The court affirms a district court decision holding the former owner of an abandoned refinery responsible under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) for 15 percent of all past and future response costs and damages a subsequent owner incurred and will inc...

The Court holds that three 1995 U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) amendments to the federal grazing regulations neither violate the Taylor Grazing Act nor exceed the Secretary of the Interior's authority under that Act. The Court first holds that the new definition of "grazing privileges" does n...

The court holds that neither an amended Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) consent decree between a waste handler and the United States nor a previous trust agreement with other CERCLA defendants bound a waste handler to sign a new trust agreement. The dis...

The court holds that a railroad's motion to dismiss a power company's Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) cost recovery action against it for lack of subject matter jurisdiction must be denied. The court first holds that the power company's allegation as co...

The court denies a corporation's motion to reconsider a ruling that disputed issues of material fact exist as to whether the corporation's neighbor can claim an innocent landowner defense, which would allow the neighbor to pursue a Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Ac...

The court holds that a lower court improperly dismissed a laundry detergent manufacturer's claim that an exclusive franchise agreement between a county and a solid waste handler violated the dormant U.S. Commerce Clause. The agreement gave the waste handler the exclusive right to collect and process...

The court grants a panel for rehearing to clarify factual statements from its May 2, 2000, opinion in which it upheld a district court decision finding a previous owner of an oil refinery liable under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act for 15% of all past and f...

The court holds that a local utilities authority was not authorized under the New Jersey Municipal and Counties Utilities Authorities Law (MCUAL) to charge prior users of the authority's waste disposal facilities an environmental investment credit (EIC). The authority imposed the EIC in order to liq...

The court grants in part and denies in part a New York municipal village's motion to dismiss property owners' negligence and Fourteenth Amendment due process claims against the village for failure to address an unlicensed solid waste management facility's violations of the municipal zoning code. The...

The Court reverses the Federal Circuit and holds that the United States breached its contracts with two oil companies when, acting under the Outer Banks Protection Act (OBPA), it delayed approval of the companies' exploration plan. The companies paid the government $158 million in return for contrac...