TCJL has filed an amicus brief with the Texas Supreme Court in support of Transcanada Keystone Pipeline, LP’s petition for a writ of mandamus. The Beaumont Court of Appeals declined to issue the writ, citing the Supreme Court’s opinion in Denbury to the effect that a mere allegation that a pipeline entity is not a common carrier (despite certification by the Railroad Commission) nullifies the entity’s express statutory authority to take possession of the property pending the outcome of the litigation. In other words, if the Beaumont Court of Appeals ruling holds up, a landowner may ask any local court in a county in which the right-of-way is located to block construction of a pipeline by a certificated common carrier. The consequences of such a ruling to pipeline construction projects, especially those vital to our energy infrastructure, are too obvious to be ignored. Other associations, including the Texas Association of Manufacturers and Texas Pipeline Association, have likewise filed amicus briefs with the court.
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