Nossaman Highlighted for $68.5 Million Ninth Circuit Win for Santa Clarita Valley Water

A team led by Jennifer Meeker, Patrick Richard, Byron Gee and Fred Fudacz was highlighted by several media outlets following the Ninth Circuit's published opinion affirming the $68.5 million jury trial judgment in favor of Nossaman client Santa Clarita Valley Water Agency. The award was for the harm caused by decades-long and widespread dumping of perchlorate and volatile organic compounds by Whittaker Corporation at a nearly 1,000-acre site located in Santa Clarita, California, which led to the contamination of the groundwater that SCVWA relies on to supply drinking water to the residents and businesses in Santa Clarita.

American Lawyer featured the win in its “Litigators of the Week” column, noting, “A team from Nossaman led by appellate lawyer Jenny Meeker…got a ruling from the Ninth Circuit this week affirming a $68.5 million judgment for the Santa Clarita Valley Water Agency in a groundwater contamination case against the Whittaker Corp." The Nossaman team also included Ilse Scott, Raven McGuane and Alex Van Roekel.

Law360 wrote an in-depth piece on the ruling, quoting Jenny. Discussing the victory for SCV Water, she said, “The panel’s decision on remand entitles the agency to costs not previously covered by the jury verdict like blend water costs and prevents the parties from having to relitigate the issue of liability for future costs incurred.”

The Daily Journal reported on the win as well, saying the Ninth Circuit found the “District court did not abuse its discretion by allowing [SCV Water] to assert legal theory at trial not included in Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26 because it did not involve evidence.” 

Bloomberg Law, The Signal SCV, the Association of California Water Agencies and KHTS Radio also covered the win.

Our team’s previous work for SCV Water provided the Ninth Circuit with a favorable jury verdict to consider in its ruling.