United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island
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Case 1:18-cv-00395-WES-LDA Document 87 Filed 09/14/18 Page 1 of 94 PageID #: 1186 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF RHODE ISLAND STATE OF RHODE ISLAND, ) Plaintiff, ) ) v. ) C.A. No. 18-cv-00395-WES-LDA ) CHEVRON CORP.; ) DEFENDANTS’ OPPOSITION TO CHEVRON USA, INC.; ) PLAINTIFF’S MOTION TO EXXONMOBIL CORP.; ) REMAND TO STATE COURT BP, PLC; ) BP AMERICA, INC.; ) [Removal from the Providence BP PRODUCTS NORTH AMERICA, INC.; ) Superior Court of Rhode Island, C.A. ROYAL DUTCH SHELL, PLC; ) No. PC-2018-4716] MOTIVA ENTERPRISES, LLC; ) SHELL OIL PRODUCTS COMPANY, ) Action Filed: July 2, 2018 LLC; ) CITGO PETROLEUM CORP.; ) CONOCOPHILLIPS; ) CONOCOPHILLIPS COMPANY; ) PHILLIPS 66; ) MARATHON OIL COMPANY; ) MARATHON OIL CORPORATION; ) MARATHON PETROLEUM CORP.; ) MARATHON PETROLEUM COMPANY, ) LP; ) SPEEDWAY, LLC; ) HESS CORP.; ) LUKOIL PAN AMERICAS, LLC; ) GETTY PETROLEUM MARKETING, ) INC.; AND DOES 1 through 100, inclusive ) ) Defendants. ) ) Case 1:18-cv-00395-WES-LDA Document 87 Filed 09/14/18 Page 2 of 94 PageID #: 1187 TABLE OF CONTENTS Page I. INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................................. 1 II. LEGAL STANDARD ......................................................................................................... 6 III. ARGUMENT ...................................................................................................................... 9 A. Plaintiff’s Claims Arise, If at All, Under Federal Common Law ..........................................9 1. The Supreme Court, Ninth Circuit, and Two District Courts Have Concluded that Public Nuisance Claims Based on Global Warming Are Governed by Federal Common Law .......................................................................................................9 2. Federal Common Law Governs Plaintiff’s Claims .........................................................14 3. AEP and Kivalina Did Not Authorize Transboundary Pollution Suits to be Decided under State Law .................................................................................................19 4. Federal Common Law Is Not a “Preemption Defense”; It Provides an Independent Basis for Federal-Question Jurisdiction ......................................................23 5. Any Displacement of Federal Common Law by Statute Would Not Create State Common-Law Claims ............................................................................................24 B. By Seeking to Second-Guess and Undo Federal Regulations and Cost-Benefit Analyses, Plaintiff’s Claims Raise Disputed, Substantial Federal Interests Under Grable ........................................................................................................................27 1. Plaintiff’s Claims Necessarily Raise Multiple Federal Issues .........................................28 2. The Federal Issues Are Disputed and Substantial ...........................................................40 3. Federal Jurisdiction Does Not Upset Principles of Federalism .......................................42 C. This Action Is Removable Because Plaintiff’s Claims Are Completely Preempted by Federal Law ...................................................................................................43 D. The Action Is Removable Because It Is Based on Defendants’ Activities on Federal Lands and at the Direction of the Federal Government ..........................................49 1. The Claims Arise out of Operations on the Outer Continental Shelf ..............................49 2. Plaintiff’s Claims Arise on Federal Enclaves ..................................................................53 3. The Action Is Removable Under the Federal Officer Removal Statute ..........................56 E. The Action Is Removable Under the Bankruptcy Removal Statute .....................................63 1. Plaintiff’s Police Powers Arguments Fail .......................................................................64 ii Case 1:18-cv-00395-WES-LDA Document 87 Filed 09/14/18 Page 3 of 94 PageID #: 1188 TABLE OF CONTENTS (continued) Page 2. Plaintiff’s Lawsuit is “Related to” Bankruptcy Proceedings ..........................................65 3. The Court Should Decline To Relinquish Jurisdiction on Equitable Grounds ...............66 F. The Action Is Removable Under Admiralty Jurisdiction .....................................................67 IV. CONCLUSION ................................................................................................................. 70 iii Case 1:18-cv-00395-WES-LDA Document 87 Filed 09/14/18 Page 4 of 94 PageID #: 1189 TABLE OF AUTHORITIES Page Cases Aetna Health Inc. v. Davila, 542 U.S. 200 (2004) .............................................................................................................5, 44 In re Agent Orange Prod. Liab. Litig., 635 F.2d 987 (2d Cir. 1980).....................................................................................................17 Am. Elec. Power Co. v. Connecticut, 564 U.S. 410 (2011) ......................................................................................................... passim Am. Ins. Ass’n v. Garamendi, 539 U.S. 396 (2003) .....................................................................................2, 28, 29, 30, 42, 43 Amoco Prod. Co. v. Sea Robin Pipeline Co., 844 F.2d 1202 (5th Cir. 1988) .....................................................................................49, 51, 52 Amtec Corp. v. U.S. Centrifuge Sys., L.L.C., 2012 WL 12897212 (N.D. Ala. Dec. 6, 2012) .........................................................................55 Amtec Corp. v. US Centrifuge Sys. LLC, 2013 WL 12147712 (N.D. Ala. May 29, 2013). ......................................................................55 Anderson v. Crown Cork & Seal, 93 F. Supp. 2d 697 (E.D. Va. 2000) ........................................................................................54 In re Arch Coal, Inc., No. 16-40120 (Bankr. E.D. Mo. Oct. 4, 2017) ........................................................................66 Arizona v. Manypenny, 451 U.S. 232 (1981) .................................................................................................................56 Azhocar v. Coastal Marine Servs., Inc., 2013 WL 2177784 (S.D. Cal. May 20, 2013) ..........................................................................53 Bader Farms, Inc. v. Monsanto Co., 2017 WL 633815 (E.D. Mo. Feb. 16, 2017) ......................................................................35, 40 Bailey v. Monsanto Co., 176 F. Supp. 3d 853 (E.D. Mo. 2016)......................................................................................62 Barker v. Hercules Offshore, Inc., 713 F.3d 208 (5th Cir. 2013) ...................................................................................................69 Bd. of Comm’rs. v. Tenn. Gas Pipeline Co., LLC, 850 F.3d 714 (5th Cir. 2017) .......................................................................4, 34, 35, 36, 40, 42 iv Case 1:18-cv-00395-WES-LDA Document 87 Filed 09/14/18 Page 5 of 94 PageID #: 1190 TABLE OF AUTHORITIES (continued) Page Beddall v. State St. Bank & Tr. Co., 137 F.3d 12 (1st Cir. 1998) ......................................................................................................55 Bell v. Hood, 327 U.S. 678 (1946) .................................................................................................................14 Beneficial Nat’l Bank v. Anderson, 539 U.S. 1 (2003) .....................................................................................................................44 Benson v. Russell’s Cuthand Creek Ranch, Ltd., 183 F. Supp. 3d 795 (E.D. Tex. 2016) .....................................................................................62 BIW Deceived v. Local S6, Indus. Union of Marine & Shipbuilding Workers of Am., 132 F.3d 824 (1st Cir. 1997) ..................................................................................6, 7, 9, 14, 35 BMW of N. Am. v. Gore, 517 U.S. 559 (1996) .................................................................................................................17 Bordetsky v. Akima Logistics Servs., LLC, 2016 WL 614408 (D.N.J. Feb. 16, 2016) ................................................................................55 In re Boston Reg’l Med. Ctr., Inc., 410 F.3d 100 (1st Cir. 2005) ................................................................................................8, 65 Botsford v. Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Mont., Inc., 314 F.3d 390 (9th Cir. 2002) .............................................................................................47, 48 Boyeson v. S.C. Elec. & Gas Co., 2016 WL 1578950 (D.S.C. Apr. 20, 2016) ..............................................................................40 Boyle v. United Techs. Corp., 487 U.S. 500 (1988) ...................................................................................................................3 Bridges v. Phillips 66 Co., 2013 WL 6092803 (M.D. La. Nov. 19, 2013) .........................................................................68 Buckman Co. v. Pls. ’ Legal Comm., 531 U.S. 341 (2001) .......................................................................................39 Cal. Dump Truck Owners Ass’n v. Nichols, 784 F.3d 500 (9th Cir. 2015) .............................................................................................45, 48 California v. BP P.L.C., 2018 WL 1064293