Guam v. United States
Headline: Court limits environmental cleanup contribution claims, ruling only settlements that resolve CERCLA-specific liabilities allow contribution suits, making it harder for Guam and others to recover cleanup costs from non-CERCLA settlements.
Holding:
- Prevents using non-CERCLA settlements to trigger CERCLA contribution claims.
- Limits Guam’s ability to recoup cleanup costs from the United States.
- Encourages clearer settlements explicitly resolving CERCLA liabilities during negotiations.
Summary
Background
The dispute involved the Territory of Guam and the federal government over the Ordot Dump, a large landfill the Navy built in the 1940s that later housed toxic waste. The EPA sued Guam under the Clean Water Act, and in 2004 Guam entered a consent decree requiring payments and cleanup steps and stating that those steps would fully settle the United States’ Clean Water Act claims.
Reasoning
The Court considered whether a settlement must resolve a liability under the federal cleanup law known as CERCLA before a party can seek money from others through a contribution claim. Reading §113(f)(3)(B) together with other CERCLA provisions, the Justices concluded the phrase “resolved its liability … for some or all of a response action” refers to liabilities created by CERCLA itself. Because the 2004 Clean Water Act decree did not resolve a CERCLA-specific liability, the Court held it did not give rise to a CERCLA contribution claim and reversed the D.C. Circuit.
Real world impact
The ruling limits when governments or companies can seek contribution by requiring a prior settlement to resolve a CERCLA liability. Parties who settled under other environmental laws, like the Clean Water Act, generally cannot use those settlements to start CERCLA contribution claims. The Supreme Court resolved this statutory question.
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