Opinion ID: 6109941
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: The Attorney General May Sue on Behalf of the Board

Text: The State and Pilot both present arguments as to whether the attorney general himself has standing to initiate a lawsuit against Pilot in this matter. The State argues the circuit court erred in finding the attorney general lacked standing to sue Pilot on the Board's behalf. The circuit court determined the attorney general possessed no power to bring a lawsuit because the legislature has not explicitly delegated any authority to the attorney general to bring such a case and because, according to the circuit court, the Fund implicates no rights and interests of the state. Section 27.060. The parties' focus on whether the attorney general himself has standing independent of its authority to bring suit on behalf of the Board is a red herring. The attorney general is empowered to represent the Board under section 27.060, which provides the attorney general with the power to institute ... all civil suits and other proceedings at law or equity requisite or necessary to protect the rights and interests of the state. Though the circuit court found the Fund is not a right or interest of the state, this Court disagrees. The Fund plainly implicates state interests. The attorney general has the authority to seek enforcement of the legislature's statutory purposes. Fogle v. State , 295 S.W.3d 504 , 510 (Mo. App. 2009). The legislature created the initial petroleum insurance fund to assist with cleanup of contamination caused by leaking tanks, which serves the purpose of limiting environmental and public health hazards from leaking underground storage tanks containing regulated substances. Rees Oil Co. & Rees Petroleum Prods., Inc. v. Dir. of Revenue , 992 S.W.2d 354 , 356 (Mo. App. 1999). Naturally, the legislature's statutory purposes in enacting section 319.129 included aiding owners of petroleum storage tanks in remedying any leaks or spills, and the participation agreements  into which the parties entered allowed the Board to do just that. Here, the Board is the real party in interest seeking recovery [from Pilot]. ConocoPhillips , 493 S.W.3d at 403 . The attorney general is merely representing the Board, at the Board's request, as he is authorized to do. Id. at 403-04 . Accordingly, this Court need not address the attorney general's own potential standing to sue Pilot. He is authorized to do so on behalf of the Board under section 27.060.