Delmar Ehrich is a nationally recognized trial lawyer focusing his practice on complex environmental and natural resource damage litigation. He recently completed a five-month trial as lead counsel for Cargill in one of the largest natural resource damage suits tried in the United States, in which the plaintiff State of Oklahoma alleged the defendants were liable for runoff of nutrients and bacteria related to land application of poultry litter in the one-million acre Illinois River Watershed in Oklahoma and Arkansas.

Since joining the firm in 1983, Del has represented business clients in a wide variety of litigation and administrative proceedings involving all of the major federal environmental statutes—including Superfund, RCRA, the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, and TSCA—and the myriad of state environmental statutes and regulations. He has appeared in federal and state courts in every region of the country. Del is a Fellow of the American College of Environmental Lawyers.

Based on the following legal experience, Del understands that litigation is ultimately a dispute-resolution mechanism that requires keen and unwavering attention to costs, risks and benefits of any particular litigation strategy, and he excels in developing and implementing strategies commensurate with the risk of a particular litigation, including trying the case.

Representative Litigation. Some of his relevant experience includes the following:

• Oklahoma v. Tyson Foods, Inc., et al., U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Oklahoma. Lead trial counsel for Cargill and Cargill Turkey. The case has been marked by a series of rulings for defendants, such as denial of plaintiff's motion for preliminary injunction; dismissal of all claims for compensatory and punitive damages, including all CERCLA and unjust enrichment claims; dismissal of RCRA, thereby preventing poultry litter from being onerously labeled as a RCRA "solid waste"; and dismissal of the state's claim that bacteria from litter had polluted watershed waters and pose a risk to human health or the environment. 565 F.3d 769 (10th Cir. 2009); 258 F.R.D. 472 (N.D. Okla. 2009); 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 66530; 2010 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 14941.

• Friedland v. TIC-The Industrial Company, Lead counsel for a construction contractor in a CERCLA contribution action arising out of the government's cleanup of the Summitville Mine Superfund site in southeastern Colorado. The case involves issues of first impression regarding the interaction between the common law collateral source rule and CERCLA's prohibition on double recovery. The district court granted summary judgment for TIC (2008 WL 185693 D. Colo. 2008). The United States Circuit Court of Appeals for the 10^th Circuit affirmed, and the United States Supreme Court refused to review the appellate court decision. (Friedland v. TIC-The Industrial Co., U.S., No. 09-551, certiorari petition denied 1/11/10).

• Lead trial counsel in obtaining award for energy company claimant after trying a private arbitration in dispute over application of indemnity and clean up provisions in purchase and sale contract to past and future cleanup costs at major petroleum distribution terminal in Michigan.

• Green v. Tyson, et al, Defending a mass tort action alleging personal injury due to air emissions related to the agricultural byproducts.

• Defending a petroleum refinery in a threatened natural resource damage action under CERCLA and state law by federal and state trustees for recovery of natural resource damages due to an aviation fuel spill from the refinery into a backwater of the Mississippi River.

• KBA v. Viacom (D.Minn.)Obtaining significant modification of permanent injunction to remediate PCB-impacted soil and groundwater, following his retention after trial by means of moving for modification of the injunction after developing a post-trial record of site cleanup administered by the state agency. Co-counsel on multiple appeals of injunction to the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals. See, 375 F.3d 731 (8^th Cir. 2004).

• Defending a paper manufacturer in private contribution action related to discharge of PCBs into the Lower Fox River in northeastern Wisconsin during the manufacture of carbonless copy paper from the 1950s to 1971.

• Successfully defending an agricultural company in connection with civil and criminal enforcement actions concerning alleged violations of NPDES permits and major facility expansions without preconstruction air permits at several facilities.

• Successfully defending a munitions manufacturer in connection with civil and criminal enforcement actions arising from alleged improper disposal of hazardous wastes.

• Kellog Square v. Prudential. Obtaining summary judgment for owner of major office building in claim that owner defrauded the purchaser concerning presence of friable asbestos and obtained affirmance of summary judgment by the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals.

• Soo Line v. B.J. Carney, et al; Santa Fe v. B.J. Carney, et al; Carney Products v. B.J. Carney, et al. Lead trial counsel for alleged successor to manufacturer of western red cedar utility poles in federal court actions in Minnesota, Washington, and California spanning 15 years. Obtained summary judgment on key claims, facilitating settlement of the actions.

• City of Minneapolis v. Minnegasco. Obtaining summary judgment for successor to manufactured gas plant owner in CERCLA contribution action.

• Successfully obtaining for business clients insurance coverage for environmental liabilities, including, for example, for a national manufacturer of packaging in connection with site cleanup costs in Connecticut, Ohio, Massachusetts and New Jersey.

• Cooper Industries v. ABB. Defending the current owner and operator of a turbine manufacturing facility against the facility's prior owner whose operations had contaminated the public drinking water supply.

• Routinely negotiating reductions in civil penalties and compliance activities for business clients in administrative proceedings brought by the U.S. EPA or state agencies, including in Minnesota, Wisconsin, North Dakota, South Dakota, California, Montana, Iowa, Georgia, Nebraska and Colorado.

Pro Bono

• De Facto custody for grandparents and relatives of abandoned children
• Education
• Churches

Honors

• Fellow, American College of Environmental Lawyers
• The Best Lawyers in America Environmental Law, 2008-12
• Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business, Litigation: General Commercial, 2008–11
• Minnesota Law and Politics, Super Lawyers, Environmental Litigation

Professional Associations

• Minnesota Bar Association, Environmental Law Section, past president

Presentations

• What's the Buzz? What Matters to Clients in Litigation
  Complex Litigation Seminar, Minneapolis (2010)
• From Animal Waste to Pesticide Movement: A New Wave of "Contamination" Litigation and Environmental Regulation
  Food, Agriculture & Biofuels 2010 National Conference, Minneapolis (2010)

Legal Updates

• EPA Efforts to Increase the Regulation of CAFOs Through Voluntary Settlements
  BNA Environment Reporter (2010)
• Who's to Blame for Climate Change—Will the Supreme Court Decide?
  Law360 (2010) 
• Insurance Law for Climate Related Claims
  LexisNexis (2010)
• Who's to Blame for Climate Change—Will the Supreme Court Review?
  Environmental Leader (2010)
• Who's to Blame for Climate Change—Will A Jury Decide?
  Environmental Leader (2009)
• Supreme Court Shakes Up Superfund
  Trends
• The End of Superfund?
  Trends
• Insurance Coverage for Corporate Successors Under CERCLA
  Environmental Claims Journal, Vol. 7, No. 1 (1994)