The Fifth Circuit issued an important decision on April 7, 2020, Texas Brine Company, L.L.C. v. American Arbitration Assoc. et al, No. 18-31184 (5th Cir. 2020). For the first time, the Court analyzed the propriety of “snap removals.” Those can occur when a plaintiff sues several defendants in state court. Complete diversity between the
In asbestos-related injury claims, some states, including Louisiana, base an insurer’s liability for defense and indemnity on the amount of time an insurer is “on the risk.” For instance, if a claimant was exposed to asbestos for a ten year period and the insurer issued policies covering five of those ten years, the insurer is
The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals “adopt[ed] a bright-line rule [on January 11, 2018]: Section 1446(b)(3)’s removal clock begins ticking upon receipt of the deposition transcript” as opposed to running from the date of the deposition testimony. The decision in Morgan v. Huntington Ingalls, Inc., et al, No. 17-30523, __ F.3d __ (5th
In Louisiana, the collateral source rule mandates that a tort plaintiff be awarded the full value of his medical expenses against the tortfeasor, including any amounts written off by the provider, when that plaintiff paid some “consideration” (money) for the benefit of the written-off amount. In other words, even though a person may have health
For years, plaintiffs in asbestos litigation have been filing suit in the plaintiff-friendly jurisdictions of St. Louis, Missouri and Madison County, Illinois. Some estimate that more than half of all mesothelioma claims filed in the United States are filed in Illinois and Missouri. Many of those claims arise out of alleged exposures completely outside of
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
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:
As previously reported, the Louisiana Supreme Court heard oral argument in Oleszkowicz v. Exxon Mobil Oil Corporation, et al. and Chauvin v. Exxon Mobil Corporation, et al., regarding the dispute as to whether claims for punitive damages are barred by res judicata. The court recently issued opinions in these cases.
To recap, a
The Louisiana Supreme Court recently heard oral argument in two cases, Oleszkowicz v. Exxon Mobil Oil Corporation, et al. and Chauvin v. Exxon Mobil Corporation, et al., both involving a plaintiff’s damages for potential exposure to naturally occurring radioactive material (NORM). This is the second lawsuit for both plaintiffs against the same defendant, for the
Recently, the Louisiana Supreme Court granted a writ application to the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeal in Watkins v. Exxon Mobil Corporation, et. al.—an action involving plaintiff’s damages from decedent’s potential NORM (i.e., naturally occurring radioactive material) exposure. The central issue before the court is whether the one-year period to