Oregon Public Broadcasting

Attorneys are still hammering out jurisdictional issues in a civil trial brought by Oregon soldiers against Kellogg, Brown, and Root.

A group of Oregon National Guardsmen is suing the company over their exposure to dangerous chemicals while guarding KBR workers in Iraq. April Baer reports.

Earlier this year, the Guard plaintiffs won a procedural victory, when Federal magistrate Judge Paul Papak ruled his court does have jurisdiction over KBR.

But now, the attorneys are arguing over the so-called Political Question Doctrine. That's a provision of law that sometimes guides whether federal courts have jurisdiction over an issue.

In this case, attorneys for Kellogg, Brown, and Root argue that in some other cases filed against the company, courts have concluded that resolving the claims would require too much judicial scrutiny and second-guessing of what are essentially military matters.

The plaintiffs have countered that KBR is overstating the Army's role in the case.

Both sides will argue their points more extensively at a hearing tentatively set for July.