Tuesday, June 3, 2014

Recent Cases

<> GenOn Power Midwest, L.P. v. Bell – In the U.S. Supreme Court, Docket No. 13-1013, Appealed from the Third Circuit Court of Appeals. The High Court denied the petition to appeal. Issue: Whether the Clean Air Act, which provides a comprehensive system for the regulation of air pollution in the United States and leaves "no room for a parallel track," American Electric Power Co. v. Connecticut, preempts state common law nuisance claims that would impose emissions restrictions different from those adopted pursuant to the Act and expose companies operating in compliance with all applicable emissions standards under the Act to liability for their emissions.

<> Venancio Aguasanta Arias v. Dyncorp – In the U.S. Court of Appeals, D.C. Circuit, Case No. 13-7044. The Panel rules: "Appellants, a group of Ecuadorian provinces and individual farmers, alleged that they were injured by an anti-drug herbicide spraying operation in Colombia, conducted by an American company. In a series of rulings, the district judge dismissed all claims. Some of those are appealed. We affirm all but one."