Ruling could mean trials against Big Oil over state wetlands

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A federal appeals court has ordered a nine-year-old lawsuit filed against oil and gas companies over damage to Louisiana’s wetlands to be returned to state court for trial. That potentially clears the way for at least 41 similar suits to move forward. The Times-Picayune/The New Orleans Advocate reports that the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Monday upheld a January decision by the late U.S. District Judge Martin L.C. Feldman of New Orleans. The ruling returns the suit filed by Plaquemines Parish against Chevron USA, Exxon Mobil Corp., ConocoPhillips Co., BP America and Shell to state court in Plaquemines Parish. A spokesman for the oil companies could not say if they will appeal.