ELR Citation: ELR 20220
No(s). 02-271 (U.S. Jun 9, 2003)

The U.S. Supreme Court holds that in appeals arising from Agent Orange exposure, judgment as to two respondents is vacated and remanded for further consideration in light of Syngenta Crop Protection, Inc. v. Henson, 537 U.S. 28 (2002), but judgment as to other respondents is affirmed by an equally divided Court. The Court failed to agree on whether it's too late for sick Vietnam War veterans to sue chemical companies over Agent Orange exposure, but allowed veterans to continue lawsuits claiming that they were wrongly shut out of a decades-old national settlement. Justice John P. Stevens took no part in the consideration or decision of this case.

Counsel for Petitioners
Seth M. Waxman
Wilmer, Cutler & Pickering
2445 M St. NW, Washington DC 20037
(202) 663-6800

Counsel for Respondent
Gerson H. Smoger
Smoger & Associates
3175 Monterey Blvd., Oakland CA 94602
(510) 531-4529