A bankruptcy court held that a property owner's CERCLA and state environmental law claims against the prior property owner are not "core" claims and, thus, fall outside the jurisdiction of the owner's Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings. The owner's CERCLA, New Jersey Spill Act, and New Jersey Jo...

A district court dismissed a property owner's negligence and mutual mistake claims against the former owner, as well as its request to rescind the purchase agreement, due to contamination. A shopping center sold the site to a business entity which then assigned the property to the current owner...

A district court, on motions for reconsideration and for leave to amend counterclaims, held that a gas company may seek recovery costs under CERCLA and the Michigan Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Act against the plaintiffs in the case. The plaintiffs seek recovery of costs they ...

The Eleventh Circuit granted EPA's petition for a writ of mandamus to substitute the appearance of the EPA Assistant Administrator for Water for the appearance of the EPA Administrator at a hearing about compliance by the Agency with orders entered by the district court that concerned pollut...

The First Circuit affirmed a lower court decision denying a motion to enjoin Maine state officials from allowing the use of any foothold traps to prevent the incidental take of Canadian lynx, a threatened species. The lower court did not abuse its discretion in denying the motion, as the ani...

The Sixth Circuit affirmed a lower court decision excluding expert witness testimony in homeowners' toxic tort case against an oil company for benzene exposure. The homeowners alleged claims of strict liability for hazardous activity, negligence, and loss of consortium. To support their claims,...

A district court denied an electric company's motion to bifurcate litigation in a case brought by several towns against the company under CERCLA and New York statutory and common law for polluting their water supply. The company's motion was for reverse bifurcation, as it wanted to first hol...

The First Circuit held that property owners have standing to challenge a settlement agreement entered into between a town and a telecommunications company over the construction of a 100-foot cell phone tower. The town board initially denied the company's application for a zoning variance. The c...

A Washington appellate court held that the former owners of contaminated property may be held liable under the state's Model Toxics Control Act (MTCA). Fifteen years after the former owner sold the property to a port, the port notified the former owners that they were potentially liable part...

A district court recommended that individuals' request for class certification in a case against TVA for a coal ash spill in Tennessee be denied. On December 22, 2008, one of the coal ash containment dikes at the TVA's Swan Pond facility failed. As a result, approximately 5.4 million cubic yards of ...