A lower court had previously ruled in favor of the policyholders, determining that the pollution exclusion did not apply because the emissions were authorized by the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency through issued permits. Based on that interpretation, the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois ordered National Union Fire Insurance Co. of Pittsburgh, Pa. to pay substantial defense costs – approximately $16 million to Griffith Foods and $75.5 million to its subsidiary, Sterigenics.
