United States Seventh Circuit

In a suit by the government under CERCLA to recover costs incurred in cleaning up hazardous waste, summary judgment for plaintiff is vacated and remanded where: 1) there was insufficient evidence in the record to determine whether the defendant had entered into a valid contract with a third party for the sale of the land, and thus whether the doctrine of equitable conversion would remove the burden of ownership under CERCLA from the defendant; and 2) the harm was not divisible among parcels since the parcels were contiguous and hazardous materials moved between them.

Appellate Information

• Argued 05/05/2008
• Decided 09/19/2008
• Published 09/19/2008

Judges

• CUDAHY, Circuit Judge., Before CUDAHY, POSNER and ROVNER, Circuit Judges.

Court

• United States Seventh Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• Mark J. McAndrew, Barnes & Thornburg, Chicago, IL, for Stephen J. Pedi., Gary J. Fernandez, Glen Ellyn, IL, for William Lerch.


• For Appellees:
  
• Elizabeth A. Peterson (argued), Department of Justice, Environment & Natural Resources Div., Washington, DC, for Plaintiff-Appellee., Norman B. Berger (argued), Varga, Berger, Ledsky, Hayes & Casey, Chicago, IL, for Defendant-Appellant.