Paul C. Thibodeaux

Practice Focus

Class Actions/Mass Actions/MDLs, Construction, Environmental

Paul Thibodeaux, a partner in the firm’s Litigation Section, has thrived in some of the most complex commercial litigations in the country for more than 20 years. With a background in civil engineering, Paul is a trial lawyer whose practice focuses on environmental and construction litigation for both plaintiffs and defendants. He routinely represents business interests, as well as individuals and landowners.

Over the course of his career, Paul has successfully taken a lead role in many high-profile matters, including the Hard Rock Hotel collapse litigation; Napoleonville sinkhole litigation; BP oil spill multi-district litigation; and the Hurricane Katrina-related Murphy oil spill class action litigation. He routinely represents developers in construction disputes regarding large multi-family commercial and hotel projects.

Paul has tried numerous cases before judges and juries involving complex engineering-related issues, obtaining multimillion-dollar verdicts in favor of plaintiffs. Additionally, he has handled multiple environmental and regulatory matters regarding petrochemical operations and emissions, including Clean Air Act and Clean Water Act claims. Recently, Paul successfully represented a large landowner in litigation to require a large oil company to plug and abandon wells and decommission an abandoned oil field.

Paul is a member of the American Bar Association, the Louisiana State Bar Association, and the New Orleans Bar Association, and he is a U.S. Patent and Trademark Office registered patent attorney. Paul is also a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers and an EIT member of the Louisiana Professional Engineering and Land Surveying Board. He is part of the American Intellectual Property Law Association and is a Fellow of both the Construction Lawyers Society of America and the American Bar Foundation.

Paul has been a past volunteer with the United Way in New Orleans, assisting with intellectual property and other business advice. He has also volunteered in a similar capacity with the St. Bernard Project, now known as SBP, an organization which works to shrink the time between natural disasters and recovery.

Paul is recognized by Lawdragon in its 500 Leading Litigators in America (since 2024), Green 500: Leaders in Environmental Law (since 2023), and 500 Leading U.S. Energy Lawyers (since 2023) guides. He is also a Benchmark Litigation “Future Star,” and he is listed in The Best Lawyers in America® for Construction Law, Litigation – Construction, and Litigation – Environmental.

Originally from DeRidder, La., Paul went to engineering school at LSU and law school at Tulane. He now lives in New Orleans with his wife and two children.

Education

J.D. from Tulane University Law School, 2004
B.S. in Civil Engineering from Louisiana State University, 2000

Publications / Presentations

Co-author, “The Safe Drilling Margin: Lessons Learned from the Macondo Blowout,” LOGA Industry Report (Summer 2015)
Co-author, “BP Oil Spill Lessons Learned,” Energy Executive (Spring 2015)
Co-author, “Supreme Court’s CAFA Decision Changes Law in Fifth Circuit,” American Bar Association’s Pretrial Practice & Discovery (June 2014)
“IvenTank: Five Steps for Inventing and Licensing,” New Orleans Entrepreneur Week (March 2014)

Representative Matters

Represents the property developer as lead defense liaison counsel in litigation surrounding the October 2019 collapse of the Hard Rock Hotel project in downtown New Orleans.
Represents the property developer in a $50 million construction defect case regarding a new 90-unit hotel development.
Represents the residents of a neighborhood that was built on top of a former oil facility regarding their personal injury and contamination claims.
Represents the property developer in a $5 million dispute with a sub-contractor regarding the rehabilitation of a former commercial building into a 200-unit apartment complex.
Represents multiple landowners in environmental contamination litigation against former oil and gas operators
Represents the property developer in a $20 million construction defect case regarding a 200-unit apartment complex.
Represents the property developer in a $15 million dispute against a potential general contractor regarding a $100 million rehabilitation of a 40-story office tower into a hotel.
Represented a manufacturer in a three-week trial involving a massive sinkhole that formed above a salt-mining cavern near Napoleonville, La., which resulted in a favorable liability allocation.
Represented an international driller in a four month trial involving one of our nation’s largest environmental disasters, in which thousands of plaintiffs, federal, state and local governments were seeking damages under the Clean Water Act and Oil Pollution Act, with the result that the driller was found not grossly negligent under the Clean Water Act, and that the operator of the well was obligated to indemnify the driller for all Oil Pollution Act Damages in the Deepwater Horizon MDL (MDL 10-M-2179).
Represented a refinery operator following a release of 25,000 barrels of oil into a residential area. Turner v Murphy Oil USA, Inc., Civil Action No. 2:05-cv-04206-EEF-JCW. Successfully restricted the geographic area of the certified class. Following this, created and developed an aggressive settlement plan which resulted in a global settlement. The client was ultimately indemnified for all settlement payments and defense expenses. Also represented operator in this matter in connection with remediation of the contaminated properties. Remediation was supervised by EPA and Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality.
Represented a major oil producer in a two week trial regarding damage to its production spar caused by the installation of defective, Chinese-manufactured bolts, resulting in a multi-million dollar award, including attorneys’ fees and costs.
Represented a seismic surveying company in a two week trial regarding claims that a competitor fraudulently misappropriated confidential information and trade secrets when the parties worked together to produce custom lithium batteries, resulting in a multi-million dollar jury award.
Represented a maritime company regarding potential exposure related to a designated CERCLA Superfund site.
Represented offshore operators, vessel owners, and service contractors regarding oil field personal injury and work-place exposure cases.
Represented a publicly traded metals company in mass tort actions involving facility air emissions.
Represented a facility owner in a solid waste landfill matter involving prior owners, EPA and state agencies.
Represented a building products manufacturer in litigation involving roofing materials on a high profile public arena.
Represented the manufacturer of seatbelt and air bag restraint systems in products liability and personal injury matters throughout Louisiana.
Represented a paper mill operator in 17 consolidated, environmental class action cases in connection with a large release into the Pearl River, with the matter settling prior to trial.
Represented refinery operators and contractors in environmental citizen suits under the Clean Air Act.
Represented businesses in economic loss claims resulting from the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill.
Represented an international building products manufacturer regarding thousands of class action claims associated with its allegedly defective Chinese-manufactured drywall.
Represented a refiner in the defense of hundreds of Clean Air Act permit violation claims brought by neighbors, including parallel enforcement proceedings undertaken by the state environmental regulator.
Represented oil companies regarding oil field legacy suits.
Represented property owners regarding damage and economic loss claims results from ship collisions and allisions.