Federal Judge Requests Further Briefing in Motion to Amend Dispute

PHOENIX - An Arizona federal court has asked for further briefing from benzene plaintiffs in their attempt to add Canyon State Oil as a defendant in the proceedings, a company that has already been added once and dismissed on the plaintiffs' own motions. Overson, et al. v. Berryman Products, et al., No. 06-2880 (D. Ariz.).

Despite finding in the May 22 order that the plaintiff's explanation for wanting to add the company once again "falls short" and is "not very credible," the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona ultimately determined that the plaintiffs were not engaged in forum …