Background
Capital City Press, LLC d/b/a The Advocate, Peter Kovacs, and Danny Heitman sought supervisory review of an April 20, 2026 judgment from Louisiana’s 18th Judicial District Court in Iberville Parish. That judgment granted sanctions against the defendants.
The defendants proceeded by filing a notice of intent to seek supervisory writs. The First Circuit considered whether the sanctions judgment should instead be reviewed through an ordinary appeal.
The Court’s Holding
The First Circuit granted the writ application for the limited purpose of remanding the matter. It held that the April 20 sanctions judgment was appealable under Louisiana Code of Civil Procedure article 1915(A)(6).
Because the defendants had an adequate remedy by appeal, the court instructed the district court to grant them an appeal based on their notice of intent to seek supervisory writs. The First Circuit also ordered that a copy of its order be included in the appellate record. It did not decide whether the sanctions were substantively proper.
Key Takeaways
- A Louisiana judgment granting sanctions is immediately appealable under article 1915(A)(6).
- When an adequate appellate remedy exists, supervisory review ordinarily is unnecessary.
- The First Circuit converted the defendants’ writ effort into an appeal by remanding with instructions to grant one.
Why It Matters
The order clarifies the proper procedural route for challenging a sanctions judgment in Louisiana’s First Circuit. A party that seeks supervisory review of such a judgment may be directed to pursue an appeal instead.
The ruling is procedural only: it preserves appellate review for the defendants but expresses no view on the merits of the sanctions imposed against them.