U.S. Supreme Court Reins in Judicial Hellhole, Removes Abusive Litigation from State Court
Today, in a unanimous 8-0 decision (Justice Alito recused himself), the U.S. Supreme Court held that coastal litigation involving Exxon and Chevron should be removed from state court to federal court. In doing so, it overturned the Fifth Circuit, which had previously held that the litigation could proceed in Louisiana state courts.
Louisiana Coastal Litigation was the #4 Judicial Hellhole in the most recent report. There are over 40 cases pending in state courts that are dripping with political bias and contempt for the defendants. ATRF has long argued that these courts are ill-equipped to handle litigation of such great national importance.
The impact of this decision will be far reaching. The coastal litigation overlooks historical evidence that many drilling operations followed federal directives, particularly during WWII, when some of these companies produced crude oil to be refined into aviation gasoline to support the U.S.’s military capabilities. In addition, by undercutting the country’s pro-energy policies, these lawsuits threaten an industry that has provided jobs for generations of families, powered Louisiana’s economy and assisted the nation during times of conflict.
Background on the Case
In April 2025, a Plaquemines Parish jury awarded an eye-popping $744 million to the Parish, finding Chevron (formerly Texaco) companies liable for environmental damages and for the degradation of the state’s coastal wetlands. Jury deliberations lasted only four hours and the award included $575 million in compensatory damages for coastal land loss, $161 million in compensatory damages for contamination of the land, and $8.6 million in compensatory damages for abandoned equipment.
Following this verdict, Chevron appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, arguing that Louisiana state court is not the proper venue for this case to be heard. Fortunately, the Supreme Court agreed and held that defendants “plausibly alleged a close relationship between its challenged crude-oil production and the performance of its federal avgas refining duties—not a tenuous, remote, or peripheral one—and has therefore satisfied the “relating to” requirement of the federal officer removal statute.”
Abusive Coastal Litigation Has Long Plagued the Bayou
As chronicled by the 2025-2026 Judicial Hellholes report, the problems with the litigation start at the top: the governor has supported the costly coastal litigation that continues to burden the state’s economy and workforce and has openly embraced the plaintiffs’ lawyers leading the charge. As AG, he stripped the targeted defendant companies of their ability to raise legitimate defenses and while campaigning for governor he promised the trial lawyers they would have “nothing to fear” with him as governor.
The trial lawyer leading the charge, John Carmouche, is a long-time campaign donor to both Governor Landry and the trial judge that oversaw the $740 million verdict.
