Louisiana AG fights plaintiff’s lawyers over BP funds
Louisiana Attorney General Buddy Caldwell has asked the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals to throw out District Judge Carl Barbier’s order for the state to set aside 4 percent of any settlements from the Gulf of Mexico oil disaster for possible payment to the committee of plaintiff attorneys driving the litigation. Caldwell’s petition says the state’s sovereignty has been disrespected, money for Louisiana’s environmental recovery is in jeopardy because of the order, and the attorney general has been raising these concerns since the inception of the litigation without being able to get a proper hearing.
“The State of Louisiana’s role in these proceedings has been routinely minimized, prejudiced or precluded,” the filing says.
NOLA.com
1/10/11
Magnolia Tribune
