Firm Press Release · September 16, 2026
Trujillo & Winnick LLP Files First Amended Class Action Complaint Over El Segundo Refinery Fire
LOS ANGELES, September 16, 2026 — Trujillo & Winnick LLP has filed a first amended class action complaint on behalf of fourteen plaintiffs arising from the October 2, 2025 fire at Chevron’s El Segundo refinery.
The amended complaint was filed September 15, 2026 as Document 38 in Coffey v. Chevron U.S.A. Inc., et al., Case No. 2:25-cv-09699, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. It names Chevron U.S.A. Inc. and Chevron Corporation as defendants.
What the amended complaint alleges
According to the amended complaint, process material released at the refinery on the night of October 2, 2025 and ignited into a major fire, and soot, ash, and oily residue then settled on homes, vehicles, vessels, and other property in surrounding communities. The complaint alleges failures in inspection and corrosion-management practices and seeks relief for property damage and for interference with the use and enjoyment of property.
The amended complaint asserts claims for negligence, premises liability, strict liability, private nuisance, public nuisance, trespass to land, and trespass to chattels. Not every claim is asserted against every defendant. All allegations are subject to proof, and no court has determined liability.
The matter is pleaded as a property case. The amended complaint asserts no personal-injury cause of action.
The proposed classes
As pleaded, the amended complaint proposes a class of persons and entities that owned or held a lawful possessory right to occupy real property in a defined area, and a class of persons and entities that owned or lawfully possessed a motor vehicle, marine vessel, or other tangible personal property located outdoors in that area, in each case during October 2–3, 2025.
The complaint defines that area as every location outside the refinery within ten statute miles, measured horizontally, of the nearest point on the refinery’s outer boundary as it existed on October 2, 2025. As pleaded, the area is not a ring around the refinery: it extends in every direction and includes the communities closest to it.
Two features of the pleaded definitions are worth noting for property owners trying to understand whether the case concerns them. As pleaded, membership does not depend on proof of deposition, damage, or loss. And membership turns on where the property was located, not on where its owner receives mail.
These descriptions summarize allegations. The complaint’s own definitions, exclusions, and proposed representatives control. The area is pleaded as a provisional boundary that plaintiffs expect to refine before any certification ruling.
Case status
No class has been certified. Class certification requires a court order, and inclusion in a proposed class does not establish liability or an entitlement to recovery. This release is not a court-approved class notice.
Information for attorney review
Owners and lawful occupants of real property, and owners and possessors of vehicles, vessels, and other tangible personal property kept outdoors in the affected communities, may submit information for attorney review at tru-win.com/cases/chevron/.
Submitting information does not create an attorney-client relationship, establish membership in any proposed class, or commit the firm to accept a matter, and no specific result is promised or assured. Representation begins only after a written engagement agreement is signed.
About Trujillo & Winnick LLP
Trujillo & Winnick LLP is a California plaintiff-side civil litigation firm in Los Angeles.
Media contact Trujillo & Winnick LLP 6080 Center Drive, Suite 600, Los Angeles, CA 90045 (310) 870-1719 — office@tru-win.com
Attorney Advertising. Responsible attorney: Anthony W. Trujillo, California State Bar No. 248860. This release describes allegations in pending litigation. All allegations are subject to proof and have not been adjudicated. No class has been certified and no court has determined liability or damages. Past results do not guarantee similar outcomes.