The Louisiana Supreme Court issued the following Per Curiam opinion in Williamson v. Hebert, 10-0071 (La. 4/5/10), regarding the interruption of prescription in a medical malpractice case based on the discovery rule: “In Campo v. Correa, 01-2707 (La. 6/21/02), 828 So. 2d 502, 511, we explained ‘a plaintiff’s mere apprehension…
“The right to representation by counsel is not a formality. It is not a grudging gesture to a ritualistic requirement. It is of the essence of justice.” Kent v. United States, 383 U.S. 541, 561 (1966).
On my way back from a meeting in North Louisiana on Wednesday, March 31, 2010, I was detoured off of U.S. Highway 61 and around downtown St. Francisville, Louisiana, due to a overturned 18 wheeler that had spilled toxic and hazardous chemicals into the adjacent ditch in the middle of…
The $350,000 non-economic cap on medical malpractice damages in Georgia was declared to be an unconstitutional violation of the right to jury trial by a unanimous Georgia Supreme Court on March 22, 2010. The Georgia Supreme Court ruled that the 2005 law “clearly nullifies the jury’s findings of fact regarding…
On March 16, 2010, the Louisiana Supreme Court in Menard v. Lafayette Insurance Company, 09-1869, found that the Louisiana Third Circuit Court of Appeal erred in its application of the manifest error standard of review in increasing a jury’s award for future medical expenses in a personal injury case. The…
The Louisiana Supreme Court on March 16, 2010, reversed in part and affirmed in part the matter of Brewer v. J.B. Hunt Transport, 2009-1408 c/w 2009-1428. Brewer was permanently and severely injured when his pick-up truck rear-ended and rode underneath an 18 wheeler on I-12 in Livingston Parish, Louisiana. The…
The State of Louisiana’s Office of Risk Management is being privatized. Louisiana Commissioner of Administration Angele Davis announced that F.A. Richard & Associates, Inc. (FARA) will take over the adjusting and management of all property and casualty claims and loss prevention for the State of Louisiana’s self-insured risks. It is…
On March 3, 2010, the operator of a Harley Davidson motorcycle changed lanes into the path of an International 18 wheeler as he approached the Gause Boulevard exit on I-10 in Slidell, Louisiana. The motorcycle operator was pronounced dead at the scene from the injuries sustained in the motorcycle wreck.…
A 2007 International 18-wheeler driver fell asleep and crossed the center line of Louisiana Highway 24 in Larose, Lafourche Parish, Louisiana, killing a Dodge truck driver. The pick-up driver was unable to avoid the collision with the oncoming big rig. According to a study conducted by the Institute for Traffic…
I am a Baton Rouge, Louisiana medical malpractice lawyer who recently underwent a minor overnight medical procedure that resulted in an unexpected and severe burn injury to my face. When I left the hospital, the extent of the burn injury was suspected to be minor and the cause was unknown.…