Comment by Sam Brandao
Louisiana's coastal land is dissolving. As the political branches struggle to address the emergency, the courts may provide an unlooked-for catalyst. Private actions against oil companies are unlikely to play a major role in resolving the coastal crisis because of the scale of the problem. This Comment suggests that an action against a state agency under the public trust doctrine could be the electric shock that galvanizes the political branches into a meaningful response. After briefly discussing the development of the federal public trust doctrine, its application in California, and its culmination in the California case known as Mono Lake, this Comment argues that a similar case could help save Louisiana's dying coast.
About the Author
Sam Brandao. J.D. candidate 2012, Tulane University School of Law; B.A. 2003, Yale University.
Citation
86 Tul. L. Rev. 759 (2012)