Employees who work in loud environments and suffer gradual hearing loss as a result of their workplace environment cannot sue their employers for their injuries, according to a ruling this week by the Louisiana Supreme Court. That’s because gradual hearing loss claims are covered under the Louisiana Workers Compensation Act, the high court stated.
The ruling is a landmark decision on what may appear to be an obscure issue. But it’s actually very significant for industry, as thousands of plaintiffs have sued their employers in dozens of hearing-loss lawsuits that are pending throughout the state. The plaintiffs have argued employers should be liable for their on-the-job hearing loss. Employers have argued that workers’ comp insurance covers such injuries. Plaintiffs have pursued litigation over workers’ comp claims because they stand to recover far more from a judgment in a tort suit than they would through workers’ comp.
“This is good news for industry in Louisiana,” says Greg Anding, a partner with Kean Miller, who argued the issue before the Supreme Court in a case against the West Monroe Paper Mill. “There are dozens of cases pending around the state. This should bring all those claims to an end.”
The ruling ends a 4-year old lawsuit filed in Ouachita Parish by hundreds of employees of the mill, who sued the mill’s owners for hearing loss they say they sustained on the job. The trial court sided with the plaintiffs and found the plant liable. However, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the trial court decision. The Supreme Court affirmed the appellate court’s ruling.
“It was a good win,” Anding says. “It was a pleasant surprise to see our Supreme Court rule for the defendants on the corporate side. We don’t see that very often. I was pleased.”
—Stephanie Riegel
