Change of venue sought in Louisana wrongful death case

In Shreveport, Louisiana, a defendant in litigation filed in November of last year for wrongful death, filed a petition to move the lawsuit to the Shreveport Division of the Western District of Louisiana.

The plaintiff, an individual who filed the suit on behalf of her late mother’s estate, originally filed the case in the Second Judicial District Court. Her pleading alleges breach of contract, wrongful death and survival against the Arcadia Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, LLC, d/b/a Willow Ridge Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, LLC, and co-owners D&N, LLC, and DTD HC, LLC.

The original complaint alleges that the defendants failed to provide the woman’s mother, who was a resident of the facility for nine years until she died on March 13, 2015, with reasonable care. The plaintiff is seeking damages that exceed $75,000, the jurisdictional minimum.

In the defendants’ motion to move the suit to the Western District, they cite grounds for the venue change as the “diversity of citizenship” between the defendant and the plaintiff. The parent company of Arcadia is based in New York, while the plaintiff lives in Louisiana. In the pleading, the defendant also noted that the name “Willow Ridge” was not valid.

The defendants filed their notice of removal on Dec. 31.

Nursing home negligence is particularly egregious, as it typically affects those whose mental and physical conditions are too deteriorated for them to advocate for their own interests. Unless a loved one or family member speaks up on their behalf, a facility can continue to provide non-verbal residents and those with cognitive limitations from dementia with substandard care.

If you suspect negligence is taking place in the care rendered toward a family member in a nursing home, you may be able to legally intercede on his or her behalf.

Source: Louisiana Record, “Arcadia Nursing and Rehab seeks change of venue in wrongful death suit,” Robert Hadley, Jan. 06, 2016