Articles Posted in Community Involvement

For Mardi Gras, most people have one thing on their minds: let the good times roll. However, in addition to the good times, there are also some safety risks that may arise in the wake of Fat Tuesday. To ensure you get the most enjoyment out of the festivities, here are some tips to keep you safe during Carnival season.

  • Be sure to keep your guard up for beads and other throws, as these objects could be painful on impact.
  • Stay behind all barricades during the parade and refrain from moving, tampering, standing, or sitting on the barricades.

Partner Richard Broussard was asked to speak as a panel member at the Louisiana Association of Justice’s Last Chance CLE Conference. The Conference was held in New Orleans and was attended by hundreds of attorneys as a means of continuing their legal education.

The discussion was titled “A New Age: Comparisons Between Aviation Law and Space Law,” and examined the evolution of Space Law, developing from Maritime and Aviation Law (two fields in which Broussard, David & Moroux specialize).

The picture above includes Broussard and his fellow panel members, Federal Judge Jay C. Zainey, Tulane Law Dean David Meyer, Charles C. Bourque, Jr. of St. Martin & Bourque (Houma) and Darlene Jacobs of Jacobs, Sarrat, Lovelace, Harris & Matthews (New Orleans). Along with the panel members pictured are Marin Davies, Chair of Admiralty and Maritime Law at Tulane, and Scott Bickford, the President of the Louisiana Association of Justice.

Labor Day weekend is the last chance many people have to vacation and travel before the fall. Whether traveling to the beach or enjoying a weekend by the pool, it is important to keep in mind some basic safety measures. Over this long weekend, Broussard, David & Moroux has a few tips to keep you and your family safe while having fun:

  1. If you are spending a weekend by the pool, remember to monitor children in and around the water and provide inexperienced swimmers with a floating device. Also, be mindful of water depth before diving.
  2. If you are spending the day outdoors in the heat, remember to drink plenty of fluids and wear sunscreen.

National Traffic Awareness Month in August draws awareness to traffic safety, not only for those behind the wheel, but for those riding as passengers and pedestrians as well. This month is used to shed light on the safety rules that help prevent major and minor accidents.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, an estimated 42,915 people died in car crashes in 2021. This is a 10.5% increase from 2020. The National Safety Council reported that approximately 4.8 million people were seriously injured in automobile collusions and estimated a total cost of car crashes of $474 billion in 2020. In light of these statistics, it is important to go back to basics and remember safe driving can save lives.

Louisiana is taking is a major step toward safety by installing speed cameras on the Atchafalaya bridge. In 2021 alone there were 269 accidents, resulting in 89 injures and two deaths. Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development Secretary Shawn Wilson stated: “What this will ultimately do is save lives.”

There is an urgent need for all blood types across the country. Every 2 seconds, there is someone who needs blood. One pint of blood can save up to 3 lives.

Broussard, David & Moroux is partnering with Vitalant to host our second community blood drive of the year on Wednesday, July 27, 2022.

The blood drive will be held at our office, located at 557 Jefferson Street, Lafayette, LA 70501 from 8:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m.

Broussard, David & Moroux law firm is excited to announce another FREE lunch for first responders next week.

In an effort to show appreciation to first responders and the critical role they play during the COVID-19 crisis, Broussard, David & Moroux law firm will provide a meal to all uniformed fire fighters, police officers and paramedics on Wednesday, May 6 at Dwyer’s Café downtown.

In mid-April, the law firm offered a free lunch day at Judice Inn for first responders with the hopes of supporting local businesses as well as essential workers who put their own health at risk to serve our community. It was a great success with 289 meals served that day. Given the tremendous response, Broussard, David & Moroux would like to continue the effort into May.

On December 6, the 16th Judicial District Court in St. Mary Parish Louisiana ruled in favor of the Bayou Bridge pipeline, issuing a mere $450 punishment for trespassing in an eminent domain suit filed by three local residents. The lawsuit, filed in late July of 2018, argued that Energy Transfer, LP (formerly Energy Transfer Partners), the owner of the pipeline, illegally began construction on privately owned land without proper permission.

The Bayou Bridge pipeline is a 163-mile underground oil pipeline intended to transport oil from the Louisiana-Texas border to St. James Parish. Many residents do not mind their land being used to house the pipeline, but many other residents are very opposed to the idea, claiming that the land being used is “not valueless, vacant land…. The property is part of a larger vital and vibrant ecosystem filled with life that includes trees, wildlife, fish, and birds, and it plays an important role in the economic health and well-being of the state beyond its borders.” Thus, for the landowners who filed the suit, the challenge is not about money, but it is rather about protecting the land.

The defense claimed that they had eminent domain over the land, allowing them to take it through expropriation due to the fact that the land was used for the public’s interest. The Court agreed, allowing them to continue the pipelines construction, but assessed a small penalty for trespassing—150 dollars to each plaintiff—given that they did not exercise due diligence in notifying the property owners prior to the beginning of construction. The plaintiffs continue to hold that it is not in the public’s interest to facilitate coastal erosion, the natural consequence of digging, carving, and drilling into Louisiana’s marshland. Additionally, the plaintiffs argue, the pipeline places the utilized land at risk of an oil catastrophe, citing Energy Transfer’s history of 3.6 million gallons of oil spilled in the last sixteen years.

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Blake R. David has been teaching advanced trial techniques to LSU Law students entering their final year of law school since 2016. David is a 2001 graduate of the Paul M. Hebert Law Center at LSU.

Read more:

https://www.law.lsu.edu/news/2018/08/14/lsu-law-thanks-trial-advocacy-program-faculty-members/