The Court of Special Appeals recently ruled that the Environmental Article of the Maryland Code does not create a cause of action for buyers of land to sue their sellers.

This case of first impression arose when Torsak Rossaki purchased a piece of property from Auto Clean. After the sale, a prospective tenant refused to lease the property from Rossaki based upon the results of an environmental assessment that “revealed severe, widespread contamination of soil and groundwater.”

In Torsak Rossaki, et ux v. NUS Corporation, et al., the appellate Court interpreted Environmental Art., Sec. 4-409 which provides: “9(a) Liability generally – The person responsible for the oil spillage shall be liable to any other person for any damage to his real or personal property directly caused by the spillage.”

Reading that section, the Court made clear, “we hold that it does not protect a purchaser of property that was damaged by oil spillage prior to the time of purchase.”

The Court further reasoned that enforcement of environmental laws should rest with the Department of the Environment.

It is of note that there was also no common law action available to the property owner. Had the contract of sale addressed the issue of environmental liability, a remedy would have existed for the purchaser.