West Jordan • As New Orleans began rebuilding after Hurricane Katrina struck in 2005, many residents were unable to prove they owned their late parents’ home because there was no will showing they had inherited the property.
Without clear title, getting disaster assistance to rebuild became difficult, according to Georgia State University law professor John Marshall, who worked with New Orleans authorities to help revitalize the city. He said the property title situation was just one of the issues that demonstrated the need for attorneys to help plan for a catastrophe.
“No matter who you are, no matter what hat you wear, there’s a role to play when disaster strikes,” Marshall said Wednesday at a two-day conference on emergency disaster law at the Viridian Center. “Everyone has a place at the table.”
The conference — the first of its kind in Utah, according to organizers — drew attorneys; first responders; city, county and state emergency managers; community development officials; and others involved in disaster response and recovery operations. The two-day event concluded Thursday.
Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill, who came up with the idea for the conference, said the event has been in the works for almost a year. Hurricanes Harvey and Irma have highlighted how agencies need to have the legal authority to address disasters, he said.
All sorts of unexpected issues can come up in a disaster, such as the need for a program to temporarily take care of evacuees’ pets, Gill said. He said Hurricane Katrina left 170,000 pets stranded and many residents were not willing to evacuate unless their animals came with them.
“I point that out as one little wrinkle out there because these are the kind of things that we need to think about,” Gill said. “The advantage we have right now is that we can prepare for those things.”
Marshall said legal issues arising from a disaster can involve insurance, housing plans, eminent domain power, land banks, building standards, code enforcement and management of donated goods.
In addition, local governments might need ordinances giving them emergency meeting authority when they can’t post legally required notices because the newspapers aren’t publishing and city hall is in shambles, Marshall said. And a housing nonprofit that helps low-income residents rebuild will need articles of incorporation and people to serve on its board of directors, he said.
Recovery efforts can be stalled if policies are not in place, Marshall said, adding that “recovery delayed is recovery denied.“
The conference was sponsored by the Salt Lake County District Attorney’s Office, the Utah Department of Public Safety Division of Emergency Management, the Governor’s Office of Emergency Management, the American Bar Association, the Utah State Bar and the Unified Fire Authority.