Judge Says Pollution Exclusion Inapplicable to Chinese Drywall Claims

Judge Says Pollution Exclusion Inapplicable to Chinese Drywall Claims

NEW ORLEANS - A state court judge has ruled that a pollution exclusion in a homeowners' insurance policy does not exclude coverage for claims arising from allegedly defective Chinese drywall installed in a Louisiana home. Finger v. Audubon Insurance Co., No. 09-8071 (La. Dist. Ct., Orleans Prsh.).

In a March 22 judgment that struck the exclusion as an affirmative defense to a first-party coverage action, Orleans Parish District Court Judge Lloyd Medley stated that the pollution exclusion was never intended to apply to residential claims for damage caused by substandard building …