Louisiana Personal Injury Lawyer Blog
Families depend on nursing home staff to adequately care for loved ones. When loved ones suffer due to the negligence of nursing home staff, a medical malpractice suit can arise.
Recently, in Johnson v. CLVD, Inc D/B/A Green Meadow, the beginning injury arose on November 11, 2008, when Mr. Johnson’s catheter was removed, possibly by himself. The nursing staff left the catheter out due to a hospital policy that prohibited them from replacing it. On November 15, Mr. Johnson was unresponsive and taken to the hospital, where a catheter was reinserted. As a result, Mr. Johnson had more than three times the normal amount of urine in his system causing him to develop a urinary tract infection. This infection progressed into severe sepsis, septic shock, and several secondary infections. On December 15, he was admitted to Minden Medical Center with a fever, UTI, altered mental status, and worsening renal insufficiency. His condition worsened, and he died on December 25, 2008.
Mr. Johnson’s family filed a malpractice complaint against the hospital and a medical panel of three doctors reviewed it. Two of the doctors concluded that, by failing to reinsert the catheter or consult with Mr. Johnson’s treating physician, the nursing home staff failed to provide Mr. Johnson with appropriate care. This lack of care led to a chain of events resulting in Mr. Johnson’s death. The third-panel member disagreed based on Mr. Johnson’s age and medical problems.
What happens when an accident happens at the workplace? Well, you would immediately head to the doctor. You would rely on your medical records to show the truth when you talk to your insurance company. However, what happens when the medical administration doesn’t agree that your medical records are demonstrative of the truth? Strengthening your case against corporations that attempt to veil the importance of your medical records requires the very best attorneys possible.
When a merchant sets up shop, he/she may become liable for any accident that occurs on the business’s premises. However, the merchant is not automatically at fault. Sometimes a person is injured and the merchant is not to blame, either because the plaintiff was careless or failed to satisfy his burden of proof. The law in Louisiana that governs a merchant’s liability for negligence also governs the plaintiff’s burden of proof when bringing a claim against a merchant. This law also provides a list of elements, which the plaintiff must prove in order to succeed in their claim. See 
Have you ever wondered what happens when someone wrongfully takes or destroys your personal property? Conversion occurs when one sells or disposes of property belonging to another without permission. The case discussed in this post describes the conversion of a vehicle that was towed and sold to a third party after the title was wrongfully obtained in violation of the Louisiana Towing and Storage Act (“LTSA”).
When you suffer a personal injury such as a slip and fall and pursue a remedy in court, you must be able to support your allegations with sufficient evidence. After conducting initial discovery, a party may move for summary judgment and seek to have the case dismissed before it is ever heard by a trier of fact. When a party moves for summary judgment, it argues that the initial discovery shows that there are no issues of material fact to be decided by the trier of fact and that it is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. The opposing party, the party seeking to avoid having their case dismissed, must then present evidence to show that there are issues of material fact that should be heard at trial. In a recent case from the Louisiana Second Circuit Court of Appeal, a plaintiff conveniently “corrected” her deposition testimony attempting to defeat a motion for summary judgment. While the suspect changes were ultimately admitted, this was not sufficient to allow the case to go forward at trial. 
When multiple auto insurance policies are involved after an auto accident it may be difficult to tell which one is controlling. When a mother’s car broke down she borrowed a car from a friend to take her children to daycare. While on the way to drop her kids off she accidentally rear-ended the car of another driver on Highway 139 in Ouachita Parish, Louisiana. When the time came to determine whose car insurance was controlling a lawsuit was filed to resolve this question.
Even if a property is zoned for commercial purposes, a city may discretionarily deny a business from buying and developing that property if the city determines it is against the public interest. The city of Shreveport, Louisiana was challenged when they denied a Dollar General’s site plan to develop a commercially zoned, “use by right” 1.13-acre lot. While Dollar General’s developer, GBT Realty Corporation, petitioned the trial and appellate courts for damages resulting from loss of a business opportunity, the courts ruled that the city was immune from tort liability when a city exercises its discretion in the use of its commercially zoned properties. 
When a driver is rear-ended, there is generally a presumption the rear driver is negligent. This is based on the principle that the following driver must maintain a prudent distance from the vehicle in front of them and concentrate on their speed as well as the traffic and general condition of the roadway. 
Generally, a driver who is insured for a vehicle they own will remain insured if they use a vehicle they don’t normally use. To limit this, insurance policies commonly contain a regular use exclusion, which will exclude an insurance company from liability when the insured driver uses another vehicle they don’t own, but use regularly. In a recent case, the Louisiana Second Circuit Court of Appeal had to determine whether the exclusion in the defendant’s insurance policy applied to a truck the defendant drove as part of his work.
Workers’ compensation is a form of insurance run by the state government which pays wage replacement and medical benefits to employees injured on the job.