Media Coverage
Media Coverage
Press Contacts: Erik Cummins, Matt Hyams, Olivia Thomas
09.05.23
In a recent Law360 interview regarding specialty insurance options for cannabis businesses, Pillsbury Insurance Recovery & Advisory partner Benjamin Tievsky discussed the various exposures the industry must address and the coverages emerging to help mitigate those issues.
Tievsky views environmental hazards and product liability concerns as the next big risks the cannabis industry will need to confront. He also points out that the federal illegality of cannabis creates additional complexities for business operating in the sector, and that cannabis businesses would be wise to give careful consideration to an industry-specific policy to fill any potential gaps in coverage.
“In the past, insurers have argued that cannabis is illegal federally,” Tievsky said. “So, even though cannabis might be legal where the policyholder is operating, they sometimes take the position that the illegality exclusion applies to bar coverage for certain losses. Even at the state level, if there is a question about whether the policyholder is not in scrupulous compliance with reporting, product tracking, and other requirements, insurers may attempt to invoke an illegality exclusion.”
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