third party defense

5th Circuit Says OPA Third Party Defense Does Not Apply to Indirect Fueling Arrangements

oil spills / By

The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit recently had the opportunity to explore the scope of the Oil Pollution Act (OPA) third party defense  in Buffalo Marine Services, Inc. v. United States, 663 F.3d 750 (5th Cir. 2011). While the OPA third party defense set forth at set forth at 33 U.S.C.S. […]

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Owner Incurs $1MM On Cleanup But Ct Says No “Due Care”-Owner Waited Too Long to Act

bankruptcy, CERCLA / By

The second our series of recent cases involving the due care element of the CERCLA third party defense is State of New York v Adamowicz, 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 102988 (E.D.N.Y. 9/13/11) where a property owner was unable to establish that it exercised due care despite spending over $1MM addressing environmental concerns at its site.

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Review of Recent CERCLA Third Party Defense “Due Care” Caselaw-Part 1

CERCLA, Corporate and Real Estate Transactions / By

The Third Party defense (42 U.S.C. 9607(b)(3) is probably the most important CERCLA defense. To assert the defense, a defendant must satisfy the following four elements or prongs: The release was solely caused by a third party; The defendant had no direct or indirect “contractual relationship” with the third party (“contractual relationship” prong); The defendant

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