Iberia Parish Council votes to continue prior stance and authorize district attorney to negotiate in coastal-erosion matters after executive session

The Iberia Parish Council on June 10 adopted a resolution amending prior 2016 and 2024 resolutions to continue opposing coastal-erosion litigation while authorizing the 16th Judicial District attorney to attempt settlement offers to oil and gas companies on similar terms to deals reached by other coastal parishes.

Parish staff explained that these coastal cases have been litigated in state and federal courts for more than a decade and that the U.S. Supreme Court recently issued a decision affecting where such cases should be heard. A staff explainer told the council that some verdicts and settlements in these cases have been large, citing a referenced $746,000,000 verdict in one case. Because the settlements and litigation issues are often under seal, staff recommended an executive session to discuss strategy.

The council went into executive session pursuant to the Louisiana Revised Statutes cited in the agenda to discuss pending litigation; after returning to open session members stated no action was taken during the executive session. The council then voted to approve the resolution (motion moved and seconded as recorded) to continue opposition and to authorize the district attorney to engage on settlement offers as described in the resolution text.

The action authorizes the district attorney to attempt to negotiate or accept settlement offers under similar terms and conditions used in settlements with other coastal parishes, and it preserves the council’s ability to discuss litigation strategy in closed session when statutorily permitted.