Environmental Groups Seek Judge's Removal On Drilling Moratorium Case

2nd Jul 2010 20:13

By Tennille Tracy Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES WASHINGTON (Dow Jones)--Citing alleged financial conflicts, environmental groups on Friday asked U.S. District Court Judge Martin Feldman to suspend his recent decision to block the Obama's administration six-month ban on deepwater drilling. In a filing with the U.S. District Court, the groups said Judge Feldman's investments in oil and gas drilling companies raise questions about his impartiality in the case and they asked him to recuse himself. The groups' request follows the release of Judge Feldman's 2009 financial holdings, which showed the judge had owned stock in Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) in the days leading up to his June 22 ruling. The revelation sparked immediate criticism because Exxon Mobil was one of the companies affected by the administration's moratorium, having used a rig on which drilling was suspended under the ban. In a statement issued last month shortly after the release of his financial records, Judge Feldman said he learned of his investments in Exxon Mobil on June 21, the day before his ruling. He said he then instructed his broker to sell his stock the next morning. The judge also owned stock in other energy companies as of the end of 2009, including stakes in Allis-Chalmers Corp. (ALY), a Houston oilfield-service company, the financial records showed. "The court's financial holdings in various companies involved in oil and gas drilling raise in an objective mind a reasonable question concerning the court's impartiality in these proceedings," the environmental groups' motion says. Among the groups asking for the judge to recuse himself are Sierra Club, Natural Resources Defense Council and Defenders of Wildlife. -By Tennille Tracy, Dow Jones Newswires; 202-862-6619; [email protected] (END) Dow Jones Newswires July 02, 2010 15:13 ET (19:13 GMT)