In 1994, a California case called Titan Corp. v. Aetna Casualty and Surety Co.¹ seemed to signal the closing of the door on insureds' hopes for insurance coverage for environmental cleanups under the Personal Injury section of their commercial general liability policies. However, a recent California Court of Appeal case, Martin Marietta Corp. v. Insurance Co. of North America,² may mean that the door remains ajar.

Government agencies seek to recover the costs of environmental cleanups from the persons they identify as potentially responsible for the contamination. In turn, these potentially responsible parties often seek defense and indemnity from the insurance companies from whom they obtained Comprehensive General Liability (CGL) policies. The insurance companies invariably deny coverage. This has led to a flood of lawsuits around the country over the last six years about the scope of CGL policies.