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Partner Chris Jones was installed yesterday as a Director-at-large for the Board of Directors for the Baton Rouge Bar Association at a ceremony held at the United States District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana.
This list is compiled by gathering data from general counsel to Fortune 500 Companies. The list is distributed annually to In-House Counsel at all Fortune 500 Companies as well as to leading business executives and law firms.Mary Anne Wolf will present a seminar on professional liability at the annual Louisiana Engineering Society conference in Lafayette on January 23, 2013. www.les-state.org.
We are proud to announce that Gracella Simmons has been named a Super Lawyer 2013. Super Lawyers honors attorneys who have been nominated by their peers and evaluated through independent research. No more than five percent of the attorneys in a state can be named to the Super Lawyer list: www.superlawyers.com.
Keogh Cox participated in its traditional blood drive with Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center on December 17, 2012 at our offices. Participating in the blood drive were Missy Troxclair, Casey Tompley, Gracella Simmons, Rhonda Pumphrey, Steve Whitlow, Connie Easterly, Richard Wolff, Betty Barnes and Nancy Gilbert.
Gracella Simmons has been appointed to the Law Institute Committee on Expedited Jury Trials. The mission of the committee is to draft proposed legislation for the implementation of expedited jury trials in Louisiana. In connection with this appointment, she served as a panelist at the seminars conducted by the Louisiana Association of Defense Counsel and the Judicial College in New Orleans on December 7, 2012.
BP OIL SPILL LITIGATION: A federal judge recently approved BP’s settlement with businesses and individuals who lost money because of the 2010 oil spill. BP estimated it will pay $7.8 billion to resolve economic and medical claims for more than 100,000 businesses and individuals. The settlement has no cap. In his decision, U.S. District Judge Carl Barbier outlined that none of the objections to the settlement have shown the settlement to be anything other than fair, reasonable and adequate. BP has already begun paying claims.SAME-SEX SEXUAL HARASSMENT: In EEOC v. Boh Bros. Construction Co. ___ F. 3d ___ (5 Cir. 2012), Kerry Woods filed suit against Boh Bros. for alleged same-sex sexual harassment by his crew superintendent. The superintendent allegedly referred to him with improper epithets and made lewd gestures in his direction. After complaining of the behavior, Woods was transferred to another construction crew. A year later, Woods was laid off for lack of work; thereafter, he filed an EEOC charge of discrimination. The EEOC brought an enforcement action.Apparently sympathetic to Woods, the jury returned a substantial verdict for actual and punitive damages. Despite evidence that the superintendent was a "world-class trash talker" and "master of vulgarity" and proof that Woods was a primary and constant victim of this offensive behavior, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals found that it was not the court’s business "to clean up the language and conduct of construction sites." Title VII is not a general civility code, and it protects employees against discrimination, not against all forms of mistreatment. The Court found insufficient evidence that the superintendent acted "on the basis of gender" in his treatment of Woods. The lower court’s judgment was vacated and the case remanded.WORKERS' COMPENSATION AND ATTORNEYS' FEES: In Bihm v. Unit Drilling Co., WCA 12-569 (11/7/12), the Third Circuit Court of Appeals increased the lower court’s award of $60.00-$104.80 to $200.00 per hour in fees where the defendant raised every possible defense imaginable in its answer so as to preclude early resolution of the single issue in the case. The Court outlined, "It is clear to this court that the defendants intended to make it as difficult and expensive as possible for the claimant to pursue his right to medical care."
CLASS ACTIONS & PRESCRIPTION: In Duckworth v Louisiana Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Company, 2011-2835 (La. 11/2/12), the Louisiana Supreme Court granted certiorari to resolve whether a member of a putative class was entitled to the suspension of prescription provided for in La. C.C.P. art. 596 when an independent, individual lawsuit is filed before a ruling on the class certification issue.In this context, the Supreme Court held that, because plaintiffs were members of the proposed "class", they were entitled to the benefits of the suspension of prescription granted by La. C.C.P. art. 596, notwithstanding that they also filed individual actions prior to a resolution of the class certification issue. The Court thereby reversed the judgments of the lower courts, denied the exceptions of prescription and remanded the respective suits to the district courts for further proceedings.WORKERS COMPENSATION: In Hargrave v. Louisiana, 2012-0341 (La. 10/16/12), the Louisiana Supreme Court granted the state's writ application to consider whether the Office of Workers' Compensation judge erred in requiring a vocational rehabilitation counselor to comply with the so-called "Crain Brothers conditions," drafted by claimant's counsel, before the counselor could provide vocational rehabilitation services to the claimant. The Court held that the trial court erred in imposing the conditions without an evidentiary showing that any of the imposed conditions were reasonably necessary to resolve a "dispute . . . concerning the work of the vocational counselor" as provided in the vocational rehabilitation provisions of the Louisiana Workers Compensation Act. Accordingly, the Court reversed the ruling of the lower court and remanded the issue to the trial court for further proceedings. This ruling should discourage plaintiff attorney's efforts to impede reasonable access to information about their client's earning potential.WRONGFUL DEATH: In Udomeh v. Joseph, 2011-2839 (La. 10/26/12), the issue before the Louisiana Supreme Court was whether an alleged biological father could bring a wrongful death and survival action for his illegitimate child, where the father did not file a timely avowal action. La. Civ. Code article 198 requires a father to file to establish paternity within one year of a child's death. The father's wrongful death and survival petition asserted his paternity and was filed within the one year peremptive period of La. Civ. Code art. 198. The Court ruled that the father's petition was timely holding that, under Louisiana's "fact-pleading" system, his petition pled sufficient facts to state an avowal action. This ruling is another example of Louisiana courts using our "fact-pleading" system to eliminate procedural requirements otherwise present in the law.
Keogh Cox participated in the Baton Rouge Bar Association's annual Holiday Star project. Jenny McLin served as our chair and we were able to deliver many prized Christmas gifts to underprivileged children in our area.
Keogh Cox has for many years donated time and resources to an amazing local charity, the Bishop Ott Shelter in Baton Rouge. The shelter provides meals to homeless and disadvantaged people in Baton Rouge. This year Keogh Cox staff member Kristen Shelley went above and beyond to single handedly provide an entire Thanksgiving meal to Bishop Ott. Thanks to Kristen for reminding us all that this is a season of giving.
PRESCRIPTION: The Court in Sims v. American Ins. Co., 2012-0204 (La. 10/16/12) held that a plaintiff’s voluntary dismissal with prejudice of a case in federal court equates to a "voluntary dismissal" under the Louisiana Code of Civil Procedure Article 3463.In Sims, the plaintiff’s timely state court suit was removed to federal court. Thereafter, the plaintiff passed away. His survivors substituted as plaintiffs in the federal court suit. The survivors also filed a wrongful death and survival action in state court, one year and one day after the plaintiff’s death. Thereafter, the federal court suit was dismissed with prejudice.Under these facts, the Louisiana Supreme Court held that the federal court suit did not interrupt prescription for the later-filed state court action and dismissed the state court suit under an exception of prescription. Because the appeal was taken on the prescription issues, the Court did not consider the res judicata effect of the dismissed federal court action.ADMIRALTY: In Viator v. LeBeouf Bros. Towing, L.L.C., 2012-0314 (La. App. 4 Cir. 10/17/12), the Fourth Circuit reversed the trial court’s award of summary judgment because it found that an issue of material fact existed regarding whether the defendant vessel-owner breached an "active control" duty. This case offers greater definition of the "active control" duty. This duty recognizes that, while a vessel owner no longer retains the primary responsibility for safety in an area turned over to the stevedore, its maintains responsibility for the equipment and crew it still controls.The Viator plaintiff was injured onboard a vessel docked at his station when he attempted to lift a crossover hose that had fallen onto the vessel’s deck. The Court found the vessel owner had a duty to avoid exposing longshoremen to potential hazards arguably within the control of the vessel owner. An issue of fact existed regarding whether the vessel’s crew had operational control, and thus "active control," over the crossover hose.PREMISES LIABILITY: In Dickson v. City of Shreveport, 47,268 (La. App. 2 Cir. 8/8/12), the plaintiff tripped and fell on a sidewalk that crossed a driveway into a parking lot. The plaintiff alleged the City owned and maintained the sidewalk and "knew or should have known" about the sidewalk’s allegedly defective condition.The trial court denied the City’s motion for summary judgment, finding issues of fact regarding each of the plaintiff’s allegations. However, the Second Circuit reversed the trial court and granted the City’s motion. The Court commented that the social utility of the sidewalk outweighed the potential harm posed by its cracked condition. The plaintiff’s inability to point to any specific crack as the cause of her fall was cited in support for the Court’s decision. Further, the photographs showing a great number of cracks in the sidewalk signified to the Court that the hazard was "open and obvious," and therefore not unreasonably dangerous to this plaintiff.While cases such as Dickinson are helpful in the defense of trip and fall suits, the standard imposed upon private property owners is sometimes greater than the standard imposed upon cities or municipalities. With governmental entities, Courts often soften the standard because of the many miles of sidewalks these entities have to maintain.
Gracella Simmons will serve as a panelist at the seminar hosted by the Louisiana Association of Defense Counsel on December 7, 2012 in New Orleans and as a panelist on that same date for a presentation at the Louisiana Judicial College Seminar.Gracella Simmons will be guest lecturer at the LSU School of Law on Oct 31 and November 7 on the topic of mediation.Every month, a team from Keogh Cox provides hot meals for the homeless men and staff at the Bishop Ott Shelter in Baton Rouge.According to their mission statement, The Bishop Ott Shelter serves homeless men by offering more than just a bed and a meal. The center helps the homeless find employment, improve their education, receive substance abuse treatment and get back on their feet.Gracella Simmons has been selected with attorneys from Louisiana and other states to participate in a Masters in Trial seminar in New Orleans on December 5, 2012. The CLE approved seminar, hosted by the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA), will be a mock trial including a jury and jury deliberations.Steve Judice was a musical participant in a fundraiser in Weatherford, Texas benefiting the Texas Alzheimer's association. A silent auction was held in which, among other items, a future private house concert was offered. The event raised over four thousand dollars for Alzheimer's research.Gracella Simmons, a former member of the Board of Directors of the Baton Rouge Symphony, will conduct the Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra during the 2012 "Homes for the Holidays" Christmas Pops Concert on December 2, 2012.Several attorneys with Keogh cox recently participated in the Baton Rouge Bar Association's Belly Up with the Bar event. The team cooked chargrilled oysters and bacon-wrapped shrimp, and won both the Most Original and People's Choice awards. Team members included Chris Jones, Reynolds Leblanc, Tori Bowling, Jenny McLin, Richard Wolff, and Brent Cobb. The event raised money to benefit programs supported by the Baton Rouge Bar Association Foundation.Gracella Simmons serves on the Board of Directors of Yelp!BR. Yelp!BR is holding its third annual Yappy Halloween Run Saturday, October 6. The event, which is for the entire family, will include dog adoptions, a Spooky 5K and 1 mile stroll, live music, a costume contest and other events. Yelp!BR is a nonprofit animal welfare organization that is committed to ending euthanasia of healthy and treatable companion animals in the greater Baton Rouge area.Chris Jones is the current Chair of the Board of Trustees for the Louisiana Arts & Sciences Museum, which is celebrating 50 years with its Golden Anniversary Gala on October 5, 2012.
LANDOWNER LIABILITY - The Louisiana Supreme Court recently considered the extent of any duty owed by a landowner to protect others from the negligence of third parties. In Ponceti v. First Lake Properties, Inc., 2011-C-2711 (7/2/12), a young child suffered a leg injury after a teenager lost control of his bicycle while performing a "stunt." The plaintiff alleged that the landowner should have prevented the riding of bicycles on the sidewalk in violation of a City Ordinance.Under these facts, the Louisiana Supreme Court upheld summary judgment in favor of the apartment complex and utilized the "balancing test" from Posecai v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. to determine the threshold issue of duty. The Court found that no duty existed under the facts of the case because: 1) the general presumption is that no duty exists; and 2) the plaintiff could not show that the apartment owner possessed knowledge of similar occurrences in the past.UNINSURED MOTORIST - The Louisiana Fourth Circuit Court of Appeal in Terrell v. Fontenot, 2011-CA-1472 (6/27/12) held that verbal instructions given to a legal representative to reject Uninsured Motorist coverage by a corporate officer were sufficient to grant this authority.The Terrell court held that the term "legal representative" for purposes of the rejection of UM means any individual authorized on behalf of an entity to advise that UM coverage has been rejected. As a result, verbal instructions to reject UM given by the president of the company to a long-time employee were sufficient to demonstrate a proper rejection of UM.WORKER'S COMPENSATION - The Louisiana Fifth Circuit Court of Appeal ruled in Flach v Diebold, Inc.,12-CA-1 (7/31/12) that the doctrine of "estoppel" did not benefit an employee who alleged that the continued payment of wages after an accident "lulled" him into not filing a timely workers compensation claim.The jurisprudence has recognized the impact of "estoppel" when an employee is lulled into a false sense of security by the employer and is induced to forgo the filing of the claim until the prescriptive period has expired. To utilize this estoppel defense, the claimant must show that the employer's words, actions or inactions induced the claimant to withhold suit. While the employer in Flach paid the plaintiff for missed work, it also clarified that the payments were not compensation benefits and even discussed with the worker that the worker's compensation carrier was refusing to pay. Therefore, the payments did not support the estoppel defense.