INSURANCE COMPANY OF NORTH AMERICA v. KAYSER-ROTH CORPORATION, et al., 1999 R.I. Super. LEXIS 66

Summary

Petitioner insurer sought a declaratory judgment pertaining to respondent company's claims against numerous insurance carriers for coverage of an environmental liability claim asserted against respondent by the federal environmental agency (EPA). All the parties reached settlement agreements prior to trial except petitioner. The court, following a trial, found in favor of respondent, holding that it was entitled to recover under the two policies it had with petitioner. Coverage existed under the policies because the property damage resulted from an occurrence that took place during the effective time period. The operative event under a known loss analysis was the final disposition of plaintiff's liability by the EPA. Although respondent knew of the spill at the time of the inception of the policy, the court found that respondent did not know that they risked liability for remediation of such a large scale as ultimately determined by the EPA 15 years later. The court found respondent ...