Insurance, November 13, 2012 By: Judy Greenwald While there have been positive developments for the construction insurance industry, unforeseen developments could negatively impact it as well, according to a speaker at a contractors professional liability insurance underwriters session Monday at the International Risk Management Institute Inc.’s 32nd construction risk conference in Orlando, Fla.. […]

Source: Wisconsin State Journal, November 8, 2012 Posted on: http://envfpn.advisen.com Another set of Madison-Kipp’s neighbors has filed a class-action lawsuit against the company seeking compensation for pollutants that they allege have diminished the value of their homes. The lawsuit was filed on Tuesday by Nancy Sorenson and Richard Johnson, who own a home on South […]

Source: http://www.lexology.com, November 2, 2012 By: Robert S. Sanoff, Foley Hoag LLP Most people would likely consider pollution to be a concept that is tied to harm to the environment — contamination of soil, groundwater, or ambient air. Consistent with this common understanding of pollution, courts have repeatedly rejected the attempt by insurers to expand […]

Source: http://www.sfgate.com, October 16, 2012 By: David R. Baker A lawsuit filed Tuesday accuses California regulators of turning a blind eye to the dangers of fracking, in defiance of the state’s tough environmental laws. The suit, filed in Alameda County Superior Court by five environmental groups, would force the state office that oversees oil drilling […]

Source: http://www.pe.com, October 26, 2012 By: Janet Zimmerman Companies that produced fireworks at a Rialto industrial site where perchlorate contaminated the water supply have agreed to pay $5.7 million — the first of three settlements expected to total more than $100 million, officials said. The money will cover cleanup costs and reimburse residents who have […]

Source: http://www.lexology.com, November 2, 2012 By: Scott W. Davis, Bricker & Eckler LLP “The Heiles argue that the policy exclusions relied on by State Auto do not apply here. Indeed, the policy is riddled with definitions, exclusions, exceptions, exceptions to the exclusions and exclusions to the exceptions.” Heile v. State Auto. Mut. Ins. Co. (1999), […]

Source:  http://www.lexology.com, October 26, 2012 By: Stephen R. Berlin, Julie R. Domike and Richard L. Sieg of Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton LLP The United States Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) recently settled an enforcement action with The University of Massachusetts System (UMASS) for alleged violations of the Toxic Substance Control Act (TSCA). This action concerns […]

Read here about a Virginia Supreme Court ruling that homeowner’s insurance does not cover damages from Chinese drywall.  

Read here about a diesel fuel spill that resulted from Hurricane Sandy.

Source: http://triblive.com, October 23, 2012 By: Tory N. Parrish The value of claims filed as a result of an asphalt spill on the Pennsylvania Turnpike last year has more than doubled to $1.7 million since June. Attorney Thomas Frampton, the court-appointed special master for the case in U.S. District Court in Pittsburgh, has received 616 […]

Source: http://www.stltoday.com, October 26, 2012 By: Leah Thorsen Hundreds of miles of railroad lines in three Missouri counties will continue to spread lead contamination, making a $70 million cleanup a waste of time and money, say lawyers for the mining company that footed the bill through a bankruptcy settlement. Arizona-based American Smelting and Refining Co. […]