Justia Labor & Employment Law Opinion Summaries

Claimant Jerry Benoit worked for Turner Industries for twenty-seven years. For ten of those years he worked as a general laborer for a Lake Charles Citgo refinery, where Turner was contracted to perform general maintenance. Claimant's duties included cleaning chemical discharges and oily waste which collected in the drainage ditches, sewers, and processing units at the refinery. In the course of this work, he was exposed to any number of potentially dangerous or carcinogenic chemicals, including high levels of benzene. In July 2006, Claimant fell ill. He was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia (AML), known to be linked to high levels of benzene exposure. Despite the medical evidence linking Claimant's cancer to the chemicals he was exposed to at work, his claim for medical benefits was denied. The eventual medical bills totaled over $625,000. Medicaid paid for $203,124.68. The remaining $422,043.59 was "written off" by the medical care providers. Turner paid nothing. Claimant's family filed suit in 2007. The Office of Workers' Compensation (OWC) awarded Claimant total medical expenses and attorney fees. Turner appealed, and the court of appeals affirmed the OWC judgment in its entirety. Upon review of the correctness of the OWC award of medical expenses, the Supreme Court concluded the OWC erred in awarding the "written off" medical expenses: "Claimant would receive an improper windfall if he was allowed to recover for medical expenses which have been reduced by health care providers as a result of their contractual arrangements with Medicaid." The Court reversed the appellate court's decision and remanded the case for further proceedings.

Plaintiff Desi Fulmer was an employee with the State Department of Wildlife and Fisheries and was injured in the course and scope of his employment. Central to the case was whether an injured, state-employed seaman could sue under the State's "Jones Act" in state court or whether provisions of the Worker's Compensation Act applied. Upon consideration of the trial record and applicable legal authority, the Supreme Court found that under the Jones Act, the State waived its sovereign immunity from suits for injury.

Plaintiff B.W. Greemon was a paramedic with the Bossier City Fire Department. In 2007, he responded to a call to assist an apparently intoxicated Eric Holloway who was in police custody. At the scene, Plaintiff was informed that the Mr. Holloway had consumed as many as 18 beers and was possibly a diabetic. Plaintiff evaluated Mr. Holloway and authorized his transport to jail. Mr. Holloway was transported and booked into jail where he was found dead the next morning. A complaint was filed against Plaintiff for clearing Mr. Holloway's transport to jail rather than to a medical facility. After an investigation, Plaintiff was terminated from his employment with Bossier City. Plaintiff subsequently filed a civil service appeal, which was then submitted to the Civil Service Board. One Board member moved to enter into executive session, and another member "seconded" the motion. No formal vote on the motion to enter executive session was reflected in the hearing transcript, but the presiding board member clearly directed that the Civil Service Board enter the executive session, which was then closed to the public. After the session, the Board returned to an open session. The Board then publicly voted 3 to 2 to uphold Plaintiff's termination. Plaintiff then appealed the Board's decision to district court, alleging that the closed executive session was a violation of the State Open Meetings Law. Upon review, the Supreme Court found that Plaintiff failed to bring a timely claim under the Open Meetings Law, and that the district court erred in granting him summary judgment under that law. The Court reversed the lower court's voiding of the Civil Service Board's action, and remanded the case back to the district court for further proceedings.

In September 2007, Petitioner Mitchell Glasgow was severely burned from a fire at an oil well at which he worked. At the time, Therral Story Well Service (TSWS) directly employed Mr. Glasgow. The mineral owners contracted with another company, PAR Minerals, Inc., to produce oil and gas. In turn, PAR Minerals contracted with TSWS to drill a well. The well penetrated into formations that were pressurized with hydrocarbons. Mr. Glasgow was circulating water trough the well while waiting for heavier drilling mud to be pumped into the well to control the pressure. A TSWS employee told Mr. Glasgow to stand away from the well because the pressure was dangerous, but a PAR Minerals "on-site supervisor" ordered Mr. Glasgow to get on his station at the pump, and jump away only if gas escaped from the well. Gas escaped, ignited, and severely burned Mr. Glasgow. Mr. Glasgow filed suit against PAR Minerals and its insurer. PAR Minerals would receive service of process one year later. PAR Minerals moved for summary judgment, arguing that it was Mr. Glasgow's "statutory employer" and therefore immune to lawsuits like his. The district court granted PAR Minerals' motion, holding that because of the year delay in getting PAR Minerals notice of the lawsuit, Mr. Glasgow's suit was prescribed and untimely. A split appellate court affirmed the district court's dismissal, and Mr. Glasgow appealed. After a thorough review of the record, the Supreme Court found that the lower courts erred in dismissing Mr. Glasgow's claims as prescribed. The Court reversed the lower courts' holdings and remanded the case for further proceedings.