Supreme Court Agrees to Hear Statute of Repose Case

The United States Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case interpreting the CERCLA provision that preempts State statutes of limitations. Section 9658 of CERCLA provides that for actions brought under State law relating to hazardous substances or pollutants, the statute of limitations cannot begin to run until the injured party knew or should have know of the injury. This provision preserves claims that might otherwise be time-barred.

There is a split in the federal circuits regarding what section 9658 means for statutes of repose. The difference between a statute of limitations and a statute of repose is that a statute of limitations bars claims that are brought a specified amount of time after a claim arises, which generally means after the injury, while a statute of repose bars claims a specified amount of time after an event (such as a sale of property) even if that event has not caused injury.  The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals held that section 9658 applies to statutes of repose.  Waldburger v CTS Corporation, 723 F.3d 434 (2013).

The Supreme Court will decide whether, when section 9658 said “statute of limitations” it also meant “statute of repose.” The decision will impact not only what state law claims can be brought against alleged polluters, but it could also provide significant guidance regarding how to read CERCLA. Recent Supreme Court decisions have counseled lower courts to pay more attention to the language of CERCLA and if that trend considers, the Court will not extend the provision to statutes of repose.