Reynolds Metals Company, a Corporation v. Paul Martin and Verla Martin, Husband and Wife

This is an appeal from an order, and a supplemental order, denying defendant’s motion to dismiss this action. This court has heretofore granted defendant’s motion for permission to appeal under 28 U.S.C. § 1292 (b) (1958).

The action was commenced on December 18, 1961, in the Circuit Court of the State of Oregon for the County of Multnomah. The plaintiffs, Paul Martin and Yerla Martin, his wife, were citizens and residents of Oregon, and defendant, Reynolds Metals Company, is a Delaware corporation.

The original purpose of the action was to recover actual damages in the sum of three hundred thousand dollars and punitive damages in the sum of one hundred thousand dollars, by reason of the alleged contamination of plaintiff’s fifteen-hundred acre cattle ranch. Such contamination, it was asserted, was caused by the emanation of fluoride fumes and particulates from defendant’s nearby aluminum reduction plant at Troutdale, Oregon, during the years 1956 to 1961. On December 29,1961, the action was removed to the United States District Court for the District of Oregon because of diversity of citizenship.

After pretrial proceedings had been in progress for some time the plaintiffs, on…