November 27, 2023, opinions

Posted on by tadbartlett

Designated for publication

  • Johnson v. Chesapeake Louisiana, L.P., 22-30302, appeal from W.D. La.
    • Elrod, J. (Dennis, Elrod, Ho), Dennis, J., dissenting; mineral law
    • Certifying to Louisiana Supreme Court question of whether Louisiana’s negotiorum gestio doctrine applies to Louisiana mineral law regarding the deduction of post-production costs from an unleased mineral-interest owner’s pro rata share of unit production. The same question was previously certified in Self v. BPX Operating Co., 80 F.4th 632 (5th Cir. 2023).
    • Specifically, the Court certified this question: “Does La. Civ. Code art. 2292 apply to unit operators selling production in accordance with La. R.S. 30:10(A)(3)?”
    • Judge Dennis dissented from the certification, opining, “[t]his case is straightforward.” He observed, “Not only are La. R.S. 30:10(A)(3) and article 2292 distinct legal regimes with different requirements and different duties, they are necessarily incompatible. A unit operator who sells an owner’s production under the statutory authority of La. R.S. 30:10(A)(3) cannot be a gestor as defined in article 2292, because a gestor, as the codal article provides, is one who acts ‘without authority.’ In certifying the question of whether a unit operator acting under the authority of § 30:10(A)(3) may simultaneously act as a gestor under article 2292, the majority disregards not only the plain text of article 2292 but also basic rules of statutory interpretation. Because the answer is clear that negotiorum gestio cannot apply.”

Unpublished

  • U.S. v. Hungerford, 21-30359, appeal from E.D. La.
    • per curiam (Willett, Engelhardt, Oldham), criminal, sufficiency of evidence, witness testimony, jury instructions
    • Affirming conviction on fraud and money laundering.
  • Taylor v. Collier, 22-20398, appeal from S.D. Tex.
    • per curiam (Jolly, Oldham, Wilson), prisoner suit
    • Affirming summary judgment dismissal of Texas state prisoner’s ADA, Rehabilitation Act, and constitutional claims.
  • U.S. v. Kim, 22-50827, appeal from W.D. Tex.
    • per curiam (Barksdale, Graves, Oldham), habeas corpus, mootness
    • Dismissing as moot petitioner’s appeal from denial of § 2255 petition, due to completion of sentence of incarceration.
  • U.S. v. Lujan, 23-10145, appeal from N.D. Tex.
    • per curiam (Elrod, Oldham, Wilson), criminal, sentencing
    • Affirming 120-month sentence on conviction of being a felon in possession of a firearm.
  • Barnes v. Walters, 23-10255, appeal from N.D. Tex.
    • per curiam (Smith, Southwick, Wilson), employment discrimination, Age Discrimination in Employment Act
    • Dismissing as frivolous appeal from dismissal of ADEA discrimination claim.
  • Bledsoe v. Willis, 23-30238, appeal from W.D. La.
    • per curiam (Wiener, Willett, Douglas), qualified immunity
    • Affirming denial of qualified immunity dismissal to defendants on plaintiff’s § 1983 malicious prosecution and wrongful arrest claims.
  • U.S. v. Hall, 23-50082, appeal from W.D. Tex.
    • per curiam (Barksdale, Graves, Oldham), criminal, ripeness
    • Dismissing as not ripe for review defendant’s appeal of supervised release conditions when he has not yet begun his term of supervised release.
  • U.S. v. Nimaja-Pol, 23-50245, appeal from W.D. Tex.
    • per curiam (Elrod, Oldham, Wilson), criminal, sentencing
    • Affirming conviction and sentence for illegal reentry.
  • U.S. v. Hernandez, 23-50251, appeal from W.D. Tex.
    • per curiam (Higginbotham, Stewart, Southwick), criminal, sentencing
    • Affirming conviction and sentence for illegal reentry.
  • Centeno-Santiago v. Garland, 23-60187, petition for review of BIA order
    • per curiam (Barksdale, Engelhardt, Wilson), immigration
    • Denying Guatemalan citizen’s petition for review of BIA order dismissing her appeal from the immigration judge’s denial of her 2019 motion to reopen, which sought rescission of the 2004 removal order entered against her in absentia.
  • Soler v. Garland, 23-60229, petition for review of BIA order
    • per curiam (Barksdale, Graves, Oldham), immigration
    • Denying Honduran citizen’s petition for review of BIA order upholding the denial of her application for asylum, withholding of removal, and protection under the Convention Against Torture.