Natural Resource Damages & Environmental Justice
The Knesset Finance Committee, headed by MK Alex Kushnir (Yisrael Beitenu), recently approved a mechanism for compensation for the rehabilitation of industrial waste damages caused by Rotem Amfert (of the ICL Group). The...more
The Supreme Court will hear oral arguments today, December 3, in a CERCLA case that could have ramifications for environmental law practitioners around the country. The case, Atlantic Richfield Co. v. Christian (“the...more
A case currently pending before the United States Supreme Court may significantly impact legal rights of potentially responsible parties (PRPs) involved in the cleanup of Superfund Sites. The case was brought in Montana State...more
The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals recently ruled that California was entitled to pursue its costs for remediating contaminated property from a buyer in a tax sale who took title to the property long after the contamination...more
A federal court in Alaska assessed responsibility against the City of Fairbanks (City) for remediation costs found necessary to clean up property it previously owned. The court concluded that the City should have mitigated...more
Action Item: On August 26, 2015, in a case of first impression, the Appellate Division of the New Jersey Superior Court in NL Indus., Inc. v. State of New Jersey, No. A0869-14T3, 2015 N.J. Super. LEXIS 161 (N.J. Super. Ct....more
Now is the time to begin brownfield redevelopment projects in the State of New York. Reauthorization of and reforms to New York’s Brownfields Cleanup Program, which provides tax credits to redevelop contaminated properties,...more
The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) allows the federal government to collect funds from or to order a “potentially responsible party” (“PRP”) to clean up contaminated sites. 42...more
The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), commonly known as Superfund, is a federal law under which contaminated sites are identified and evaluated by the Environmental Protection...more
Action Item: On March 15, 2015, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin in United States v. NCR Corp., No. 10-C-910 (E.D. Wis. May 15, 2015), held that a potentially responsible party (“PRP”) at...more
Trial court may select the method of accounting for prior settlement in allocating response costs among liable parties, but claims to recover settlement payments are limited to costs consistent with the National Contingency...more
Since the U.S. Supreme Court issued its landmark decision in Burlington Northern & Santa Fe Railway Co. v. United States, 556 U.S. 599 (2009), holding that a party must “take intentional steps to dispose of a hazardous...more
In Vine Street LLC v. Borg Warner Corp., No. 07-40440, the Fifth Circuit held that, in light of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Burlington Northern & Santa Fe Railway Co. v. United States, 556 U.S. 599 (2009), BorgWarner...more
In Morristown Associates v. Grant Oil Co., the New Jersey Supreme Court unanimously ruled that a six-year statute of limitations does not apply to private claims for contribution of costs incurred to remediate contaminated...more
In a much anticipated decision, the New Jersey Supreme Court ruled yesterday in Morristown Associates v. Grant Oil Co. that the general six-year statute of limitations for injury to real property is not applicable to Spill...more
Agencies acquiring private property for a public project conduct thorough investigations to determine whether the property has environmental contamination. If contamination is found, the question arises whether evidence of...more
Whether it’s for condos, office buildings or industrial properties, raw land is becoming more and more scarce in Miami. That means land remediation is becoming a bigger issue. It also means developers have to face new...more
Shopping for insurance can raise hard questions: How much coverage do I need? What types of risk should be covered? What must I do to get the maximum benefits allowed? Policyholders who get the wrong answers often end up...more
One of the most draconian aspects of NJ’s 2009 Site Remediation Reform Act is the authority of NJDEP to take direct oversight of older cleanups, stripping responsible parties of cleanup decision-making and requiring a trust...more
The New Jersey Appellate Division just ruled that the general six-year statute of limitations for property damage claims applies to a private claim for contribution brought under the New Jersey Spill Compensation and Control...more
Companies doing business in Canada should identify and manage the risks associated with legal liability for harm that has been (or may be) caused to the environment. Environmental legislation (statutes and regulations) in...more