2006 May 4

Conservation Council of New Brunswick Inc. v. Encon Group Inc., 2006 NBCA 51

The New Brunswick Court of Appeal sustained a decision that an insurer, Co-Operators Insurance Company of New Brunswick, had a duty to defend the Conservation Council of New Brunswick Inc. “CCNB”) against an action for defamation brought by Bennett Environmental Inc, on the basis that Bennett’s claim did not fall squarely within the exclusionary provisions of the insurance policy held by CCNB. The Court held it was impossible to distinguish between legal defence costs relating to allegations covered by the policy (i.e. certain material published in a newspaper) and those allegations not covered (website material); the latter being excluded from coverage under the policy.