Opinion ID: 2534600
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Cimarex

Text: In short, Cimarex argues that because there were competing claims to the same royalty payments, the concursus was justified. Concursus is properly used as a way for a stakeholder to avoid multiple litigation as well as potential liability. Thus, by depositing the amount of the royalty payments due into the registry of the court, Cimarex should have been relieved of any further liability to the winning claimant. Cimarex further argues that a stakeholder should not have to do its own evaluation of the competing claims to decide which have merit before filing a concursus. Concursus law protects stakeholders from liability by putting the burden on the competing claimants, not the stakeholder, to prove the merits of their competing claims, and further protects stakeholders by putting the task of determining which of the claims is entitled to the disputed proceeds in the hands of the court. Without instituting a legal proceeding, there was no way for Cimarex, or its attorney, to investigate the Mauboules' claim. Had Cimarex simply paid Orange River, Cimarex would have risked future litigation, whether ultimately successful or notthe exact situation that concursus is designed to prevent. Further, Cimarex disputes Orange River's contention that the Mauboules never made an adverse claim and have never asserted fraud. Cimarex points to the preconcursus correspondence between Privat and Cimarex, as well as the Mauboules' opposition to Orange River's motion for summary judgment, in which the Mauboules argue why the issue of error/fraud as to the principal cause of the royalty deeds precluded a judgment awarding the disputed royalties to Orange River. Cimarex points out that there were no factual findings by the trial court that its conduct was a result of fraud, deceit, unconscionability or bad faith. Orange River's argument that Cimarex's conduct was egregious is not based on any factual finding by the trial court. Once the court accepted the deposit of funds from Cimarex, Cimarex lost control of those funds, and could not have made payment directly to any claimant without direction from the court. Cimarex argues that, pursuant to La. C.C.P. art. 4658, because it made payment of the disputed funds into the registry of the court, it should have been insulated from statutory penalties based on an alleged failure to pay in response to statutory notice.