Even the bovines and equines get it — No Eminent Domain for Private Gain!
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This media release just went out to over 1,000 media outlets throughout Texas about Julia Trigg Crawford’s important appeal to the Texas Supreme Court. Please share this as you wish by sharing this from our web blog or just copy it and paste it into an email.
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For Immediate Release: Jan. 8, 2014 Contact: Julia Trigg Crawford, 713-443-8789
Texas’s Highest Court Favors Texas Landowner Over Foreign Pipeline Giant TransCanada
AUSTIN, TX – The Texas Supreme Court ruled in favor of landowner Julia Trigg Crawford, ordering TransCanada to submit information by Feb. 6 as the justices weigh arguments to hear the case regarding eminent domain abuse.
Texas’s highest court delivered a clear victory for pipeline opponents and landowners fighting TransCanada’s overreach on property rights. At the heart of Crawford’s case is the ability of TransCanada, a foreign corporation, to use eminent domain under the state’s “common carrier” clause since their pipeline transports 90% Canadian tarsands and 10% North Dakota oil. There is no on ramp for Texas oil therefore violating the definition of a common carrier under Texas law.
Crawford said she looks forward to her family’s day in court, “As a landowner, property rights are key to my livelihood and family legacy. A foreign corporation pumping foreign oil simply does not qualify as a common carrier under Texas law. TransCanada does not get to write their own rules. I look forward to the Supreme Court hearing our case and our plea to protect the fundamental rights of property owners.”
The ruling on Wednesday from the Texas Supreme Court means that Crawford will be able to take the next step in the appeals process against TransCanada. The southern segment, also known as Gulf Coast Segment, stretches from Cushing, Oklahoma to Beaumont, Texas and carries tarsands or dilbit which is a combination of tarsands and chemicals that react very differently than conventional Texas oil when spills occur.
“We’re thrilled, because the a court has finally ruled in favor of us – the little guys – and against a foreign oil giant,” Julia Trigg Crawford continued. “Basically, TransCanada said that it wanted a waiver from responding to our petition, and the Supreme Court said, ‘No, you must respond’.”
Crawford says her case has broad implications, because if she wins, TransCanada and other foreign oil companies will no longer be able to use eminent domain to seize land for their private profit without direct proof their pipeline is carrying Texan oil.
More Info:
TX Supreme Court Ruling: http://www.scribd.com/doc/197429631/Texas-Supreme-Court-Ruling-in-Favor-of-Landowner
Pictures of Julia Trigg Crawford: http://www.standtallwithjulia.com