ELR Citation: ELR 21346
No(s). CIV-79-990C (W.D.N.Y. Jun 6, 1990)

The court holds that a county is not liable for contribution under state law for cleanup costs at the Love Canal site. The court holds that Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) §107(e)(2) does not bar a party liable for CERCLA response costs from pursuing contribution for those costs under state law. The court then holds that under New York law, a county cannot be held liable for contribution or indemnification because no special relationship existed between the county and the company. The county's duty to the community to respond to hazardous waste problems under New York's Public Health Law is not enough to establish a special relationship.

[Previous decisions in this litigation are published at 11 ELR 20883, 12 ELR 20701, 14 ELR 20875, 15 ELR 20801, 16 ELR 20079, 18 ELR 20580, 20 ELR 20354.]

Counsel for Defendants
Theodore J. Burns
Hurwitz & Fine
1400 Liberty Bldg., Buffalo NY 14202
(716) 853-6100

Thomas H. Truitt, Steven K. Yablonski
Piper & Marbury
1200 19th St. NW, Washington DC 20036
(202) 861-3900

Counsel for Plaintiff
Eugene Martin-Leff
New York Department of Law
Environmental Protection Bureau, 120 Broadway, 26th Fl., New York NY 10271
(212) 341-2466