Vermilion Parish Police Jury instructs new DA to remove them from oilfield lawsuits

For 60 minutes, both sides tried to convince the Vermilion Parish Police Jury what to do about lawsuits on having oil companies repair the damage they did to parish coastlines years ago.
The lawyers handling the lawsuits argued that the lawsuits would continue if the police jury votes to take their name off the lawsuits. If a settlement is reached, Vermilion Parish is expected to receive about 9.3 percent of the settlement. The guesstimate amount will be around $9 million to be used to repair the parish’s eroding coastline.
Then there were those from the parish who worked in the oil field arguing why not to sue oil companies for something they did 40, 50 and 60 years ago.
It stems from oil companies drilling in the parish marshes back in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s. The oil companies received the proper permits from the state to drill the wells. The fine print of the permits stated that oil companies must restore the land to its original shape after they are finished drilling on the property.
Oil companies dug hundreds of canals through the marshes and never closed them back up after completing the drilling. The oil field canals are a major reason why Louisiana’s marshlands are eroding at a fast rate.
The state, in 2016, filed lawsuits against about 200 oil companies for not correctly restoring Louisiana’s marshland 50 and 60 years after drilling on the land.
Police Juror Mark Poché argued that this lawsuit filed in 2016 is “not a legitimate lawsuit.”
“I do not think you should be able to go back to the 1940s, 50s, and 1960s and sue someone for what they did, and the state gave another thousand permits to do the same thing,” said Poché. “That is my first issue. My second issue is that you are suing on behalf of the landowners that do not get the money back. I have a problem with the police jury suing on behalf of the landowners, and the landowners do not get 100 percent of the money. It does not make sense. It looks like it is a lawsuit for trial attorneys. “
After hearing both sides, the Police Jury voted 14-0 to take their name off the lawsuits. A few years back, the Police Jury voted 14-0 not to attach the Police Jury’s name to the lawsuit, but then-District Attorney Keith Stutes attached the Police Jury’s name to the lawsuit, despite the Police Jury’s wishes.
Newly elected district attorney Don Landry attended the police jury meeting and said he would do whatever the police jury wanted him to do. He reminded the Police Jury that he has only been in office for three months and is just getting around to looking into the Police Jury’s request.
“If the citizens of Vermilion Parish want me to get out of this lawsuit, then I will do so. Police jurors represent the citizens of Vermilion Parish.”
Landry did warn the police jurors that in the contract with the lawyers signed by Stutes if the lawsuit ends, there is a chance the district attorney’s office could be stuck paying lawyer fees. Landry told the police jurors his office does not have the money to pay attorney fees and costs for the last five years. If his office has to pay attorney fees, he will be approaching the police jury for money.
Landry was not 100 percent sure if the attorneys would charge the district attorney’s office, but he will let the jurors know if and when it does occur.
The following is a statement from Grow Louisiana Coalition Executive Director Marc Ehrhardt in response to the Vermilion Parish Police Jury’s vote on coastal lawsuits:
“With its unanimous vote to support dismissing coastal lawsuits, the Vermilion Parish Police Jury has taken another step toward standing up for Louisiana’s working coast and the community that relies on it.
“Coastal lawsuits do nothing more than impede our oil and gas industry’s coastal restoration efforts and economic progress while also directly harming the hardworking people in Vermilion Parish who rely on the energy industry to support themselves and their families.
“The success of Louisiana’s oil and gas industry directly impacts funding and resources available for local communities, especially those throughout Vermilion Parish. The Vermilion Parish Police Jury’s support is a strong indicator to other parishes that citizens should not stand for these senseless lawsuits that only line trial lawyers’ pockets and divert necessary funding from coastal investments.”