Plaintiff Lawyers Eying Environmental Disclosures

Two recent court decisions, one of them in an appellate court, have rebuffed attempts to dismiss securities class actions that were predicated on a failure to disclose environmental legal issues. This appears to be something of a trend, writes Kevin LaCroix. Plaintiffs are gaining traction in these kinds of suits, he says, and companies are advised not to rely on vague boilerplate disclosures about their potential environmental liabilities, and to review their D&O insurance policies vis a vis pollution exclusions.