Louisiana Environmental Cases with Multiple Parties Require Significant Untangling and Customized Strategies

For several years, Shipley Snell has defended a Houston-based pipeline and electric utility in a number of environmental cases filed in Louisiana. 

In each case, there are multiple plaintiffs and defendants. One case included more than 500 plaintiffs. The cases also involve several different legacy business units, some of which have not existed for decades. 

Working with their client, Shipley Snell attorneys researched the client’s historical documents and publicly-available information to assess, at an early stage in the litigation, the risks posed by each case. The firm and its client then used this case-specific information, as well as experience with contamination litigation, to develop a customized strategy for each case.

In several cases, Shipley Snell’s client was dismissed after Shipley Snell presented the results of its research to the plaintiffs’ lawyers. In another, Shipley Snell obtained a judgment, early in the case, dismissing the plaintiffs’ claims. In other cases, Shipley Snell negotiated favorable settlements.