More Marshall Mandamus
November 23, 2014After an unusual pretrial mandamus ruling by the Fifth Circuit in a high-profile False Claims Act case, and after the jury returned a plaintiff’s verdict for $175 million — which could be trebled upon final judgment — the defendants returned to the Fifth Circuit last week. They filed a renewed mandamus petition — drawing on the Court’s statements in the prior ruling — supported by amici filings from Texas A&M and another company. In re: Trinity Industries, Inc., No. 14-41297. The Court has requested a response, presently due on December 1. Further briefing, and the ultimate disposition of this mandamus petition, will be of interest both procedurally and substantively. (Disclaimer: I am not counsel of record in this proceeding, but do represent Trinity.)