Opinion
C. A. N20C-09-097 MMJ CCLD
03-26-2024
STATE OF DELAWARE, ex rel. KATHLEEN JENNINGS, Attorney General of the State of Delaware, Plaintiff, v. BP AMERICA INC., BP P.L.C., CHEVRON CORPORATION, CHEVRON U.S.A. INC., CONOCOPHILLIPS, CONOCOPHILLIPS COMPANY, PHILLIPS 66, PHILLIPS 66 COMPANY, EXXON MOBIL CORPORATION, EXXONMOBIL OIL CORPORATION, XTO ENERGY INC., HESS CORPORATION, MARATHON OIL CORPORATION, MARATHON OIL COMPANY, MARATHON PETROLEUM CORPORATION, MARATHON PETROLEUM COMPANY LP, SPEEDWAY LLC, MURPHY OIL CORPORATION, MURPHY USA INC., ROYAL DUTCH SHELL PLC, SHELL OIL COMPANY, CITGO PETROLEUM CORPORATION, TOTAL S.A., TOTAL SPECIALITIES USA INC., OCCIDENTAL PETROLEUM CORPORATION, DEVON ENERGY CORPORATION, APACHE CORPORATION, CNX RESOURCES CORPORATION, CONSOL ENERGY INC., OVINTIV, INC., and AMERICAN PETROLEUM INSTITUTE, Defendants.
Christian Douglas Wright, Esq., Jameson A.L. Tweedie, Esq., Ralph K. Durstein III, Esq., Sawyer M. Traver, Esq., Deputy Attorneys General, Wilmington, DE, Victor M. Sher, Esq. (Argued), Matthew K. Edling, Esq. (Argued), Stephanie D. Biehl, Esq. (Argued), Sher Edling LLP, San Francisco, CA, Attorneys for Plaintiff State of Delaware David E. Wilks, Esq., Wilks Law, LLC, Wilmington, DE, Theodore J. Boutrous, Jr., Esq. (Argued), William E. Thomson, Esq., Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP, Los Angeles, CA, Andrea E. Neuman, Esq., Dunn &Crutcher LLP, New York, NY, Thomas G. Hungar, Esq., Dunn &Crutcher LLP, Washington, DC, Joshua D. Dick, Esq., Dunn & Crutcher LLP, San Francisco, CA, Attorneys for Defendants Chevron Corporation and Chevron U.S.A. Inc. Kenneth J. Nachbar, Esq., Alexandra M. Cumings, Esq., Morris Nichols Arsht & Tunnell, Wilmington, DE, Nathan P. Eimer, Esq., Pamela R. Hanebutt, Esq., Lisa S. Meyer, Esq., Eimer Stahl LLP, Chicago, IL, Robert E. Dunn, Esq. (Argued), Eimer Stahl LLP, San Jose, CA, Attorneys for Defendants CITGO Petroleum Corporation Colleen D. Shields, Esq., Patrick M. Brannigan, Esq., Eckert Seamans Cherin & Mellott, LLC, Wilmington, DE, Tristan L. Duncan, Esq., Daniel B. Rogers, Esq., William F. Northrip, Esq., Shook, Hady &Bacon L.L.P., Kansas City, MO, Attorneys for Defendant Murphy USA Inc. Kevin J. Mangan, Esq., Womble Bond Dickinson (US) LLP, Wilmington, DE, Jeremiah J. Anderson, Esq. (Argued), McGuireWoods LLP, Houston, TX, Kathryn M. Barber, Esq., McGuireWoods LLP, Richmond, VA, Attorneys for American Petroleum Institute Mackenzie M. Wrobel, Esq., Coleen W. Hill, Esq., Duane Morris LLP, Wilmington, DE, Michael F. Healy, Esq., Shook Hardy & Bacon LLP, San Francisco, CA, Michael L. Fox, Esq., Duane Morris LLP, San Francisco, CA, Attorneys for Defendant OVINTIV INC. Daniel J. Brown, Esq., Alexandra M. Joyce, Esq., McCarter & English LLP, Wilmington, DE, Steven M. Bauer, Esq., Margaret A. Tough, Esq., Latham & Watkins LLP, San Francisco, CA, Jameson R. Jones, Esq., Daniel R. Brody, Esq., Bartlit Beck LLP, Denver, CO, Attorneys for Defendants ConocoPhillips and ConocoPhillips Company Daniel J. Brown, Esq., Alexandra M. Joyce, Esq., McCarter &English LLP, Wilmington, DE, Steven M. Bauer, Esq., Margaret A. Tough, Esq., Latham & Watkins LLP, San Francisco, CA, Attorneys for Defendants Phillip 66 and Phillips 66 Company Michael A. Barlow, Esq., Abrams & Bayliss LLP, Wilmington, DE, Robert P. Reznick, Esq. (Argued), Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP, Washington, DC, James Stengel, Esq., Marc R. Shapiro, Esq., Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP, New York, NY, Catherine Y. Lui, Esq., Orrick, Herrington &Sutcliffe LLP, San Francisco, CA, Attorneys for Defendant Marathon Oil Corporation Robert W. Whetzel, Esq., Blake Rohrbacher, Esq., Alexandra M. Ewing, Esq., Richards, Layton &Finger, P.A., Wilmington, DE, Anna Rotman, Esq. (Argued), Kirkland &Ellis LLP, Houston, TX, Attorneys for Defendant TotalEnergies, SE Steven L. Caponi, Esq., Matthew B. Goeller, Esq., Megan E. O'Connor, Esq., K&L Gates LLP, Wilmington, DE, David C. Frederick, Esq., James M. Webster, III, Esq., Daniel S. Severson, Esq., Kellogg, Hansen, Todd, Figel &Frederick, P.L.L.C., Washington, D.C., Counsel for Shell plc (f/k/a Royal Dutch Shell plc) and Shell USA, Inc. (f/k/a Shell Oil Company) Catherine A. Gaul, Esq., Ashby & Geddes, Wilmington, DE, Nancy G. Milburn, Esq., Diana E. Reiter, Esq. (Argued), Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer LLP, New York, NY, Jonathan W. Hughes, Esq., Arnold &Porter Kaye Scholer LLP, San Francisco, CA, John D. Lombardo, Esq., Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer LLP, Los Angeles, CA, Attorneys for Defendants BP America Inc. and BP p.l.c. Jeffrey L. Moyer, Esq., Christine D. Haynes, Esq., Richards, Layton &Finger, P.A., Wilmington, DE, Kevin Orsini, Esq., Vanessa A. Lavely, Esq., Cravath, Swaine &Moore LLP, New York, NY, Attorneys for Defendant Occidental Petroleum Corporation Antoinette D. Hubbard, Esq., Stephanie A. Fox, Esq., Maron Marvel Bradley Anderson &Tardy LLC, Wilmington, DE, Shannon S. Broome, Esq., Ann Marie Mortimer, Esq., Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP, San Francisco, CA, Shawn Patrick Regan, Esq. (Argued), Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP, New York, NY, Attorneys for Defendants Marathon Petroleum Corporation, Marathon Petroleum Company LP, and Speedway LLC Christian J. Singewald, Esq., White and Williams LLP, Wilmington, DE, Joy C. Fuhr, Esq., Brian D. Schmalzbach, Esq., W. Cole Geddy, Esq., McGuireWoods LLP, Richmond, VA, Attorneys for Defendant Devon Energy Corporation Paul D. Brown, Esq., Chipman Brown Cicero & Cole, LLP, Wilmington, DE, Tracy A. Roman, Esq. (Argued), Crowell & Moring LLP, Washington, DC, Honor R. Costello, Esq., Crowell & Moring LLP, New York, NY, Attorneys for Defendant CONSOL Energy Inc. Beth Moskow Schnoll, Esq., Ballard Spahr LLP, Wilmington, DE, Noel J. Francisco, Esq., David M. Morrell, Esq. (Argued), Jones Day, Washington, DC, David C. Kiernan, Esq., Jones Day, San Francisco, CA, Attorneys or Defendant CNX Resources Corp. Daniel A. Mason, Esq., Matthew D. Stachel, Esq., Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton &Garrison LLP, Wilmington, DE, Theodore V. Wells, Jr., Esq., Daniel J. Toal, Esq., Yahonnes Cleary, Esq., Caitlin E. Grusauskas, Esq., Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP, New York, NY, Attorneys for Defendants Exxon Mobil Corporation, ExxonMobil Oil Corporation, and XTO Energy Inc. Robert W. Whetzel, Esq., Richards Layton & Finger, P.A., Wilmington, DE, Patrick W. Mizell, Esq., Matthew R. Stamme, Esq., Stephanie L. Noble, Esq., Brooke A. Noble, Esq. (Argued), Vinson &Elkins L.L.P., Houston, TX, Mortimer H. Hartwell, Vinson & Elkins L.L.P., San Francisco, CA, Attorneys for Apache Corporation Joseph J. Bellew, Esq., Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani, Wilmington, DE, J. Scott Janoe, Esq. (Argued), Baker Botts L.L.P., Houston, TX, Megan Berge, Esq., Sterling Marchand, Esq., Baker Botts L.L.P., Washington, DC, Attorneys for Defendant Hess Corporation and Defendant Murphy Oil Corporation
On the Applications for Certification of Interlocutory Appeal filed by Defendants Apache Corporation, CNX Resources Corporation, Citgo Petroleum Corporation, Murphy USA, Inc., and Consul Energy, Inc. DENIED
Defendants' Motion for Leave to File a Reply DENIED AS MOOT.
Christian Douglas Wright, Esq., Jameson A.L. Tweedie, Esq., Ralph K. Durstein III, Esq., Sawyer M. Traver, Esq., Deputy Attorneys General, Wilmington, DE, Victor M. Sher, Esq. (Argued), Matthew K. Edling, Esq. (Argued), Stephanie D. Biehl, Esq. (Argued), Sher Edling LLP, San Francisco, CA, Attorneys for Plaintiff State of Delaware
David E. Wilks, Esq., Wilks Law, LLC, Wilmington, DE, Theodore J. Boutrous, Jr., Esq. (Argued), William E. Thomson, Esq., Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP, Los Angeles, CA, Andrea E. Neuman, Esq., Dunn &Crutcher LLP, New York, NY, Thomas G. Hungar, Esq., Dunn &Crutcher LLP, Washington, DC, Joshua D. Dick, Esq., Dunn & Crutcher LLP, San Francisco, CA, Attorneys for Defendants Chevron Corporation and Chevron U.S.A. Inc.
Kenneth J. Nachbar, Esq., Alexandra M. Cumings, Esq., Morris Nichols Arsht & Tunnell, Wilmington, DE, Nathan P. Eimer, Esq., Pamela R. Hanebutt, Esq., Lisa S. Meyer, Esq., Eimer Stahl LLP, Chicago, IL, Robert E. Dunn, Esq. (Argued), Eimer Stahl LLP, San Jose, CA, Attorneys for Defendants CITGO Petroleum Corporation
Colleen D. Shields, Esq., Patrick M. Brannigan, Esq., Eckert Seamans Cherin & Mellott, LLC, Wilmington, DE, Tristan L. Duncan, Esq., Daniel B. Rogers, Esq., William F. Northrip, Esq., Shook, Hady &Bacon L.L.P., Kansas City, MO, Attorneys for Defendant Murphy USA Inc.
Kevin J. Mangan, Esq., Womble Bond Dickinson (US) LLP, Wilmington, DE, Jeremiah J. Anderson, Esq. (Argued), McGuireWoods LLP, Houston, TX, Kathryn M. Barber, Esq., McGuireWoods LLP, Richmond, VA, Attorneys for American Petroleum Institute
Mackenzie M. Wrobel, Esq., Coleen W. Hill, Esq., Duane Morris LLP, Wilmington, DE, Michael F. Healy, Esq., Shook Hardy & Bacon LLP, San Francisco, CA, Michael L. Fox, Esq., Duane Morris LLP, San Francisco, CA, Attorneys for Defendant OVINTIV INC.
Daniel J. Brown, Esq., Alexandra M. Joyce, Esq., McCarter & English LLP, Wilmington, DE, Steven M. Bauer, Esq., Margaret A. Tough, Esq., Latham & Watkins LLP, San Francisco, CA, Jameson R. Jones, Esq., Daniel R. Brody, Esq., Bartlit Beck LLP, Denver, CO, Attorneys for Defendants ConocoPhillips and ConocoPhillips Company
Daniel J. Brown, Esq., Alexandra M. Joyce, Esq., McCarter &English LLP, Wilmington, DE, Steven M. Bauer, Esq., Margaret A. Tough, Esq., Latham & Watkins LLP, San Francisco, CA, Attorneys for Defendants Phillip 66 and Phillips 66 Company
Michael A. Barlow, Esq., Abrams & Bayliss LLP, Wilmington, DE, Robert P. Reznick, Esq. (Argued), Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP, Washington, DC, James Stengel, Esq., Marc R. Shapiro, Esq., Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP, New York, NY, Catherine Y. Lui, Esq., Orrick, Herrington &Sutcliffe LLP, San Francisco, CA, Attorneys for Defendant Marathon Oil Corporation
Robert W. Whetzel, Esq., Blake Rohrbacher, Esq., Alexandra M. Ewing, Esq., Richards, Layton &Finger, P.A., Wilmington, DE, Anna Rotman, Esq. (Argued), Kirkland &Ellis LLP, Houston, TX, Attorneys for Defendant TotalEnergies, SE
Steven L. Caponi, Esq., Matthew B. Goeller, Esq., Megan E. O'Connor, Esq., K&L Gates LLP, Wilmington, DE, David C. Frederick, Esq., James M. Webster, III, Esq., Daniel S. Severson, Esq., Kellogg, Hansen, Todd, Figel &Frederick, P.L.L.C., Washington, D.C., Counsel for Shell plc (f/k/a Royal Dutch Shell plc) and Shell USA, Inc. (f/k/a Shell Oil Company)
Catherine A. Gaul, Esq., Ashby & Geddes, Wilmington, DE, Nancy G. Milburn, Esq., Diana E. Reiter, Esq. (Argued), Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer LLP, New York, NY, Jonathan W. Hughes, Esq., Arnold &Porter Kaye Scholer LLP, San Francisco, CA, John D. Lombardo, Esq., Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer LLP, Los Angeles, CA, Attorneys for Defendants BP America Inc. and BP p.l.c.
Jeffrey L. Moyer, Esq., Christine D. Haynes, Esq., Richards, Layton &Finger, P.A., Wilmington, DE, Kevin Orsini, Esq., Vanessa A. Lavely, Esq., Cravath, Swaine &Moore LLP, New York, NY, Attorneys for Defendant Occidental Petroleum Corporation
Antoinette D. Hubbard, Esq., Stephanie A. Fox, Esq., Maron Marvel Bradley Anderson &Tardy LLC, Wilmington, DE, Shannon S. Broome, Esq., Ann Marie Mortimer, Esq., Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP, San Francisco, CA, Shawn Patrick Regan, Esq. (Argued), Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP, New York, NY, Attorneys for Defendants Marathon Petroleum Corporation, Marathon Petroleum Company LP, and Speedway LLC
Christian J. Singewald, Esq., White and Williams LLP, Wilmington, DE, Joy C. Fuhr, Esq., Brian D. Schmalzbach, Esq., W. Cole Geddy, Esq., McGuireWoods LLP, Richmond, VA, Attorneys for Defendant Devon Energy Corporation
Paul D. Brown, Esq., Chipman Brown Cicero & Cole, LLP, Wilmington, DE, Tracy A. Roman, Esq. (Argued), Crowell & Moring LLP, Washington, DC, Honor R. Costello, Esq., Crowell & Moring LLP, New York, NY, Attorneys for Defendant CONSOL Energy Inc.
Beth Moskow Schnoll, Esq., Ballard Spahr LLP, Wilmington, DE, Noel J. Francisco, Esq., David M. Morrell, Esq. (Argued), Jones Day, Washington, DC, David C. Kiernan, Esq., Jones Day, San Francisco, CA, Attorneys or Defendant CNX Resources Corp.
Daniel A. Mason, Esq., Matthew D. Stachel, Esq., Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton &Garrison LLP, Wilmington, DE, Theodore V. Wells, Jr., Esq., Daniel J. Toal, Esq., Yahonnes Cleary, Esq., Caitlin E. Grusauskas, Esq., Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP, New York, NY, Attorneys for Defendants Exxon Mobil Corporation, ExxonMobil Oil Corporation, and XTO Energy Inc.
Robert W. Whetzel, Esq., Richards Layton & Finger, P.A., Wilmington, DE, Patrick W. Mizell, Esq., Matthew R. Stamme, Esq., Stephanie L. Noble, Esq., Brooke A. Noble, Esq. (Argued), Vinson &Elkins L.L.P., Houston, TX, Mortimer H. Hartwell, Vinson & Elkins L.L.P., San Francisco, CA, Attorneys for Apache Corporation
Joseph J. Bellew, Esq., Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani, Wilmington, DE, J. Scott Janoe, Esq. (Argued), Baker Botts L.L.P., Houston, TX, Megan Berge, Esq., Sterling Marchand, Esq., Baker Botts L.L.P., Washington, DC, Attorneys for Defendant Hess Corporation and Defendant Murphy Oil Corporation
ORDER
JOHNSTON, J.
The Court issued an Opinion dated January 9, 2024. The Court granted in part and denied in part various motions to dismiss.
The State of Delaware moved for an order certifying an interlocutory appeal to the Delaware Supreme Court. Certain Defendants filed pleadings entitled Conditional Cross-Application for Certification of Interlocutory Appeal. By Order dated February 14, 2024, the Court denied the State's Application for Certification of Interlocutory Appeal and Defendants' Conditional Cross-Application for Certification of Interlocutory Appeal.
On a parallel track, certain Defendants moved for reargument. By Order dated February 12, 2024, the Court denied reargument. Meanwhile, certain Defendants filed notices of appeal from interlocutory orders in the Supreme Court.
As a result of these overlapping motions, applications and notices, the deadlines (and even available jurisdiction) for filing applications and responses and this Court's action, on the pending applications for interlocutory appeal, became unclear. Additionally, the moving Defendants in the most recent interlocutory appeal applications have moved for leave to file a reply.
The State has opposed the pending applications on the grounds that the Rule 42(b)(iii) factors have not been satisfied, and the applications are untimely.
The Court finds that the most recent applications for interlocutory appeal raise essentially the same arguments asserted in the prior applications.
THEREFORE, for the reasons set forth in the Court's February 14, 2024 Order, the Applications for Certification of Interlocutory Appeal filed by Defendants Apache Corporation, CNX Resources Corporation, Citgo Petroleum Corporation, Murphy USA, Inc., and Consul Energy, Inc. are hereby DENIED. Defendants' Motion for Leave to File a Reply is hereby DENIED AS MOOT.
IT IS SO ORDERED.