The White House has announced the nominees to fill four vacant seats on the U.S. Fifth Circuit and two seats in the Eastern District of Louisiana.
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Plaintiffs and Defendants Jointly Choose First Cases for Trial in Plaquemines Parish Coastal Zone Management Act Litigation
The first five Plaquemines Parish Coastal Zone Management Act (“CZMA”) cases to be set for trial have been chosen. The Plaintiffs selected Parish of Plaquemines v. Rozel Operating Company, et al., Parish of Plaquemines v. ConocoPhillips Company, et al., and Parish of Plaquemines v. Hilcorp Energy Company, et al. The Defendants picked Parish of Plaquemines v. Equitable Petroleum Corporation, et al. and Parish of Plaquemines v. Helis Oil & Gas Company, LLC, et al.
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The Fifth Circuit Rejects the DOJ’s Attempt to Charge Black Elk Contractors with OCSLA Felonies
In the aftermath of a 2012 platform explosion in the Gulf of Mexico in which three workers were killed, the Department of Justice ultimately indicted the contractors who supervised the work (along with the lease holder, Black Elk Energy Offshore Operations, LLC) with violating the Outer Continental Shelf Land Act (“OCSLA”), a felony carrying a maximum penalty of up to ten years imprisonment. The contractors were also charged with certain misdemeanor Clean Water Act violations. The contractors moved to dismiss the OCSLA charges on the basis that their conduct – as contractors – was not covered by OCSLA because they were not the lease holder or operator. The district court agreed and dismissed those charges, after which the government appealed. Earlier this week, the Fifth Circuit ruled against the government finding that contractors cannot criminally violate these OCSLA regulations. United States v. Moss, et al, No. 16-30561 (5th Cir. Sept. 27, 2017).Continue Reading The Fifth Circuit Rejects the DOJ’s Attempt to Charge Black Elk Contractors with OCSLA Felonies
IRS Announces Plan Loans, Hardship Distributions Relief For Victims Of Hurricane Harvey
On August 30, 2017, in Announcement 2017-11, the IRS provided retirement plan loan and distribution relief from retirement plans described in Code Sections 401(a) (including 401(k) plans), 403(a), 403(b), and governmental eligible deferred compensation plans described in 457(b) (collectively “Retirement Plans”) to affected participants.
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Plaquemines Parish Amends Petition for Damages In Coastal Zone Management Act Litigation
The Parish of Plaquemines amended its petitions in two of the Coastal Zone Management Act (“CZMA”) cases on June 19, 2017. Prior to the amendment of the petitions, Judge Clement sustained Defendants’ Exceptions of Vagueness in the two cases, namely: The Parish of Plaquemines v. Rozel Operating Co., et al. and The Parish of Plaquemines v. Equitable Petroleum Corporation, et al. As a result, the Court signed Judgments ordering the Parish of Plaquemines to amend the petitions to “more specifically set forth the factual basis for their claims as to each defendant individually.”
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Leave It to the States: Oklahoma Federal Court Dismisses Fracking Suit In Favor Of Administrative Regulation
On April 4, 2017
, a federal district court dismissed a citizen-enforcement action under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act that could have profound impact on fracking suits against the oil and gas industry.
In Sierra Club v. Chesapeke Operating, LLC, the Sierra Club alleged that the deep injection of liquid waste from oil and gas activities has caused an increase in the number and severity of earthquakes in Oklahoma. To address this alleged harm, the Sierra Club sought several forms of injunctive relief, including reduction of waste disposal activities, reinforcement of structures vulnerable to earthquakes, and the establishment of an independent earthquake monitoring center.
Defendants Chesapeake Operating, LLC, Devon Energy Production Co., LP, and New Dominion, LLC moved to dismiss the case on several grounds. The court granted the motions on two of these grounds, finding that the issues raised by Sierra Club are best addressed at the state administrative level.
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A Summary of Professor Jim Rossi’s Lecture on the “Federalism Battles in Energy Transportation”
Professor Jim Rossi’s lecture on “Federalism Battles in Energy Transportation,” specifically whether the federal or state government is the proper authority to exercise its eminent domain and regulatory power.
Continue Reading A Summary of Professor Jim Rossi’s Lecture on the “Federalism Battles in Energy Transportation”
Fifth Circuit Dismisses False Claims Act Suit Alleging Violation Of Offshore Regulations
In Abbott v. BP, the plaintiffs alleged that BP had falsely certified to compliance with regulatory requirements pertaining to the engineering of the Atlantis Platform, a semi-submersible floating production facility capable of producing more than 100,000 barrels/day. Based on these allegations, Plaintiff Kenneth Abbott filed a qui tam suit under the False Claims Act (FCA), asserting that BP had obtained approval to produce oil from the Department of the Interior by falsely certifying to compliance with regulatory engineering standards. Abbott’s FCA damages claim exceeded $70 billion (reduced from an original claim of $266 billion). In the same lawsuit and based on the same allegations of regulatory noncompliance, Abbott and plaintiff Food & Water Watch, Inc. filed a citizen suit under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSLA), seeking an injunction of production from the Atlantis platform. In 2014, the district court granted summary judgment in favor of BP on all claims, finding no material fact in dispute about BP’s regulatory compliance. On March 14, 2017, the Fifth Circuit affirmed the district court’s ruling.
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The Dusky Gopher Frog Lives to Fight Another Day: Fifth Circuit Denies Rehearing
On February 13, 2017, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit denied Defendants’ Petition for Rehearing En Banc in the case titled Markle Interests, L.L.C., et al. v. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, et al. The Defendants, who are timber and commercial developers, requested that the Court rehear the June 30, 2016 panel majority opinion that upheld the District Court’s ruling that the Fish and Wildlife Service’s designation of 1,500 acres of private land in St. Tammany Parish as a critical-habitat for the Dusky Gopher Frog under the Endangered Species Act (“ESA”) was proper. (Click here to view the article on the Fifth Circuit’s June 30th Opinion).
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NASA Provides Backdrop for 13th Annual Black History Month Program at Liskow & Lewis
The Oscar-nominated motion picture Hidden Figures shed light on the little-known story of Katherine Johnson, former NASA mathematician and Presidential Medal of Freedom Recipient. As we paused for our formal observation of Black History Month, the firm was honored by the presence of Ms. Johnson’s granddaughter, Ms. Katherine Michelle Sanders.
Continue Reading NASA Provides Backdrop for 13th Annual Black History Month Program at Liskow & Lewis