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27 Fordham J. Corp. & Fin. L. 673 (2022)
Debunking the Standardized Nature of Insurance Policies

handle is hein.journals/fjcf27 and id is 683 raw text is: DEBUNKING THE STANDARDIZED NATURE OF INSURANCE POLICIES Elizabeth Sousa* ABSTRACT This article discredits the conventional view of insurance policies as standardized contracts that do not vary across insurance companies and policyholders. Contrary to this view, there are wide variations in policy language in both the admitted and non-admitted insurance markets. These deviations reduce the perceived benefit of insurance policies as standardized contracts intended to promote predictability and lower transaction costs for policyholders by focusing only on the most salient terms. Nowhere is this deviation more apparent than with Commercial General Liability (CGL) policies defendants are turning to in the current opioid litigation. The opioid epidemic has been plaguing the United States for the last several years and, in its wake, many state and local government entities have sued those involved in the manufacture, sale, distribution, and prescription of opioid products. Naturally these defendants have looked to their insurance policies for defense expenses and coverage, given the exorbitant potential liability they face. Depending on the specific allegations and complaints, different insurance policies can apply. The CGL policy is the primary policy that defendants have turned to. The principal coverage disputes between policyholders and insurance companies are whether the complaint alleges bodily injury, property damage, or occurrence. These terms are defined in an insurance policy and many CGL policies utilize standardized language and defmitions. Despite the uniformity in language, courts decisions in multiple jurisdictions have been incredibly inconsistent * J.D., Fordham University School of Law, 2022. Thank you to the editors and staff of the Fordham Journal of Corporate & Financial Law for their support and editing contributions throughout the past year. I would also like to thank Professor Aditi Bagchi, whose Business Contracts course inspired this Note and for her thoughtful and invaluable suggestions. Finally, a special thank you to my friends and family for their encouragement and support throughout law school and the note writing process. 673

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