United States v. Volvo Powertrain Corp., No. 12-5234 (D.C. Cir. 2014)
Annotate this CaseIn 1998, the United States brought enforcement actions in district court against seven major engine manufacturers, alleging that they had been using "defeat devices" to meet EPA standards for emissions of oxides of nitrogen. The parties settled and most of the manufacturers agreed to be bound by consent decrees. The manufacturers also agreed to comply with certain EPA emissions standards earlier than EPA regulations otherwise required. Volvo Powertrain now argues that the consent decree has no application to the Volvo Penta engines. The court agreed with the district court that the consent decree applied to the Volvo Penta engines manufactured at the Volvo Powertrain plant where the court read the terms of the consent decree to impose liability on Volvo Powertrain for its affiliate's engines manufactured at its facility. The court also concluded that the district court committed no abuse of discretion when it ordered Volvo Powertrain to pay approximately $72 million as a remedy for the violations of the decree. Accordingly, the court affirmed the judgment of the district court.
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