Dave Domina and Brian Jorde filed two new lawsuits in Nebraska to stop TransCanada from taking land from Nebraska farmers and ranchers for its KXL Pipeline. The suits were filed Friday in Holt and York Counties.
Susan and William Dunavan, Terri Herrington, and James Tarpik sued TransCanada in York County, about 50 miles west of Lincoln. Terry Steskal, Suz Straka Heyden and Richard Kilmurry sued the company in Holt County, about 150 miles northwest of Lincoln near the South Dakota border.
Dave Domina explained, "in our first case, the suit was filed after the Legislature passed the challenged law and before the Governor acted. That make State Officials the proper parties. Now, TransCanada is actively invoking LB1161 with condemnation threats and statements so it is the party that must be sued."
Aside from the Defendant's identity Domina said, the new cases present the same issues of constitutional law that have met with approval by every Nebraska Judge who has voted on the law's validity thus far."
Last Friday, four members of the State Supreme Court voted to declare the law central to TransCanada's efforts in Nebraska unconstitutional and void. Three members declined to vote on the constitutional issue due to a disagreement over the rights of taxpayers to sue the Governor in the case.
Domina said, "the taxpayer standing issue is not involved in the new cases." We know now what we did not know when the first case was filed: the identities of the targeted landowners."
The landowners who oppose TransCanada's project have expressed strong displeasure with what they see as the company's pushy methods, repeated threats and misleading offers. "We are committed to getting an answer to the question: is the current Nebraska law constitutional or not under our State structure. These cases will smoke out the final three votes on the Supreme Court."
Read the complaints below: