LYONDELL CHEMICAL COMPANY; ET AL., Plaintiffs, EPEC POLYMERS INC; EPEC CORPORATION; EL PASO TENNESSEE PIPELINE COMPANY, Third Party Plaintiffs -- Appellees -- Cross Appellants, TENNESSEE GAS PIPELINE COMPANY, formerly known as Tenneco Inc., Defendants -- Appellees -- Cross Appellants v. OCCIDENTAL CHEMICAL CORPORATION, Defendant -- Appellant -- Cross-Appellee, 608 F.3d 284

Summary

The hazardous waste site was near a ship channel. The parties did not dispute liability for the cleanup at issue, rather, they disputed the allocation of costs by the district court among the parties. One disposal company challenged the district court's admission of certain reports used to develop the intermediate estimate of its waste. The court found that the district court, although finding that the reports were made during settlement negotiations, erred by admitting them on the basis they were created for another dispute. The court found that the reports were created for use in negotiations regarding the claim being litigated in the underlying suit. The court held that the dispute involved the same relevant parties, the same waste-generating facilities, the same basic time frame, the same waste hauler, and the same intended disposal site. More to the point, it involved the same primary liability question: What chemicals did each facility ship off-site and in what quantity? The ...