Boomer v. Atlantic Cement Co. case brief

Boomer v. Atlantic Cement Co.

FACTS
Cement Co. being sued for polluting the air. P’s damages est. @ $185k and they are suing under nuisance. Q: Should the court resolve the dispute by simply looking at the parties before it, or should it make a judgment after looking at the effects on the entire public?

1. Absolute injunction should not be granted b/c of the great disparity between the economic consequences to the parties. Close plant, loss of jobs $45M v. $185k. This is a Coasian theory problem.
2. Shows trend of moving away from absolute rules toward a balancing test, inherent idea of reasonableness.
3. Criticism is that it values the rich over the poor, may be hard to quantify everything.
4. The inherent tension to any court applying economic P.O.V is that they look at the overall costs to society instead of simply the parties before them.