RECENT FEDERAL DECISIONS

August 2007

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District Court Applies Porter-Cologne Act to Hold Defendants Liable for Government Response Costs under Polanco Act, but Government Not Excused from Notice Requirements
Redevelopment Agency of the City of Stockton v. Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway Corporation, Union Pacific Railroad Company, ___F.Supp.2d____

Plaintiff sought cost recovery and an injunction for alleged violation of the Polanco Act and California state law claims for nuisance and trespass stemming from petroleum contamination found on land defendants once used and owned. Defendants argued that they were not a responsible party under the Polanco Act because they did not own the property when the contamination occurred and they never operated the french drain that facilitated the contamination. The District Court found that the defendants were liable under the Polanco Act for the remediation of some areas on the property but not others and the defendants were liable under the claims of nuisance and trespass.