俄勒冈州波特兰通用电气被诉将200名身份不明者列为共同被告：商业秘密案程序引质疑
俄勒冈州尤马蒂拉盆地地下水污染诉讼10月30日出现新进展：联邦法官驳回了波特兰通用电气公司要求追加200名无名被告的请求。这家电力公司是被指控造成该地区含水层硝酸盐污染的数家公司之一，但它主张其他未知的个人、企业和政府实体也应分担责任。
如果该公司在当地的天然气设施被认定应承担责任，那么这些「无名第三方被告」也应为排放「高得多」的硝酸盐承担过错，波特兰通用电气如此主张。然而，美国地区法官迈克尔·西蒙认定，该公司未能以「足够具体」的方式描述这200名「无名」被告，因此其第三方诉讼无法继续推进。
西蒙法官还指出，原告——即声称受到硝酸盐污染损害的尤马蒂拉盆地居民——曾要求具体指认其他应共同承担责任者，而该公司对此提出了异议。法官同时提到，本案审判已从2027年6月推迟数月至2027年9月，这将给波特兰通用电气更多时间调查其他被告。今年早些时候，同样被指控造成地下水污染的食品加工企业兰姆韦斯顿已提交第三方诉状，把J.R.辛普洛特公司和希尔勒食品公司列为被告，诉讼范围进一步扩大。
来源：GSM·美国
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
来源：GSM·美国（原文链接）
图片来源：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.
