January trial slated in suit over repair of offshore vessels

A January 2016 trial has been slated in litigation brought over the repair of offshore vessels.

Copper and Manufacturing Corporation filed a petition to depose Seabed Geosolutions Inc. to investigate a potential suit Nov. 4, 2014, in Jefferson County District Court.

Now that the case is a full-blown suit, a discovery control plan order was entered on March 26, calling for the case to be mediated on or before Nov. 16 or face a trial in January.

According to the complaint, Gulf Copper and Seabed entered into a contract April 18, 2014, whereby Gulf Copper would repair five Hornbeck Offshore Services vessels, HOS Bourre, HOS Chicory, HOS Coquille, HOS Innovator and HOS Navegante, but the two parties ended up in a dispute over payment which they resolved out of court.

The petition states it was then discovered that a third party engendered the dispute by telling Seabed that it was grossly overbilled by Gulf Copper.

Gulf Copper is represented by attorneys David E. James and Lyn Stevens of Stevens Baldo Freeman & Lighty of Beaumont.

Jefferson County District Court case number: A-196365.