Articles Posted in Dué, Guidry, Piedrahita & Andrews Firm News

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On May 15, 2014, a West Baton Rouge Parish jury awarded $825,751 to a woman whose vehicle was rear-ended by an Entergy bucket truck.

Baton Rouge attorneys, Randy Piedrahita and Don Cazayoux, argued the Entergy Bucket truck totaled forty-one year-old Lana Averette’s car, causing her significant injuries. “Two-thirds of the award was for Lana’s medical bills, the rest being for her lost wages and other damages,” said Randy Piedrahita, lead counsel. The 11-1 jury verdict came after four of Lana’s doctors testified her injuries required $500,000 of future medical care so she could return to the workforce. No award for future losses from the date of trial forward besides medical expenses was requested by Lana Averette’s attorney, as her doctors said so long as the medical procedures were done, she would be able to return to work. “We couldn’t ask the jury to believe these treatments would work and then in the same breath ask them to make an award just in case they didn’t,” Piedrahita said. “We’re glad the jury came back with a quick verdict that vindicated everything Lana and her doctors were saying.” It is unknown whether Entergy will be appealing this jury verdict.

Randy Piedrahita is an attorney with the firm of Dué Guidry Piedrahita Andrews Courrege L.C. and is a candidate for 19th JDC District Judge for the Parish of East Baton Rouge. Don Cazayoux is an attorney with the firm of Cazayoux Ewing and is a former Congressman, State Representative, and United States Attorney.

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Louisiana trial lawyers, Paul H. Dué and B. Scott Andrews, of the Baton Rouge, Louisiana personal injury law firm of Dué Guidry Piedrahita Andrews Courrege L.C. have been selected for 2014 membership in The National Trial Lawyers Top 100 Trial Lawyers.

The National Trial Lawyers is a member-driven organization composed of premier trial lawyers from across the country who meet stringent qualifications. Only top trial lawyers from Louisiana who are actively practicing in civil plaintiff and/or criminal defense law are eligible for invitation. Invitees must demonstrate superior qualifications, leadership skills, and trial results as a legal professional. The selection process for this elite honor is based on a multi-phase process which includes peer nominations combined with third party research.

Prospective members of The National Trial Lawyers are carefully screened prior to receiving an invitation for membership. Membership is not automatically renewed; attorneys are reevaluated annually to determine whether their activities and accomplishments qualify them for continued membership.
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For the second straight year, Louisiana Super Lawyers has selected every member (Paul H. Dué, Kirk A. Guidry, Randy A. Piedrahita and B. Scott Andrews) of the Baton Rouge, Louisiana personal injury law firm of Dué Guidry Piedrahita Andrews Courrege L.C..

The reason each member has been selected for inclusions in the 2014 Louisiana Super Lawyers list in the practice area of Personal Injury is clear – more than 27 years of handling referrals of complex and difficult personal injury cases from lawyers around the world. The firm’s success is rooted in academia, with all firm members having graduated at the top of their law school class and having served as members of or as editors of their Law Reviews. The firm boasts two former Louisiana Supreme Court law clerks, a former U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals law clerk, an Adjunct Professor of Law, two past Presidents of the Louisiana Association for Justice (LAJ), and both a former Louisiana appellate judge and an esteemed University of Texas Law Professor “of counsel”.

This academic background, combined with dedication, hard work and extensive experience, has led to hundreds of millions of dollars in judgments, settlements and verdicts. The firm’s success has been shared with the extensive number of attorneys around the world who have referred complex personal injury cases to the firm – and who find the firm’s experience and funding assistance invaluable in representing their seriously injured clients.

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For the fourth consecutive year, the Baton Rouge, Louisiana personal injury law firm of Dué Guidry Piedrahita Andrews Courrege L.C. has been recognized in the “Best Law Firms” rankings by U.S. News & World Report and Best Lawyers. The firm was recognized for 2014 in the plaintiff practice areas of Personal Injury Litigation, Product Liability Litigation, Medical Malpractice, and Admiralty & Maritime Law.

Firms included in the 2014 “Best Law Firms” list are recognized for professional excellence with persistently impressive ratings from clients and peers. Achieving a tiered ranking signals a unique combination of quality law practice and breadth of legal expertise.

“U.S. News has more than two decades of experience in providing the public with the most accurate and in-depth rankings of a wide range of institutions, including our Best Law Schools rankings,” says Tim Smart, Executive Editor of U.S. News & World Report. “Law firms are an integral part of our rankings and a natural accompaniment to the law school rankings.”

The 2014 rankings are based on the highest number of participating firms and highest number of client ballots on record. To be eligible for a ranking, a firm must have a lawyer listed in The Best Lawyers in America©, which recognizes the top 4 percent of practicing attorneys in the US. Over 12,000 attorneys provided over 330,000 law firm assessments, and almost 7,000 clients provided close to 20,000 evaluations. In addition, to provide personal insight, a new Law Firm Leaders Survey was implemented in the decision-making process.

“Because we combine hard data with peer reviews and client assessments,” says Steven Naifeh, President and Co-Founder of Best Lawyers, “more and more clients inform us ours are the most thorough, accurate, and helpful rankings of law firms ever developed.”

Ranked firms, presented in tiers, are listed on a national and/or metropolitan scale. Receiving a tier designation reflects the high level of respect a firm has earned among other leading lawyers and clients in the same communities and the same practice areas for their abilities, their professionalism and their integrity.
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The Wex Malone American Inn of Court met on October 30, 2013. Shown are Inn members who presented a one hour CLE titled, “Better Call Saul.” From right to left: Chris Cascio, Grant Herrin, Judge Charlene Day, Judge Pam Baker, Randy Piedrahita (moderator), and Monica Vela-Vick.

American Inns of Court (AIC) are designed to improve the skills, professionalism and ethics of the bench and bar. The Wex Malone American Inn of Court is an amalgam of judges, lawyers, and law students. The Inn meets approximately once a month both to “break bread” and to hold programs and discussions on matters of ethics, skills and professionalism.

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At the September 26, 2013 meeting of the Capital City Republican Women at BREC’s Independence Park, Baton Rouge, Louisiana attorney, Randy A. Piedrahita, discussed Louisiana’s Stand Your Ground Law. Piedrahita was joined in the lively and informative discussion by Rep. Barry Ivey, Police Chief Carl Dabadie Jr., and Greg Phares.

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In McBride v. Estis Well Service, 12-30714 (5th Cir. 10/2/13), the United States Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals held that Jones Act Seamen may recover punitive damages for their employer’s willful and wanton breach of the general maritime law duty to provide a seaworthy vessel. Such breach reflects a reckless disregard for the safety of the crew, who remain “wards of admiralty” deserving special protection under maritime law.

The general maritime law cause of action (unseaworthiness) and remedy (punitive damages) were established before passage of the Jones Act, and the Jones Act did not address that cause of action or remedy. Thus, the Fifth Circuit held that the punitive damages remedy remains available under that unseaworthiness cause of action unless and until Congress intercedes.

The Court concluded as follows: “Like maintenance and cure, unseaworthiness was established as a general maritime claim before the passage of the Jones Act, punitive damages were available under general maritime law, and the Jones Act does not address unseaworthiness or limit its remedies. We conclude, therefore, that punitive damages remain available to seamen as a remedy for the general maritime law claim of unseaworthiness.”

The Fifth Circuit cited as authority three law review and journal articles authored by University of Texas School of Law Distinguished Teaching Professor and W. Page Keeton Chair in Tort Law, David W. Robertson. Professor Robertson is one of the nation’s leading experts in admiralty law and serves of counsel to the Baton Rouge, Louisiana admiralty and maritime law firm of Dué Guidry Piedrahita Andrews Courrege L.C..
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BATON ROUGE–Eleven neighbors of the Monolyte Labs Inc. chemical facility in Slaughter, Louisiana filed a lawsuit in the 19th Judicial District Court in Baton Rouge on September 24, 2013 for injuries and damages that resulted from the November 9, 2012, explosion and fire that destroyed the facility and required a middle-of-the-night evacuation of residents from their homes.

The residents, represented by the Baton Rouge, Louisiana personal injury law firm of Dué Guidry Piedrahita Andrews Courrege L.C. are experiencing a range of symptoms resulting from the blaze and subsequent protracted and continuing cleanup of the site. The fire destroyed the facility, which blended various toxic chemicals for use in the water treatment industry. The Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality had to repeatedly issue orders to owners of the facility to clean up the extensive chemical release and spill that resulted from the fire. Extremely strong chemical odors permeated blocks around the plant site for months following the explosion and fire.

Plaintiffs have experienced respiratory and other ailments since the incident. The five-year-old daughter of a couple whose home was near the Monolyte facility has required more than 20 trips to doctors and hospitals–some by ambulance–for treatment of respiratory problems since the Nov. 9 fire and release of chemicals. The lawsuit also claims losses other than physical injuries, such as diminished property values.

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Sitting en banc, the Louisiana Third Circuit Court of Appeal recently affirmed the highest general damage award to a minor child for the wrongful death of a parent in Louisiana. The jury awarded $2.5 million in general damages to the minor boy for the devastating loss of his non-custodial mother, with whom he had a close relationship. The Louisiana Third Circuit Court of Appeal approved the following separate elements of wrongful death general damages and explained how each was different from the other:

1) Past, present and future mental anguish, grief and anxiety
2) Past, present and future loss of love and affection
3) Past, present and future loss of society, services and consortium

Mental anguish and grief refers to the pain, discomfort, inconvenience, anguish, and emotional trauma that accompany the injury. This includes the initial shock, anxiety, and distress that a minor child experiences as a result of the loss of a parent. Put another way, grief is the presence of an emotion as a result of a loved one’s death.

Loss of love and affection, on the other hand, goes beyond the initial grief and emotional trauma. These damages compensate the minor child for the enduring and irreversible loss of his parent. While grief and anguish will wane over time, the minor child will always feel the absence of the traditional characteristics of the parent-child relationship. Loss of love and affection is the absence of an experience; specifically, the absence of a love previously bestowed.

The factors for loss of consortium include loss of society and companionship, loss of support and family income, and loss of performance of material services, including educational and household help for children.

Rachel v. Brouillette, 12-794 (La.App. 3 Cir. 3/13/13), 111 So.3d 1137, 1142-43, writ denied, 2013-0690 (La.5/3/13), 113 So.3d 217 (Affirming the jury’s general damage award of $1 million for past, present and future mental anguish, grief and anxiety; $1 million for past, present, and future loss of love and affection; and $500,000 for loss of society, services and consortium. An additional $300,000 award for loss of support was also affirmed.).

Prior to Rachel, $750,000 was the highest general damage award ever affirmed by a Louisiana court for the wrongful death of a minor child’s parent. See Raymond v. Gov’t Employees Ins. Co., 09-1327 (La.App. 3 Cir. 6/2/10), 40 So.3d 1179, writ denied, 10-1569 (La.10/8/10), 46 So.3d 1268.
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Last year before the November Presidential election, former Counsel for the Democratic Party and Executive Committee Member Randy Piedrahita quietly switched his voter registration to Republican. On June 11, 2013, at the Ronald Reagan Newsmaker Luncheon, Randy and two other former Democratic officials were formally welcomed into the GOP by East Baton Rouge Parish Republican Chairman Woody Jenkins and State GOP Chairman Roger Villere. Randy briefly spoke to thank the Republicans for their warm welcome and to note that, as the son of legal immigrants and a Lifetime NRA member, he was aligned with them on many issues ranging from gun control and entitlement abuse to fiscal reform and encouraging self versus governmental reliance. Randy fielded questions and discussed constitutional and historical roots of gun rights, and is looking forward to working with Republicans to better this State and these United States.