Bring on the expense accounts into debate over location of oil spill lawsuits
by Stephanie Grace - Times-Picayune (excerpt)

An early battle in what promises to be a lengthy, multi-front legal war over the Deepwater Horizon explosion and the long-gushing Macondo well kicks off today, when a panel of federal judges meets far inland in Idaho to debate which court should host most if not all of the lawsuits stemming from the disaster. The major combatants are New Orleans and Houston, although other cities are in contention to handle consolidated litigation as well. As is so often the case, Houston has the muscle, but New Orleans is the sentimental favorite. That is, if the judges decide to apply the right criteria. As of now, it's actually not clear how they'll decide. Each city has logistical pluses. Arguing in New Orleans' favor: Several judges in Louisiana's Eastern District have experience handling sprawling consolidated cases, over the dangerous pain reliever Vioxx, over the Murphy Oil spill during Hurricane Katrina, and most recently, over tainted Chinese drywall. In Houston's corner: a much lighter existing per-judge caseload. And each proposed site has the legal equivalent of a home team.