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OREGON NATIONAL GUARD Court overturns $85 million award for Oregon soldiers Comment By Steven DuBois The Associated Press MailTribune.com By Steven DuBois The Associated Press Posted May. 14, 2015 at 4:35 PM By Steven DuBois The Associated Press Posted May. 14, 2015 at 4:35 PM » Social News PORTLAND — The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals overturned an $85 million jury award to a dozen Oregon National Guard soldiers who said they were sickened from guarding a water treatment plant during the Iraq War. The military contractor Kellogg, Brown and Root successfully argued that Oregon was not the proper jurisdiction for the case. KBR is based in Houston, and similar cases filed by soldiers from Indiana, West Virginia and South Carolina are pending in federal court there. "We are thrilled with the result; it is the right result and we look forward to a successful conclusion to this and all the legacy tort claims that relate to KBR's work supporting the U.S. military in Iraq," KBR attorney Geoffrey Harrison said by phone Thursday. Attorneys representing the soldiers did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The three-judge panel heard oral arguments May 4 in Portland and came back with a surprisingly fast decision. The brief opinion only addressed the question of jurisdiction, and it found an insufficient link between KBR and Oregon. The opinion mentions two possibilities for what comes next, either the case is dismissed and then refiled in an appropriate venue, presumably Texas, or it's simply transferred there. A federal jury in Portland found KBR guilty of negligence following a three-week trial in late 2012. Each of the 12 soldiers was awarded $850,000 in noneconomic damages and $6.25 million in punitive damages. U.S. District Court Judge Paul Papak acknowledged before the trial that the losing side was likely to appeal. KBR reconstructed the water treatment center shortly after the March 2003 invasion while National Guardsmen defended the area. The soldiers said they had respiratory ailments after their exposure to sodium dichromate, a corrosive substance used to keep pipes at the water plant free of rust. Moreover, they feared the carcinogen could cause cancer later in life. KBR witnesses testified that the soldiers' maladies resulted from desert air and pre-existing conditions. And even if the soldiers were exposed to sodium dichromate, they weren't around enough of it, for long enough, to cause serious health problems. The military contractor has had more legal success in its home state than in Oregon. The Texas federal court granted KBR's request for summary judgment on several matters in the case involving Guard troops from other states, including whether KBR was negligent. That has left those soldiers with one pending claim, whether KBR intentionally inflicted emotional distress. "The Oregon plaintiffs should stand on the same shaky footing that their claims deserve and that the other plaintiffs have, based on their legally and factually meritless allegations," said Harrison, the KBR attorney. By Steven DuBois The Associated Press MailTribune.com By Steven DuBois The Associated Press Posted May. 14, 2015 at 4:35 PM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... 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