The case involves Frances Marie Williams bringing claims under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 against Deputy Sheriff Danny Divittoria and Sheriff J. Edward Layrisson for false arrest and malicious prosecution, alleging her arrest and charge for public intimidation lacked probable cause. The court granted summary judgment to Sheriff Layrisson, dismissing him from the suit, because he had no personal involvement in the arrest, incarceration, or prosecution. The court denied summary judgment to Deputy Divittoria, holding that Louisiana's limited res judicata rules at the time did not bar the claims, as the prior preliminary examination's probable cause finding lacked the required identities of parties, cause, and relief to preclude relitigation under state preclusion principles.
The case involved a dispute between Carter-Green-Redd, Inc. and the USS Cabot/Dedalo Museum Foundation over two option agreements for the potential lease of the vessel DEDALO to operate as a museum and gambling casino. Carter paid $47,000 for the options, which the Foundation used for the vessel's operating expenses, but the deal collapsed when the Spanish government withheld consent for casino use; Carter then arrested the vessel and sought a maritime lien to recover the funds. The court dismissed the action for lack of subject matter jurisdiction, holding that the option contracts were not maritime contracts subject to admiralty jurisdiction because their subject matter did not directly relate to vessel operation, navigation, or commerce. The court further reasoned that the written terms of the agreements controlled under the parol evidence rule, making irrelevant any claims about how the funds were spent or representations made during negotiations.
This case arose from a 1986 car accident in which a rental vehicle driven by Martin Unger, an employee of Charles Lewis Pump Company, collided with a tractor-trailer, leading to multiple lawsuits by injured parties and a $125,000 settlement of David Provost's claims funded by Budget Rent-A-Car of New Orleans ($25,000), Columbia Casualty ($50,000), and Aetna ($50,000). The remaining dispute concerned the priority of insurance coverage and which parties were obligated to reimburse the settlement contributions. Applying Louisiana law that an employer's insurance is primary to an employee's personal policy when the employee is acting within the scope of employment, the court determined that Budget-New Orleans was primarily liable up to $100,000 and ordered it to reimburse Aetna $50,000 and half of Columbia's contribution.
The case involved Delays Brock, who was injured in a slip and fall at Chevron's plant while working for a contractor as a fire-watch hand, and his wife sued Chevron for damages. Chevron moved for summary judgment, arguing it was immune from tort liability as Brock's statutory employer under Louisiana's Workers' Compensation Act. The court granted the motion and dismissed the claims, reasoning that the 1989 amendment to the Act made the contract work part of Chevron's trade, business, or occupation regardless of factors like specialization or whether it was usually contracted out, overriding the prior Berry test.
In Johnson v. Orkin Exterminating Co., Inc., homeowners sued the exterminating company after termite damage was discovered in their slab-constructed home, seeking repair costs and related damages following Orkin's denial of the claim under their service agreement. The agreement, signed in 1988, provided a renewable re-treatment guarantee that explicitly limited Orkin's obligations to additional treatments only and excluded liability for repairs, particularly for slab homes and Formosan termites. Orkin moved for partial summary judgment to restrict its liability accordingly. The court granted the motion, holding that the contract's clear terms, including an integration clause, governed the parties' obligations and barred claims for damages beyond re-treatment. The decision relied on principles of contract interpretation under Louisiana law, finding that prior representations or brochures did not alter the written agreement.
In Frey v. Amoco Production Co., plaintiffs moved for judgment that Amoco, as operator of gas units in which they held interests, was subject to the Louisiana Public Records Law and owed them a full pre-suit accounting of royalties. The court denied the motion, holding that Amoco is not a public body under the statute and that the Mineral Code does not require an accounting before judicial demand. The core reasoning was that the Public Records Act covers only governmental entities and certain nonprofits receiving state appropriations, not private corporations licensed to operate units or collect severance taxes, and that statutory remedies for royalty disputes are limited to damages or lease cancellation after suit.