Fifth Circuit court throws out appeal in latest setback for Sucette Harbor plaintiffs
UPDATE: LSU Health Foundation, Woodward Harbor seek to revive dismissed Sucette Harbor appeal
MANDEVILLE — A federal appeals court has dismissed LSU Health Foundation New Orleans’ appeal challenging the dismissal of its lawsuit against the City of Mandeville, leaving the lower court’s ruling in favor of the city in place unless the appeal is later reinstated.
LSU Health Foundation had already abandoned their appeal of the dismissal of their claims against Zuckerman individually.
The dismissal, issued Tuesday by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, was not based on the merits of the case. Instead, the court dismissed the appeal “for want of prosecution” after finding the appellants failed to timely file required record excerpts.
The underlying federal lawsuit stems from the long-running legal battle surrounding the proposed Sucette Harbor development, in which LSU Health Foundation New Orleans and Woodward Harbor, LLC, sued the City of Mandeville and Zuckerman after the city rejected a development proposal for the lakefront property.
The Fifth Circuit’s order states that the appeal was dismissed under Rule 42.3 after the appellants failed to comply with appellate filing requirements.
The dismissal leaves intact U.S. District Judge Brandon S. Long’s decision dismissing the claims against the City and Zuckerman, representing another significant procedural victory for the defendants in a series of lawsuits arising from the failed development proposal.
Although the appeal has been dismissed, the Fifth Circuit’s rules allow certain appeals dismissed for want of prosecution to be reinstated under limited circumstances if the appellant corrects the procedural deficiency and successfully petitions the court for reinstatement.
The latest ruling comes as related litigation continues in federal court. The City of Mandeville and Zuckerman are pursuing claims seeking recovery of attorney’s fees and sanctions against LSU Health Foundation and its former attorneys following the dismissal of the underlying lawsuit.
The appeal was being handled by different counsel than the attorneys who originally represented LSU Health Foundation in the litigation. The foundation retained new appellate counsel after its previous legal team withdrew from the case following widely publicized sanctions proceedings involving court filings that included nonexistent legal citations generated by artificial intelligence.
The Fifth Circuit’s dismissal issued Tuesday was based on a separate procedural issue, stating that the appellants failed to timely file required record excerpts.
If the appeal is not reinstated, the district court’s judgment in favor of the City and Zuckerman will remain the final disposition of that portion of the federal litigation.
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