Chief Judge Brian Jackson issued an “Omnibus Order Suspending All Deadlines” for cases pending or to be filed in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana. The Order explains that the court has been inaccessible—a key term in the Federal Rules of Civil and Appellate Procedure—since August 12, 2016 due to historic
The Flood of 2016: Governor Edwards Amends Executive Order Suspending Running of Prescription, Peremption, and Legal Delays
On August 17, 2016, Governor Edwards amended Executive Order JBE 2016-57 which had suspended the running of prescription, peremption, and all legal delays from August 12, 2016 until September 9, 2016. The amendment to Executive Order JBE 2016-57 modifies the suspension of deadlines as follows:
- Liberative prescription and peremptive periods continue to be suspended throughout
Pending Arbitration Agreements Rule: What Does This Mean For Your Company?
On Thursday, May 5, 2016, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued a notice of proposed rules that would fundamentally change the way certain businesses contract with consumers. Among other actions, the proposed rule would eliminate class action waivers from pre-dispute arbitration clauses and agreements for certain businesses. The announcement of the proposed rule was
Amendments to Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rein in Scope of Federal Discovery
On December 1, 2015, amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure took effect in an effort to rein in the scope of federal discovery. Several changes were made to Federal Rule 26 with the goal of reducing the substantial expense and unfairness of overbroad discovery.
Former Rule 26(b)(1) provided that:
Parties may obtain discovery
Louisiana Rejects Negligent Spoliation of Evidence as a Tort Claim
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, —
Louisiana Supreme Court Renders Landmark Decision in Hearing Loss Tort Claims
The Louisiana Supreme Court rendered a landmark decision on May 5 holding that gradual hearing loss tort claims against employers are barred because those claims are compensable under the Louisiana Workers Compensation Act (“the Act”) as an “occupational disease” under the Act’s post-1975 definition of that term and as an “accident” under the Act’s pre-1990
Spoliation of Evidence in Louisiana
Spoliation of evidence is the evidentiary doctrine that refers to destruction or significant alteration of evidence, or the failure to preserve evidence, for another’s use as evidence in pending or future litigation. While there can be a statutory duty, a contract, a special relationship between the parties, or an affirmative agreement or undertaking to preserve
The “Joint Defense” Privilege
The attorney-client privilege ranks among the oldest and most established evidentiary privileges known to our law. This privilege allows clients to communicate freely with legal counsel without worry of disclosure through discovery or at trial. Moreover, the joint defense privilege has been recognized as an extension of the attorney- client privilege which gives attorneys and clients alike additional room to share privileged information to third parties without creating a waiver. However, since its recognition, use of the joint defense privilege has created questions in the legal community regarding the discoverability of such information for use against a party to the joint defense in litigation.
In general, the joint defense privilege “extends the attorney-client privilege to any third party made privy to privileged communications if that party ‘has a common legal interest with respect to the subject matter of the communication.’’’ Aiken v. Texas Farm Bureau Mutual Ins. Co., 151 F.R.D. 621, 624 (E.D. Tex. 1993) (citing In re Auclair, 961 F.2d 65, 69 (5th Cir. 1992)). Moreover, the joint defense privilege “encompasses shared communications between various co-defendants, actual or potential, and their attorneys, prompted by threatened or actual, civil or criminal proceedings, ‘to the extent that they concern common issues and are intended to facilitate representation in possible subsequent proceedings’ … ‘or whenever the communication was made in order to facilitate the rendition of legal services to each of the clients involved in the conference.’” Id. at 624.Continue Reading The “Joint Defense” Privilege
American Arbitration Association Requires Registration of Consumer Arbitration Clauses
Beginning September 1, 2014, the American Arbitration Association (“AAA”) will require that any business using or intending to use the AAA rules in a consumer contract register the arbitration clause with the AAA. Upon submitting the clause, the AAA will review it for “material compliance” with the AAA’s due process standards contained in its Consumer
Louisiana Supreme Court Holds Terms and Conditions Binding Due to Course of Conduct and Forum Selection Clauses are not per se Violative of Public Policy
The use of standard form terms and conditions, without a signed contract, often leads to disputes over whether the parties actually agreed to be bound by such terms and conditions, as was the case in Shelter Mutual Insurance Co. v. Rimkus Consulting Group, Inc. of Louisiana, et al., 2013-1977 (La. 7/1/14). In that case,