Free Motion to Alter or Amend Judgment - Rule 59(e) - District Court of Federal Claims - federal

Case 1:00-cv-00115-BAF

Document 165

Filed 08/25/2006

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IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF FEDERAL CLAIMS
____________________________________ ) ) ) ) ) ) Plaintiffs, ) ) v. ) ) THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, ) ) Defendant. ) ____________________________________) DAUPHIN ISLAND PROPERTY OWNERS ASSOCIATION, INC., a non-profit corporation; and JAMES W. HARTMAN

No. 00-115-L Hon. Bohdan A. Futey

JOINT MOTION TO AMEND AUGUST 14, 2006 ORDER Plaintiffs, Dauphin Island Property Owners Association, Inc., James Hartman, et al. ("DIOPA"), and Defendant, the United States, by and through their respective undersigned counsel and pursuant to Rule 59(e) of the Rules of this Court, jointly request that this Court amend its August 14, 2006 Order (the "August 14th Order") to clarify certain issues as more fully set forth below. As the Court is aware, and as acknowledged in the August 14th Order, the Litigation Settlement Agreement filed July 19, 2005, as amended (the "Agreement"), was the product of several years of intense negotiations involving a wide variety of issues. Despite dedicated mutual efforts to simplify and clarify the terms of the Agreement, the subject matter and transactional settlement are complicated. The July 11, 2006 fairness hearing in Mobile, Alabama included a discussion of the terms of the Agreement along with witness testimony and other evidentiary support to demonstrate the fairness of the Agreement. The August 14th Order approving the Agreement offers a comprehensive summary of the contents of this lengthy, complicated settlement document. The parties are concerned that certain

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Case 1:00-cv-00115-BAF

Document 165

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portions of the Order may be subject to misinterpretation as compared to the actual terms in the Agreement. Accordingly, the parties jointly propose revisions and clarification to the August 14th Order to avoid future dispute or misunderstanding. The topics on which revisions and clarification are offered include: the change in dredging practices; when the stay of litigation may be lifted and the case returned to active litigation and any limits that are triggered thereby; the dollar limit under the Section 111 program and the cap to litigation recovery in certain instances; reservation of statute of limitations and the accrual of litigation costs, including attorneys' fees. A copy of a proposed revised Order, with proposed revision and clarifications is attached hereto with due respect for the Court's consideration. Wherefore, the parties jointly and respectfully request that the Court amend its August 14, 2006 Order as set forth in the attached proposed revised Order

Dated: August 25, 2006

Respectfully submitted,

/s/Gary A. Moore GARY A. MOORE Assistant United States Attorney c/o United States Attorney's Office 63 S. Royal Street, Suite 600 Mobile, AL 36602 Telephone: 251.441.5845 Facsimile: 251.441.5051 Email: [email protected] Attorney for Defendant

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Case 1:00-cv-00115-BAF

Document 165

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/s/ Daniel G. Blackburn DANIEL G. BLACKBURN BLACKBURN & CONNER, P.C. Post Office Box 458 Bay Minette, Alabama 36507 Telephone: 251. 937.1750 Facsimile: 251.937.1785 Email: [email protected] Attorney for Plaintiffs OF COUNSEL: Lewis S. Wiener, Esq. SUTHERLAND ASBILL & BRENNAN 1275 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20004-2415 Richard E. Davis, Esq. DAVIS & FIELDS, P.C. Post Office Box 2925 Daphne, Alabama 36526 Joseph D. Steadman, Esq. DODSON & STEADMAN, P.C. Post Office Box 1908 Mobile, Alabama 36633-1908

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