United States v. Volvo Powertrain Corp. et al.

Case Updates

The D.C. Circuit Court affirmed the District Court's decision; agreeing that the consent decree applies to the 8,354 Volvo Penta engines manufactured at the Volvo Powertrain plant. Although Volvo Penta, not Volvo Powertrain, sought the certificates of conformity in question, the terms of the consent decree impose liability on Volvo Powertrain for its affiliate’s engines manufactured at its facility.

The U.S. Chamber joined a coalition of trade associations to urge the D.C. Circuit to reverse the District Court's highly discretionary decision to expand the obligations and liabilities of the defendant company under a consent decree it entered into with the government. In this case, the District Court awarded approximately $72 million to the United States and California for alleged violations of a consent decree implementing the Clean Air Act and related state law. The brief argued in its amicus brief that regulated entities must have a clear, reliable understanding of what will be required if consent decrees are to remain a viable means for resolving enforcement actions. The Chamber and its co-amici pointed out that if the District Court's approach were adopted, defendants could no longer achieve the certainty that now motivates companies to make the substantial waiver of their rights involved in these settlements.