AEROSPACE
From Times Staff and Wire Reports
Northrop Wins $18.7-Million Jury Verdict: A Los Angeles County Superior Court jury awarded Northrop Corp. the amount in a lawsuit over an insurer’s refusal to protect the company against environmental damage claims. The case arose from a 1985 spill of contaminants at the aerospace giant’s Norwood, Mass., facility. Massachusetts environmental officials cited Northrop as potentially responsible for cleanup, and a private landowner abutting the site filed suit. Northrop’s insurer, American Motorists Insurance Co., a Kemper Group unit, denied coverage. The jury found American Motorists in breach of its duty, awarding Northrop $4.6 million in compensatory damages, $2.1 million in legal costs and $12 million in punitive damages.
