A.
Art. 1563.Limited Admission of Liability In Environmental Damage Lawsuits; Effect
Book II. Ordinary Proceedings · Title V. Trial · Chapter 1. Consolidation of Cases and Separate Trials · Amendment history unavailable · Last verified July 30, 2026
In one sentenceArticle 1563 lets a defendant who admits liability for environmental damage under R.S. 30:29 make a limited admission confined to implementing the most feasible remediation plan, triggering a Department of Energy and Natural Resources hearing on that plan, a funding deposit, and a reimbursement obligation, without admitting liability for damages or giving up any defenses.
Full Text of Art. 1563
(1) If any party admits liability for environmental damage pursuant to R.S.30:29, that party may elect to limit this admission of liability for environmental damage to responsibility for implementing the most feasible plan to evaluate, and if necessary, remediate all or a portion of the contamination that is the subject of the litigation to applicable regulatory standards, hereinafter referred to as a "limited admission". A limited admission shall not be construed as an admission of liability for damages under R.S.30:29(H), nor shall a limited admission result in a waiver of any rights or defenses of the admitting party.
(2) Upon the expiration of the delay in which a party may file a limited admission under Subparagraph (5) of this Paragraph, and if one or more of the defendants have made a timely limited admission, the court shall refer the matter to the Department of Energy and Natural Resources, office of conservation, hereinafter referred to as the "department", to conduct a public hearing to approve or structure a plan which the department determines to be the most feasible plan to evaluate or remediate the environmental damage under the applicable regulatory standards pursuant to the provisions of R.S.30:29. There shall be a rebuttable presumption that the plan approved or structured by the department, after consultation with the Department of Environmental Quality as appropriate, shall be the most feasible plan to evaluate or remediate the environmental damage under the applicable regulatory standards pursuant to the provisions of R.S.30:29. For cases tried by a jury, the court shall instruct the jury regarding this presumption if requested by a party.
(4) At any time after the filing of a civil action subject to the provisions of R.S.30:29 and, absent good cause shown, no later than ninety days after the completion of the environmental testing set forth in the environmental management order issued by the court pursuant to the Code of Civil Procedure Article 1552, any party may make a limited admission by filing the same into the record of the court proceeding.
(5) Any other party who intends to make a limited admission for the same or any other environmental damage shall file it into the record of the court proceeding within sixty days of the filing of the first limited admission by another party. Any limited admission filed by another party after the first limited admission is filed shall be filed no later than ninety days following the completion of the environmental testing set forth in the environmental management order.
(6) The party making a limited admission shall be required to deposit with the department sufficient funds to cover the cost of the department's review of the plans or submittals under R.S.30:29, including the cost of holding a public hearing to approve or structure the feasible plan. The initial payment of these costs shall be in an amount of one hundred thousand dollars. This initial payment shall be deposited prior to or along with the submission of the plan by the admitting party. The admitting party shall be entitled to reimbursement of any portion of the deposit that is unused by the department. Within thirty days of the department's filing of the plan, the party admitting responsibility for implementing the most feasible plan shall reimburse the plaintiff for those costs which the court determines to be recoverable under R.S.30:29(E)(1).
B. The provisions of this Article shall not establish primary jurisdiction with the Department of Energy and Natural Resources.
Plain-English Summary
A defendant who admits liability for environmental damage under R.S. 30:29 does not have to admit everything at once. Article 1563 lets that defendant make a “limited admission” confined to responsibility for implementing the most feasible plan to evaluate, and if necessary remediate, the contamination at issue, to applicable regulatory standards. A limited admission is not an admission of liability for damages, and it does not waive any of the admitting party's other rights or defenses, letting a defendant volunteer for cleanup responsibility while still contesting damages and other liability questions at trial.
Once the filing window for limited admissions has closed and at least one defendant has made a timely one, the court refers the matter to the Department of Energy and Natural Resources, office of conservation, to hold a public hearing and approve or structure the most feasible remediation plan. A rebuttable presumption favors the department's plan, and a jury hearing the case gets instructed on that presumption if a party asks. The limited admission, the department's plan, and the agencies' written comments all come into evidence, subject to the Evidence Code's expert-evidence rules.
Timing and cost-sharing are built into the process. A party may file a limited admission any time after suit is filed, generally no later than ninety days after the environmental testing ordered by the court is complete. Other parties wanting to make their own limited admission get sixty days from the first filing, or the same ninety-day post-testing deadline if that comes later. The admitting party must fund the department's review with an initial deposit of one hundred thousand dollars, gets back whatever the department does not use, and must reimburse the plaintiff's recoverable costs within thirty days of the department's filing of the plan.
Article 1563 also makes clear that none of this hands the underlying case over to the agency. The department's role in approving or structuring the remediation plan does not establish primary jurisdiction with the Department of Energy and Natural Resources; the lawsuit stays in court.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a limited admission under Article 1563?
A defendant's election to confine an admission of liability for environmental damage to responsibility for implementing the most feasible remediation plan, without admitting liability for damages or waiving any rights or defenses.
Does a limited admission mean the defendant admits it owes damages?
No. A limited admission is expressly not an admission of liability for damages, and it does not waive any rights or defenses the admitting party otherwise has.
Who approves the remediation plan after a limited admission is filed?
The Department of Energy and Natural Resources, office of conservation, after a public hearing, with a rebuttable presumption favoring the plan the department approves or structures.
Does filing a limited admission cost the defendant money up front?
Yes. The admitting party must deposit funds to cover the department's review costs, starting with an initial payment of one hundred thousand dollars, and must later reimburse the plaintiff for recoverable costs.
Can more than one defendant file a limited admission in the same case?
Yes. A defendant who wants to make its own limited admission after the first one is filed generally has sixty days to do so, or until the ninety-day post-testing deadline if that comes later.
Source & verification. Article text is reproduced verbatim from
the Louisiana Code of Civil Procedure (legis.la.gov). Enacted by the Louisiana Legislature.
Last verified July 30, 2026.
· Official source
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