In re “Agent Orange” Product Liability Litigation (Second Circuit)

Military veterans and their relatives sued chemical manufacturers in both state and federal court, alleging that the veterans had been injured by exposure to Agent Orange during their service in the Vietnam War. The state action was removed to federal court. After lengthy proceedings in the federal courts, including an earlier round of appellate review, the district court ultimately granted summary judgment for the manufacturers and denied plaintiffs’ motion to remand the state action. The legal issues presented were whether the government contractor defense precluded liability and whether removal was proper under the federal officer removal statute, 28 U.S.C. § 1442. We successfully represented The Dow Chemical Company before the Second Circuit, which affirmed the district court’s orders.