ELR Citation: ELR 20466
No(s). 92-301 (D. Del. May 20, 1993)

The court holds that the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) §113(g)'s three-year statute of limitations for bringing a contribution claim does not preempt Delaware's nonclaim law, which requires that claims against a decedent's estate be brought within eight months of death. The court first holds that CERCLA does not explicitly preempt all state environmental law, but rather only preempts those laws for which compliance with both federal and state regulations is physically impossible or if the state law impedes accomplishment and execution of Congress' full purposes and objectives. The court next holds that it is possible to comply with Delaware's nonclaim law and CERCLA §113(g)'s statute of limitations by notifying an estate of a contingent claim within eight months of a decedent's death and filing the contribution action within three years of the date of a judgment for response costs. The court next holds that the nonclaim statute does not obstruct congressional intent. CERCLA §1113(f)(1) requires that claims be brought in accordance with the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, including Rule 17(b), which provides that an individual's capacity to be sued shall be determined by the law of the individual's domicile. Thus Congress intended that CERCLA not preempt state capacity statutes such as the Delaware nonclaim statute. The court distinguishes statutes controlling the capacity of dissolved corporations to be sued from the Delaware nonclaim statute, noting that individuals are unlikely to commit suicide to trigger the eight-month nonclaim period, and that the state's interest in the prompt settlement of a decedent's estate is particularly strong. Finally, the court holds that the nonclaim statute bars the contribution claim, which was brought nearly 10 months after the decedent's death.

Counsel for Plaintiff
David S. Swayze
Duane, Morris & Heckscher
1201 Market St., Wilmington DE 19801
(302) 571-5550

Counsel for Defendants
William Poole, James F. Burnett
Potter, Anderson & Corroon
350 Delaware Trust Bldg.
P.O. Box 951, Wilmington DE 19899
(302) 658-6771