Novel Industry Cases Test Reach Of 'Judgment' Act To Preempt CWA Suits

July 24, 2017
A federal district court in Virginia is weighing two cases where coal mining and power companies sued environmentalists in order to preempt threats of litigation over whether coal leaks into groundwater violate the Clean Water Act (CWA), marking a new trend in the ongoing legal battle over CWA liability for coal pollution in groundwater. Both Duke Energy and the Red River Coal Company are suing environmental groups in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia, in response...


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