Background
Edward and Linda Breaux and Jessie and Vickie Blanchard brought actions against Kevin Worrell, the City of Wilson, North Carolina, and the City’s insurers. Worrell had been providing emergency assistance in Louisiana under an agreement between the North Carolina city and a Louisiana municipality.
In January 2024, the district court granted summary judgment to the defendants, concluding that Worrell and the City were protected by statutory immunity under Louisiana’s Homeland Security and Emergency Assistance and Disaster Act. On appeal, the Fifth Circuit certified two questions to the Louisiana Supreme Court concerning whether Worrell qualified as a representative of a Louisiana governmental entity and whether commuting from a recovery site to lodging constituted protected emergency-preparedness or recovery activity.
The Court’s Holding
The Louisiana Supreme Court answered that Worrell would not be considered a representative of the State of Louisiana or one of its political subdivisions for purposes of the Act’s immunity provision. Because that determination alone disqualified Worrell from statutory immunity, the state court declined to answer the commuting question.
Applying the Louisiana Supreme Court’s answer, the Fifth Circuit reversed the district court’s judgment and remanded for further proceedings consistent with its opinion. The Fifth Circuit did not decide whether Worrell’s commute constituted emergency-preparedness or recovery activity.
Key Takeaways
- Worrell did not satisfy the Act’s requirement that he be a representative of Louisiana or one of its political subdivisions.
- That conclusion was sufficient to defeat the statutory-immunity basis for the district court’s summary judgment.
- The courts did not resolve whether commuting from the recovery site to lodging qualified as protected emergency activity.
Why It Matters
The decision removes the statutory-immunity ground on which the district court entered summary judgment and returns the plaintiffs’ cases for further proceedings. Its reasoning is tied to the Louisiana Supreme Court’s determination that Worrell, under the circumstances presented, did not qualify as the required governmental representative.