United States v. CB&I Constructors, Inc. País/Territorio Estados Unidos de América Tipo de la corte Nacional - corte superior Fecha Jun 29, 2012 Fuente UNEP, InforMEA Nombre del tribunal United States Court of Appeal for the Ninth Circuit Juez Rawlinson, J.B.Goodwin, A.T.Fletcher, W.A. Número de referencia No. 10-55371 Idioma Inglés Materia Bosques, Medio ambiente gen. Palabra clave Responsabilidad/indemnización Resumen The federal government filed the lawsuit in 2008 against Merco Construction Engineers and its subcontractor for damages allegedly caused when the subcontractor, while building a water-storage project, ignited dry brush which resulted in a wildfire that spread to the national forest. The government sought to recover $6.6 million in fire suppression costs and unspecified damages for harm to wildlife habitats, soils, native plants, loss of recreational use, scenic views, the California red-legged frog habitats, and a historic mining camp. Merco settled its liability for $2.1 million. Jurors awarded the government $7.6 million for fire suppression and other costs and an additional $28.8 million for “intangible” environmental damages. Their verdict found both defendants liable in negligence and trespass, assigning 65 percent of the blame to the subcontractor and 35 percent to Merco. The subcontractor appealed. The three-judge appellate panel held that the damages award “was not grossly excessive” based on the substantial evidence the government presented at trial. According to the court, “[u]nder California law, the government was entitled to full compensation for all the harms caused by the fire, including intangible environmental harm.” Texto completo COU-159400.pdf