New Orleans, La. (June 11, 2019) – U.S. District Court Judge Martin Feldman issued a ruling today granting a stay in one coastal permit lawsuit pending an appeal to the Fifth Circuit. Following the decision, Melissa Landry, a spokesperson representing several major oil and natural gas companies named as defendants in the suits, released the following statement:
“We applaud Judge Feldman’s decision to stay this case,” said Landry on behalf of Chevron, ConocoPhillips and ExxonMobil.
“Given the large number of similar lawsuits that are also being considered, this brief stay pending appeal will help avoid simultaneous litigation being considered before multiple courts at the state and federal levels.
“This ruling also serves the interests of judicial efficiency by allowing the Fifth Circuit to address the important question of where this case should be litigated, before the case proceeds further.
“We are very pleased with this commonsense ruling, and we look forward to presenting our appeal to the Fifth Circuit.
“As we have consistently maintained from the beginning, these trial lawyer driven permit lawsuits challenge decades of federally authorized operations, which were carried out according to federal laws and regulations, and the cases should be heard in federal court.”
