Opinion ID: 4563582
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: Compaction’s Contribution Action Against

Text: Carter Day Compaction filed an amended third-party complaint seeking contribution from Carter Day in 2011. The latter moved for summary judgment, and the District Court granted its motion without oral argument, reasoning that the NJDEP Settlement protected it from contribution. The Court relied on our decision in Trinity Industries, Inc. v. Chicago Bridge & Iron Co., 735 F.3d 131 (3d Cir. 2013). That case interpreted the language “[a] person who has resolved its liability to the United States or a State” in a different CERCLA provision, Section 113(f)(3)(B), to govern the rights of PRPs that resolve their liability with either the Federal or State Government rather than requiring resolution with both to apply. Extending that reasoning to Compaction’s claim, the Court ruled that Carter Day’s settlement with the NJDEP barred Compaction from seeking contribution for its federal liability from Carter Day. Compaction moved for reconsideration, and the United States submitted a brief in support of that motion. They argued that the Court failed to consider the effect of its holding given CERCLA’s allocation of responsibility between the Federal Government and the States, as well as the narrow scope of the “matters addressed” in the NJDEP Settlement. After determining that the parties did not satisfy the standards for reconsideration, the District Court denied the motion. Compaction and the United States appeal to us in separate actions, consolidated here. 12