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The Louisiana Supreme Court recently determined that there is no tort liability for negligent spoliation of evidence.  “Regardless of any alleged source of the duty, whether general or specific, public policy in our state precludes the existence of a duty to preserve evidence.  Thus, there is no tort.”  Reynolds v. Bordelon, No. 2014-2362, — So.3d — , 2015 WL 3972370 (La. 6/30/2015).

The lawsuit that led to the Reynolds decision was filed as a result of multi-vehicle accident that occurred in 2008.  Reynolds filed suit against the other driver and against Nissan North America, the manufacturer of his own car, based on the allegation that his airbag did not deploy as it should have.  The petition also alleged that his insurer and his insurer’s custodian for his vehicle were liable for damages relating to their failure to preserve his vehicle for inspection after he specifically put them on notice that the vehicle needed to be preserved.  The trial court eventually sustained the insurer and storage company’s exceptions of no cause of action, which means that the facts stated in the petition, accepted as true, did not entitle the plaintiff to any legal relief against them.

After reviewing the foundation of tort liability under Louisiana law, the history of negligence and intentional spoliation-based claims in Louisiana and other states, and considering many duty and policy-related factors, the Louisiana Supreme Court concluded that “Louisiana law does not recognize the duty to preserve evidence in the context of negligent spoliation.”  While the factual scenario presented in the Reynolds case dealt with third-party negligence, the logic could be applied to situations where a party to a litigation negligently allowed spoliation to occur, particularly if it occurred before that party was on notice of a potential claim.  This decision offers no comfort to litigation parties who allow or encourage spoliation.  The Court specifically noted that discovery sanctions and criminal sanctions are available for first-party spoliators, and that Louisiana recognizes an adverse presumption against litigants who had access to evidence and did not make it available or destroyed it.

For more information on spoliation and how it can affect Louisiana litigation, please click here.