Opinion
2018 CA 1189
02-27-2019
CROSSTEX ENERGY SERVICES, LP; CROSSTEX LIG, LLC; AND CROSSTEX PROCESSING SERVICES, LLC v. TEXAS BRINE COMPANY, LLC; ZURICH AMERICAN INSURANCE COMPANY; AND AMERICAN GUARANTEE AND LIABILITY INSURANCE COMPANY
Leopold Z. Sher James M. Garner Peter L. Hilbert Jr. Jeffrey D. Kessler New Orleans, Louisiana and Robert Ryland Percy III Gonzales, Louisiana and Theodore L. Jones Baton Rouge, Louisiana and Eric J. Mayer Houston, Texas and Travis J. Turner Gonzales, Louisiana Attorneys for Third Party Plaintiff/Appellant Texas Brine Company, LLC Joseph L. Shea Jr. Katherine Smith Baker Ashley G. Gable Joshua S. Chevallier Shreveport, Louisiana Attorneys for Third Party Defendant/Appellee Reliance Petroleum Corporation Matthew J. Randazzo III Christopher B. Bailey Will Montz Lafayette, Louisiana Attorneys for Third Party Defendants/Appellees LORCA Corporation and Colorado Crude Company Frank H. Spruiell Jr. Reid A. Jones Seith M. Moyers Shreveport, Louisiana Attorneys for Third Party Defendant/Appellee Sol Kirschner Kathy Patrick Angus J. Dodson Laura J. Kissel Houston, Texas and Martin A. Stern Leigh Ann Schell Raymond P. Ward Sara Valentine Alexandra Roselli New Orleans, Louisiana Attorneys for Third Party Defendants, Occidental Chemical Corporation, Occidental Petroleum Corporation, Basic Chemicals Company, LLC, and Occidental VCM, LLC
NOT DESIGNATED FOR PUBLICATION
APPEALED FROM THE 23RD JUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT ASSUMPTION PARISH, LOUISIANA
DOCKET NUMBER 34,202 HONORABLE THOMAS J. KLIEBERT JR., JUDGE PRESIDING Leopold Z. Sher
James M. Garner
Peter L. Hilbert Jr.
Jeffrey D. Kessler
New Orleans, Louisiana
and
Robert Ryland Percy III
Gonzales, Louisiana
and
Theodore L. Jones
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
and
Eric J. Mayer
Houston, Texas
and
Travis J. Turner
Gonzales, Louisiana Attorneys for Third Party Plaintiff/Appellant
Texas Brine Company, LLC Joseph L. Shea Jr.
Katherine Smith Baker
Ashley G. Gable
Joshua S. Chevallier
Shreveport, Louisiana Attorneys for Third Party Defendant/Appellee
Reliance Petroleum Corporation Matthew J. Randazzo III
Christopher B. Bailey
Will Montz
Lafayette, Louisiana Attorneys for Third Party Defendants/Appellees
LORCA Corporation and Colorado Crude
Company Frank H. Spruiell Jr.
Reid A. Jones
Seith M. Moyers
Shreveport, Louisiana Attorneys for Third Party Defendant/Appellee
Sol Kirschner Kathy Patrick
Angus J. Dodson
Laura J. Kissel
Houston, Texas
and
Martin A. Stern
Leigh Ann Schell
Raymond P. Ward
Sara Valentine
Alexandra Roselli
New Orleans, Louisiana Attorneys for Third Party Defendants,
Occidental Chemical Corporation,
Occidental Petroleum Corporation, Basic
Chemicals Company, LLC, and
Occidental VCM, LLC BEFORE: McDONALD, CRAIN, and HOLDRIDGE, JJ. McDONALD, J.
This suit is one of many arising from an August 2012 sinkhole that appeared near Bayou Corne in Assumption Parish, Louisiana. In this appeal, Texas Brine Company, LLC, the operator of the Oxy Geismar #3 brine well (OG3 well), challenges the summary judgment dismissal of its third-party tort claims, including those for indemnity and contribution, against the non-operators of the nearby Adams Hooker #1 oil and gas well (AH1 well). The dismissed AH1 well non-operators are LORCA Corporation, Colorado Crude Company, Sol Kirschner, Reliance Petroleum Corporation, and its insurer, Chicago Insurance Company.
In their original petition, the plaintiffs in this case, multiple Crosstex entities, named Texas Brine Company, LLC, as the defendant who operated the OG3 well. In later pleadings, the Crosstex entities additionally named other parties allegedly related to Texas Brine Company, LLC, as defendants. Here, we refer to the defendants, herein third-party plaintiffs, collectively as Texas Brine.
We address Texas Brine's challenge to the summary judgment dismissal of its third-party contract claims against certain non-operators of the AH1 well under our docket number 2018 CA 1213. --------
We have determined that this appeal is a duplicate of the appeal Texas Brine filed under Crosstex Energy Services, LP, et al. v. Texas Brine Company LLC, et al., 2018 CA 0749. Because we address the merits of the appeal under Docket Number 2018 CA 0749, also decided today, we dismiss this appeal under Docket Number 2018 CA 1189, as moot. We note that any pending motions in this appeal are also moot. We issue this summary disposition in accordance with Uniform Rules - Courts of Appeal, Rule 2-16.2A(3). We assess no costs in this appeal.
APPEAL AND PENDING MOTIONS DISMISSED.