Minnesota Ex Rel. Northern Pacific Center, Inc. v. BNSF Railway Co.

MURPHY, Circuit Judge.

The Northern Pacific Center incurred costs to reduce pollution on a property it owns in Brainerd, Minnesota which had formerly been owned by BNSF Railway and used as a railcar construction and maintenance facility. The Center sued BNSF under the Minnesota Environmental Response and Liability Act (MERLA), Minn.Stat. § 115B.01 et seq., to recover its costs. BNSF moved for summary judgment on the basis of MERLA’s statute of limitations, which the district court 1 denied. Both parties later moved for summary judgment on the merits, which the district court 2 granted to BNSF,…