Calfee Insurance Coverage Attorneys Matt Chiricosta and Justin Howell Quoted in Law360 Article "Policyholders, Insurers Lauded 9th Circ. Enviro Cleanup Ruling"

Mentioned and Quoted

Calfee Insurance Coverage Practice Co-Leader and Partner Matthew A. Chiricosta and Senior Counsel Justin T. Howell were quoted in the April 30, 2026, Law360 Insurance Authority article, “Policyholders, Insurers Lauded 9th Circ. Enviro Cleanup Ruling.” The article, written by Abraham Gross, covered a Ninth Circuit ruling "that revived a California county's request for coverage of environmental cleanup costs" and was praised by both policyholder and insurers' counsel. The case is County of San Bernardino v. Insurance Company of the State of Pennsylvania.

A three-judge panel ruled on April 23, 2026, that San Bernardino County "was not barred from seeking up to $162 million for environmental remediation efforts" for drinking water contamination caused by industrial waste, noting in its decision the ambiguous language relating to aggregate limits in the commercial general liability policies issued in the 1960s and 1970s by an AIG unit. 

Matt Chiricosta and Justin Howell provided additional background and context on the timing of the County's disputed policies, which ended shortly before the passage of significant environmental cleanup legislation and before pollution exclusions were commonly used. Justin lauded the court for resisting the temptation to "look back and construe policies as if insurers had made optimal ... decisions about their risk exposure."

Read the full Law360 Insurance Authority article.

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Calfee’s Policyholder Insurance Coverage practice group has helped its clients manage and protect nearly $2 billion in insurance assets over the past few years. The team serves corporate insurance policyholder clients in Ohio and nationwide, helping them manage and minimize the risks, losses, and liabilities that pose threats. Calfee’s Insurance Coverage attorneys provide advisory and claims services, assisting clients with the placement and enhancement of their insurance policies, reviews of their existing policies, shaping and pursuing claims to get losses paid by their insurance companies, negotiating resolutions to disputed insurance claims, litigating coverage lawsuits against their insurers, and finding solutions for insurance coverage issues in corporate M&A deals. The team has experience with a wide array of policy types, from newer products such as cyber and M&A representations and warranties insurance, to more traditional policy forms such as commercial general liability (CGL), umbrella, excess, property, D&O, professional liability, and EPL policies, to more specialized policies such as builder’s risk, liquor, and aviation. Calfee's Insurance practice is ranked by Chambers USA 2025 in Band 1 in Insurance: Policyholder Law in Ohio. 

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