A district court granted in part and denied in part motions to dismiss a shipyard owner's CERCLA, RCRA, and tort law claims against the current owner of a steel mill. The court denied motions to dismiss the shipyard's CERCLA claims for contribution and response costs. The complaint contains factual ...

A district court vacated two internal DOI guidance documents that address and limit the use of §390 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005, which establishes a "rebuttable presumption" that a categorical exclusion from review under NEPA would apply to certain oil and gas development activities on federal...

A district court denied environmental groups' petition for review challenging BLM's and the U.S. Forest Service's approval of several oil and gas lease sales in the San Juan Basin of northern New Mexico. The groups, who were concerned that the leases would contribute to ozone emissions, impact publi...

The Ninth Circuit upheld the dismissal of a dry cleaner's CERCLA and tort law claims against the manufacturer of dry cleaning equipment. The dry cleaner failed to present evidence giving rise to a genuine dispute as to any material fact with respect to its CERCLA claim. A person may be subject t...

The Ninth Circuit upheld the dismissal of a shopping center owner's citizen suit action under RCRA against manufacturers of dry cleaning equipment. The owner argued that the manufacturers contributed to the release of hazardous waste into the environment by virtue of their machinery, which was a...

A district court granted a city's motion to dismiss a company's third-party complaint against it for reimbursement of cleanup costs the U.S. government incurred responding to hazardous substances at an industrial site formerly owned by the company. The government filed suit against the company under...

A district court held that the current owner of a service station may be held liable under CERCLA for the actions of its predecessor and therefore dismissed the owner's motion for summary judgment. The owner's predecessor allegedly generated and then disposed of waste oil at the site between...