Genina Marine Services, Inc. v. ARCO Oil & Gas Co.Genina Marine Services, Inc. v. ARCO Oil & Gas Co.
H.P. Rowley, III, Covington, for plaintiff and appellant Genina Marine Services, Inc.
Before SAVOIE, CRAIN and JOHN S. COVINGTON, JJ.
SAVOIE, Judge.
This is a suit seeking recognition and enforcement of a lien under the Louisiana Oil Well Lien Act,
Plaintiff, Genina Marine, supplied the services of two vessels in connection with the drilling of offshore wells on the outer Continental Shelf during October and November of 1982. The value of these services was $10,175. Arco contracted for the services of the boats with Briley Marine, Inc., who in turn contracted for the services of Genina Marine. Arco paid Briley Marine for the services, but Briley Marine failed to pay Genina. Genina filed a notice of privilege against Arco wells on January 10, 1984. Suit was filed January 7, 1985.
Plaintiff moved for summary judgment and defendant filed a cross motion for summary judgment seeking dismissal of plaintiff‘s claim on the basis that the wells were located on the outer Continental Shelf and therefore,
In its Specifications of Error, Genina specifies that: “The district court erred by granting Arco‘s motion for summary judgment and denying Genina‘s motion for summary judgment.” We note at the outset that a denial of a summary judgment is not a final judgment,
Additionally, on appeal, defendant has raised the peremptory exceptions of prescription and no cause of action. These exceptions may be raised for the first time in the appellate court pursuant to
We elect to treat the issues raised in the following manner: (1) Does federal law or Louisiana law apply to oil wells located on the outer Continental Shelf adjacent to Louisiana? (2) Is the Louisiana Oil Well Lien statute,
I. Law Applicable to Oil Wells Located On the outer Continental Shelf
Under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSLA),
II. Is La.R.S. 9:4861 et seq., Applicable to Oil Wells Located On the Outer Continental Shelf?
It is clear from the Act that the state law is adopted as federal law on the outer Continental Shelf if: 1) it is applicable; 2) it is not inconsistent with other federal laws; and 3) the wells would be within the area of the State if its boundaries were extended seaward to the outer margin of the outer Continental Shelf.
“Applicability” is to be read in terms of necessity—necessity to fill a significant void or gap. Continental Oil Co. v. London Steam-Ship Owners’ Mutual Ins. Assoc., 417 F.2d 1030, 1036 (5th Cir. 1969), cert. denied, 397 U.S. 911, 90 S.Ct. 911, 25 L.Ed.2d 92. The Well Lien Act has not been shown to be inconsistent or in conflict with any federal laws or regulations. As there is no other federal lien statute available to plaintiff, it follows that Louisiana‘s Well Lien Act,
The trial court‘s reliance on P.H. A.C. Services, Inc. v. Seaways International, Inc., 403 So.2d 1199 (La.1981) was misplaced. In P.H.A.C., supra at 1202, the court held that:
“The statute [
La.R.S. 9:4861 et seq. ] does not purport to affect producing wells outside the State of Louisiana.”
As stated in Louisiana Materials Co., Inc., supra at 778:
P.H.A.C. is not in conflict with these federal decisions. The property in question in P.H.A.C. was located off the Texas coast, and, therefore, would not be subject to any Louisiana law. Any attachment of property in that case should have been accomplished by means of Texas Law.
It is undisputed that the wells in question are located in Ship Shoal, Blocks 91 and 332, which are located on the outer Continental Shelf but within the area of the State of Louisiana if its boundaries were extended seaward to the outer margin of the outer Continental Shelf. Therefore, we find the Louisiana Well Lien Act,
III. Prescription
In its peremptory exception of prescription, Arco contends that Genina Marine‘s suit has prescribed pursuant to
The facts pertinent to this determination are not in dispute. Arco contracted for the services of the boats with Briley Marine who in turn contracted for the services of Genina Marine. Genina Marine performed services for Arco for five days in October, 1982, and from November 22 through November 30, 1982. Arco paid Briley Marine for the services, but Briley Marine failed to pay Genina and began bankruptcy proceedings. Genina Marine failed to file a notice of privilege until January 10, 1984, over thirteen months after the last performance of services. Suit was instituted on January 7, 1985, some twenty-five months after the
At the time the services were performed by Genina,
“If a notice of such claim or privilege... is filed for record ... within 90 days after the last day of the performance of the labor or service ..., the privileges are superior to all other privileges or mortgages against the property ...”
“Unless interrupted by suit thereon, the privilege shall prescribe and become ineffective one year from the date of recordation.”
Recently in Louisiana Materials Co., Inc. v. Atlantic Richfield Company, 493 So.2d 1141 (La.Sup.Ct.,1986) (as corrected by substitution of a new page 14 on Sept. 18, 1986) and its companion case I.E. Miller of Eunice, Inc. v. Source Petroleum, Inc., 493 So.2d 1141 (La.Sup.Ct.,1986), the supreme court resolved a conflict in the interpretation of these statutes regarding the prescriptive period applicable to such liens. The Court in Louisiana Materials held that failure to record a claim or privilege within the 180 day time limit set forth in Section 48623 forfeits the priority but not the privilege itself. Unfortunately the court declined to decide just what prescriptive period applies to the enforcement of unrecorded liens or liens recorded after the time period provided by
Our resolution of the legal issue in this case does not require that we decide just what prescriptive period applies to the enforcement of liens recorded after one hundred eighty days, or of those which are unrecorded. With respect to unrecorded liens the Fourth Circuit in Western Wireline was no doubt correct in asserting that liens cannot exist indefinitely without recordation. And, for the unrecorded lien, we need not decide whether a lien claimant who fails to record his lien within the recordation period `180 days from last service performed’ has one year from last services performed to assert his privilege, as advanced by the Third Circuit in I.E. Miller, supra and the dissenting judge in C-Craft Marine [Marine Services, Inc. v. Llog Exploration Co., 470 S.2d 241], supra or whether a lien claimant who fails to record his lien within the recordation period has one year plus the recordation period in order to assert his lien. It suffices to conclude, at the least, that if suit is filed within one year of the conclusion of the activity which gave rise to the privilege, assertion of the lien is timely.
Therefore, the case at hand does not fall within the holding of Louisiana Materials as Genina Marine recorded its lien approximately thirteen-months after the last services performed. Thus we feel compelled to determine the applicable prescriptive period for liens that are not recorded within the Section 4862 time period.
After careful review we favor the view of the Third Circuit in I.E. Miller of Eunice, supra, and Genina Marine Services, Inc. v. Mark Producing Co., 490 So.2d 1158 (La.App. 3rd Cir.1986), holding that in regards to unrecorded liens or liens recorded outside the Section 4862 time period, suit must be filed within one year of the last day on which services are performed. Therefore, unless prescription was interrupted as alleged, Genina Marine‘s suit was untimely as no notice was recorded within the 90 day time period4 and suit was instituted over twenty-five months after the last supplying of services.
Also, we note that Arco filed an exception of no cause of action based on the contention that the Section 4862 time limitation is peremptive rather than prescriptive. We find no merit in this argument. The supreme court in Louisiana Materials, supra, determined that the lien may exist without recordation within that time period if suit is commenced within one year of the last day on which services were performed. If the lien can exist beyond the time limitations then the time limitation is not peremptive. Therefore, the time limitation in
For the above and foregoing reasons, we reverse the trial court‘s granting of summary judgment and remand this case for further consideration not inconsistent with this opinion.
REVERSED AND REMANDED.
Notes
§ 1333. Laws and regulations governing lands
(a) Constitution and United States laws; laws of adjacent States; publication of projected State lines; international boundary disputes; restriction on State taxation and jurisdiction
(1) The Constitution and laws and civil and political jurisdiction of the United States are hereby extended to the subsoil and seabed of the outer Continental Shelf and to all artificial islands, and all installations and other devices permanently or temporarily attached to the seabed, which may be erected thereon for the purpose of exporing (sic) for, developing, or producing resources therefrom, or any such installation or other device (other than a ship or vessel) for the purpose of transporting such resources, to the same extent as if the outer Continental Shelf were an area of exclusive Federal jurisdiction located within a State: Provided, however, That mineral leases on the outer Continental Shelf shall be maintained or issued only under the provisions of this subchapter.
(2)(A) To the extent that they are applicable and not inconsistent with this subchapter or with other Federal laws and regulations of the Secretary now in effect or hereafter adopted, the civil and criminal laws of each adjacent State, now in effect or hereafter adopted, amended, or repealed are hereby declared to be the law of the United States for that portion of the subsoil and seabed of the outer Continental Shelf, and artificial islands and fixed structures erected thereon, which would be within the area of the State if its boundaries were extended seaward to the outer margin of the outer Continental Shelf, and the President shall determine and publish in the Federal Register such projected lines extending seaward and defining each such area. All of such applicable laws shall be administered and enforced by the appropriate officers and courts of the United States. State taxation laws shall not apply to the outer Continental Shelf.