Donna Wilson's blog

When faced with the challenge of defending abusive public nuisance lawsuits, corporate defendants would be well advised to examine their insurance policies. In addition to providing coverage for any potential liability, such policies may also provide costs of defense coverage.

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authors: Donna Wilson and Marla Kanemitsu

We are seeing the first volley over the issue of insurance coverage for policyholders faced with climate change lawsuits predicated on public and private nuisance theories.  The AES Company is one of many energy companies sued by the Native Village of Kivalina in federal court in California.  The Village consists of approximately 400 people.  The suit seeks relief for damages allegedly cause by the defendants’ greenhouse gas emissions.  According to the Village, greenhouse gas emissions have caused temperatures to rise, which in turn caused the ice barrier protecting the Village to melt, thus jeopardizing the ability of the Village to withstand winter storms.  Read More »