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Court Hearing on Motions to Dismiss Tagami Lawsuit
April 20, 2017 @ 10:00 am - 1:00 pm
United States District Court Judge Vince Chhabria
On April 20, Judge Vince Chhabria will hold the first important hearing in the lawsuit Oakland Bulk and Oversized Terminal LLC v. City of Oakland, developer Phil Tagami’s attempt to overturn the City’s ban on coal storage and handling at the future West Gateway marine terminal.
The Court will hear several motions. Of great importance to No Coal in Oakland is a motion by Sierra Club and San Francisco Baykeeper to be accepted as “intervenors” in the lawsuit. The environmental groups seek formal “intervenor” status so that they can participate as full parties in the courtroom effort to defeat Tagami’s lawsuit, thus helping the City defeat the lawsuit. Not surprisingly, Tagami’s lawyers have asked the Court to deny the motion.
Second, the Court has before it two motions to dismiss the lawsuit–one motion filed by the City of Oakland seeking dismissal of Tagami’s claim for breach of contract and a second motion filed by the Sierra Club and Baykeeper seeking dismissal of Tagami’s claim that his constitutional rights were violated by the City’s ban because it discriminated against out of state commercial interests and unduly burdened interstate commerce.
If the City’s and the environmental groups’ motions are granted, the case will be considerably narrowed, which makes it easier to defend.
No Coal in Oakland will be there! This is a great opportunity to observe the Court in action and get insight into how the Court views the first major motions to defend the City’s ban on coal. The hearing may also shed light on whether the Court will allow the wide open discovery (depositions, document requests, etc.) that Tagami’s lawyers seek.
Judge Chhabria usually comes to Court with an idea how he intends to rule the motions before him which he then invites the parties to debate.
Allow extra time for getting through security. Take an elevator to the 17th Floor, Courtroom 4. Judge Chhabria will expect silence in his courtroom.