Some states, such as Louisiana, have restrictive statutes against contracting for defense and indemnity provisions. Under federal maritime law, however, these defense and indemnity provisions may be permitted. This distinction creates frequent tension in offshore injury lawsuits between the application of the bordering state law (which may prohibit defense and indemnity provisions) and the application

In trip and fall litigation, the validity of a plaintiff’s claim often turns on whether the condition allegedly causing the fall is a so-called “open and obvious” risk of harm. That is, a risk of harm that is so obvious and discoverable that a reasonable person would have avoided the hazard, and ultimately, the injury.