The Illinois First District Appellate Court has ruled that Trump International Hotel & Tower in Chicago cannot force its insurers to cover claims stemming from the building’s contamination of the Chicago River. In 2018, the State of Illinois claimed that Trump International Hotel & Tower’s water intake system was emitting pollutants into the river without a permit. Subsequently, Continental Casualty, a subsidiary of CNA Financial filed a lawsuit alleging that their insurance policy did not cover violations mentioned in this complaint due to pollution exclusions being part of these policies as reported by Crain’s .
The appellate court determined that hot water discharges do not constitute as an insured “occurrence” under any given insurance contracts and thus affirmed an earlier ruling made by lower courts. Last month, Sierra Club and Friends Of The Chicago River announced plans to sue The Trump Organization for alleged violation against federal Clean Water Act owing to discharge system used at tower premises.
