Attorneys for Sable Offshore learned the hard way this week what local court watchers have known now for nearly 30 years: Judge Thomas Pierce Anderle never changes his tentative ruling. It’s practically a law of physics.
Late this past Wednesday afternoon, Anderle stuck to his tentative ruling — released just the day before — against Sable Offshore in its long-festering, high-stakes showdown with the California Coastal Commission over major repair work the company did on its oil pipeline up the Gaviota Coast. But in the same hearing, Anderle also did something utterly out of character. For two and a half hours, he allowed attorneys for Sable to try to persuade him why he was wrong. Typically, Anderle restricts such arguments from attorneys on the losing side to just a few minutes. Ten tops.
When the dust settled and the last word was spoken, Anderle hadn’t been moved an inch…