Hornbeck Offshore Services, Inc. v. Salazar, et al.

Case Updates

The Fifth Circuit refused to reinstate the government's six-month moratorium on offshore oil exploration in the Gulf of Mexico.

NCLC urged the Fifth Circuit to uphold a federal judge's decision to halt the six-month moratorium on offshore oil exploration in the Gulf of Mexico. The judge explained that the moratorium would cause irreparable economic harm to the plaintiffs in the case. In its brief, NCLC defended the judge's decision, arguing that the federal government failed to adhere to the rule of law and abandoned evidence-based rulemaking. In particular, the government failed to account for all the economic activities related to offshore exploration and the potential ripple effect the moratorium could produce. NCLC warned that every day the moratorium remains in effect, millions of dollars in wages are lost and a way of life comes closer to disappearing.