Supreme Court of the United States

Key Tronic Corp. v. United States

June 6, 1994511 U.S. 809

Summary

The Court, in an opinion authored by Justice Stevens and joined by Rehnquist, O'Connor, Kennedy, Souter and Ginsburg, held that attorney's fees for identifying other responsible parties are recoverable as necessary costs of response under CERCLA, but attorney's fees for litigation and for negotiating the EPA consent decree are not recoverable. Justice Scalia, joined by Justices Blackmun and Thomas, dissented in part, arguing that the statutory language does permit recovery of such fees. The judgment of the Court of Appeals was affirmed in part, reversed in part, and the case remanded.

Holding

  • Whether attorney's fees for identifying other responsible parties are recoverable as necessary costs of response. The Court held that such fees are recoverable as necessary costs of response under CERCLA § 107(a)(4)(B).
  • Whether attorney's fees for litigation and for negotiating the EPA consent decree are recoverable as necessary costs of response. The Court held that those fees are not recoverable as they are primarily for protecting the plaintiff’s own interests and do not constitute necessary response costs.

Docket 93-376

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