ASARCO, LLC v NL Industries, Inc, Case No. 4:11-cv-00864-JAR
May 15, 2015OUTCOME: Prevailed in Lone Pine motion for modified case management. Prevailed at Motion for Summary Judgment. Affirmed on appeal.
A civil action brought by Plaintiff Asarco LLC ("Asarco”) under the Comprehensive Environmental Response Compensation and Liability Act (“CERCLA”), 42 U.S.C. §§ 9601 et seq., for contribution and cost ... recovery against Defendants NL Industries, Inc. (“NL”), Union Pacific Railroad Company (“Union Pacific”), St. Francois County Environmental Corporation (“SFCEC”), Delta Asphalt, Inc. (“Delta”), and Anschutz Mining Corporation (“AMC”) for monies it paid in its settlement with the United States and the State of Missouri regarding its environmental liability at the Southeast Missouri Mining District (“SEMO”) sites. Due to the complex nature of the case, the Court entered a Lone Pine modified case management order requiring Asarco to make a prima facie showing on the issue of CERCLA liability. The Court later clarified for the parties that to establish its prima facie case under CERCLA § 113(f), Asarco must prove that: (i) Defendants fall under one of four categories of “covered persons;” (ii) the site in question is a “facility;” (iii) there was a “release” or “threatened release” of a “hazardous substance” at the facility; and (iv) the release caused it to incur response costs. 42 U.S.C. § 9613(f).
