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On June 30, 2021, the Louisiana Supreme Court issued an opinion redefining the nature of available damages and the “actual, statutorily permitted role of the jury in Act 312 remediation lawsuits.” The “LL&E II” decision finds that Act 312 charges the court, not the jury, to determine the funding needed to remediate property to government standards. If (and only if) an express contractual provision requires greater remediation than government standards, a jury may consider and award such “excess remediation” damages. State of Louisiana v. Louisiana Land and Exploration Co., 2020-00685 (La. 6/30/2021); — So. 3d — (“LL&E II”).[1]
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Continue Reading Overturning 8 Years of “Palpable Error,” The Louisiana Supreme Court Limits Damages Available to Landowners in Oilfield Legacy Litigation

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).  …
Continue Reading The Dusky Gopher Frog Lives to Fight Another Day: Fifth Circuit Denies Rehearing

On September 30, 2016, Governor John Bel Edwards sued Attorney General Jeff Landry to compel him to approve several contracts between the Governor’s office and private legal counsel. In his Petition, the Governor alleged that the Attorney General’s role in approving the Governor’s contracts with private legal counsel is a ministerial duty that the Attorney General improperly refused to perform and requested that the Court order the Attorney General to approve the contracts at issue.…
Continue Reading THE DISPUTE BETWEEN GOVERNOR JOHN BEL EDWARDS AND ATTORNEY GENERAL JEFF LANDRY OVER THE APPOINTMENT OF PRIVATE LEGAL COUNSEL CONTINUES…

Hours before a controversial set of new reporting requirements for government contractors was set to take effect, a federal court in Texas enjoined implementation of the requirements across the country.…
Continue Reading New Government Contractor “Blacklisting” Reporting Requirements Put on Hold