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CARMINE GREENE, et al., Plaintiffs, v. KENNETH R. WILL, VIM RECYCLING, INC., K.C. INDUSTRIES, LLC, and SOIL SOLUTIONS, Defendants.

Country/Territory
United States of America
Type of court
National - lower court
Date
Feb 7, 2012
Source
UNEP, InforMEA
Court name
United States District Court, Northern District of Indiana
Judge
Simon, P.P.
Reference number
NO. 3:09CV510-PPS/CAN
Language
English
Subject
Waste & hazardous substances
Keyword
Solid waste Food waste Organic waste Waste disposal Waste domestic sources Waste management Waste non-domestic sources Liability/compensation Transport/storage
Abstract
The suit, filed in October 2009 against predecessor company Vim Recycling Inc. under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, raised common law claims of nuisance, trespass and negligence and alleged violations of applicable laws by failure to properly dispose of, contain and abate harmful solid waste, including waste piles, some of which were more than 50 feet tall. The defendant moved to dismiss, contending that a state court action against the company, filed in 2008 in by the Indiana Department of Environmental Management, barred the federal action. A federal court agreed, but the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals reversed. Plaintiffs filed an amended complaint in September 2011, adding alleged successor-in-interest Soil Solutions Co. as a defendant. Soil Solutions moved to dismiss, arguing that plaintiffs had failed to state a claim and that it was not liable for alleged improper storage at the site. The court disagreed, ruling that by taking over Vim’s facility and continuing its practices, such as storing wood and construction waste on bare ground, Soil Solutions may also have inherited the alleged violations and the waste company was liable as the successor in interest.
Full text
COU-158305.pdf