Halliburton, KBR Burn Pit Suit Thrown Out by U.S. Judge
Halliburton Co. (HAL) and KBR Inc. are entitled to the same legal protection as U.S. armed forces when serving as military contractors, a judge ruled, dismissing claims over so-called burn pits in Iraq and Afghanistan. - U.S. District Judge Roger Titus threw out 57 consolidated lawsuits against the companies brought mainly by military personnel who claim they suffered damaging health effects from exposure to the contractors’ pits, where items including medical waste, paints and pesticides are burned in war zones.
“The critical interests of the United States could be compromised if military contractors were left ‘holding the bag’ for claims made by military and other personnel that could not be made against the military itself,” Titus said in a decision released yesterday in Greenbelt, Maryland. The remedy for the allegedly injured service members is through military and legislative processes, not the courts, Titus said.
Andrew Farley, KBR’s executive vice president and general counsel, said in an e-mailed statement that the company is pleased by the ruling, especially its emphasis on non-judicial means of redress. “We look to the courts to continue this positive trend in other pending cases,” Farley said.
American military creating an environmental disaster in Afghan countryside (Part 2 of 3)(Part 3 of 3)