RLI issued an umbrella liability insurance policy with a pollution exclusion. In the eyes of a court, that exclusion barred all coverage including any duty to defend an underlying lawsuit filed against the policyholder, the City of Visalia, California, concerning an alleged pollution site. The case is RLI Insurance Co. v. City of Visalia, No. 1:17-cv-01205-LJO-EPG, 2018 WL 1381808 (E.D. Cal. March 19, 2018), appeal docketed, No. 18-15668 (9th Cir. April 18, 2018).
In a statement with which those who regularly read decisions from the Eastern District of California are familiar, this opinion too begins with a description of the desperate continuing staffing needs of the Eastern District of California including a need for more District Judges to handle the caseload. The statement contains a clear warning that there are so few District Judges in the Eastern District that, as in many other Federal Districts, setting criminal trials takes priority over setting trials in civil cases, and District Judges from other Districts may be asked to preside over some or many cases to clear the backlog. This warning may or may not be getting attention from those with responsibility for public appropriations.
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