Portland General Electric Sued Over Listing 200 Unnamed Co-Defendants in Oregon: Trade Secrets Case Procedure Questioned
Litigation over groundwater contamination in Oregon's Umatilla Basin took a new turn on October 30: a federal judge rejected Portland General Electric's request to add 200 unnamed defendants to the case. The utility is among several companies accused of contributing to nitrate pollution of the regional aquifer, but argues other unknown individuals, businesses, and government entities should share liability.
PGE claimed that if its natural gas facility in the area is found liable, the "Doe third-party defendants" should also accept fault for discharging "substantially higher" amounts of nitrates. U.S. District Judge Michael Simon found the company failed to describe the 200 "Doe" defendants with sufficient specificity for its third-party lawsuit to proceed.
Judge Simon also noted that the plaintiffs — Umatilla Basin residents who say they were harmed by nitrate pollution — had asked PGE to specifically identify others who should share responsibility, and the company objected. The trial has been postponed from June 2027 to September 2027, giving PGE more time to investigate other defendants. Earlier this year, food processor Lamb Weston, also accused of groundwater pollution, filed a third-party complaint naming J.R. Simplot and Shearer's Foods as defendants.
Source: GSM America
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：尤马蒂拉河（彭德尔顿段）。Bobjgalindo摄，CC BY-SA 4.0，经Wikimedia Commons。 / Umatilla River at Pendleton, Oregon. Photo by Bobjgalindo, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
