La. Court Vacates Chinese Drywall Judgment, Says Parties May Have Violated MDL Settlement Stay Order

BATON ROUGE, La. — A state trial court may not have had jurisdiction to enter judgment for Western World Insurance Co. in a Chinese drywall suit after the insurer was named a third-party defendant by a home seller seeking coverage for defense costs related to the case, a Louisiana appeals court has ruled.

In a June 7 decision vacating the trial court decision, the First Circuit Louisiana Court of Appeal said that it was unable to determine from the record whether the judgment violated a stay order entered in federal court after supplier Interior Exterior Building Supply Co. agreed to …