Key Contacts
Res Judicata No Bar to Second Suit for Remediation Costs Incurred After Filing of First Complaint
August 16, 2021
Brandon P. Matsnev
MGKF Litigation Blog
On August 4, 2021, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit rebuked the government’s “overly technical” attempt under res judicata to avoid responsibility for cleanup costs stemming from the large-scale production of aviation fuel as part of the World War II effort. Shell Oil Co. v. United States (No. 20-2221). “In doing so,” the Court explained, it “hope[d] to put an end to the government’s continued resistance to making payments . . . it is obligated to make.”
