Oregon Federal Court Finds Insurance Company Doesn’t Owe Coverage for Chemical Exposure Claims

PORTLAND, Ore. –– An Oregon federal court has ruled that an insurance company did not owe a semiconductor defendant a duty to defend, ruling that the underlying chemical exposure claims were excluded from coverage under the Pollution Exclusion contained in the insurance policy.

In the Nov. 5 order, the U.S. District Court for the district of Oregon further found that the employer’s liability exclusion also excluded overage from the underlying allegations.

“Because OneBeacon had no duty to defend TriQuint in the underlying action,” the court concluded.

Liberty Northwest Insurance Corp. filed the underlying lawsuit against several insurance companies, seeking a …