Latest Louisiana Headlines

All the headlines from our Louisiana Topic Page, ordered by recency.

Louisiana’s Robert Wooley: Leaving office, not the industry

Feb 20 2006 // Louisiana Insurance Commissioner Robert Wooley announced he would step down as commissioner Feb. 15, 2006, leaving the office he has held since 2000. Although he is returning to the private sector, Wooley indicated he...

Louisiana’s Robert Wooley: Leaving office, not the industry

Feb 19 2006 // Louisiana Insurance Commissioner Robert Wooley announced he would step down as commissioner Feb. 15, 2006, leaving the office he has held since 2000. Although he is returning to the private sector, Wooley indicated he...

What does a ‘Valued Policy’ cover in Louisiana and Mississippi?

Feb 19 2006 // In general, “Valued Policy” statutes require an insurer to ascertain the value of the property being insured at the time a policy is written and to pay that value to the insured when there is a total loss. As...

Donelon Sworn in as La. Commissioner

Feb 17 2006 // Jim Donelon became Louisiana’s Commissioner of Insurance on Feb. 16 following the retirement of Robert Wooley, the Louisiana Department of Insurance reported. Donelon previously served as the Department’s...

Louisiana Rating Commmission to Meet Feb. 15

Feb 14 2006 // The regular monthly meeting of the Louisiana Insurance Rating Commission will be held on Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2006, at 10:00 a.m. in the Hearing Room, Plaza Floor, State Insurance Department, the Poydras Building, 1702...

Judge: La. Homeowners Can Opt Out of Suit Against Murphy Oil

Feb 10 2006 // Terms of a class-action lawsuit against Murphy Oil USA does not prevent Louisiana homeowners from leaving the suit and settling their own claims stemming from the refinery’s oil spill after Hurricane Katrina, a judge...

LA DOCTOR PLEADS NOT GUILTY IN ALLEGED HEALTH CARE SCAM

Feb 6 2006 // A doctor has pleaded not guilty to charges of bilking insurance companies by arranging unneeded surgeries with the cooperation of patients. Dr. Mamdouh Bahna, 58, who entered his plea in federal court, was taken into...

LA doctor pleads not guilty in alleged health care scam

Feb 5 2006 // A doctor has pleaded not guilty to charges of bilking insurance companies by arranging unneeded surgeries with the cooperation of patients. Dr. Mamdouh Bahna, 58, who entered his plea in federal court, was taken into...

I.I.I. Says Nearly 70% of Katrina Homeowner Claims Settled in Louisiana, Mississippi

Feb 2 2006 // Homeowners insurers have settled nearly 70 percent of claims from Hurricane Katrina in Louisiana and Mississippi, according to the Insurance Information Institute (I.I.I.). The I.I.I. estimated that more than 732,000...

La. Commissioner Wooley to Leave Office Effective Feb. 15

Feb 2 2006 // Louisiana Commissioner of Insurance Robert Wooley issued a news release announcing his resignation as commissioner effective Feb. 15. Chief Deputy Commissioner Jim Donelon will take over the post. Following is the...

La. Lawmakers to Debate Levees, Housing in Special Session

Feb 2 2006 // Levee board consolidation, absentee voting changes and housing reconstruction are among the topics lawmakers can consider as they return to the Capitol Feb. 6 for a second legislative session aimed at Louisiana’s...

Baton Rouge, La., Woman Pleads Guilty in CE Credit Scam

Feb 1 2006 // Louisiana Attorney General Charles C. Foti, Jr. reported that Marsha Lavernia Scott, aka Marsha L. Dillon, 3120 Lambert Drive, Baton Rouge, La., pled guilty on Jan. 23, 2006, to one count of filing false public records in...

Judge Gives Class Action Status to La. Oil-Spill Case

Feb 1 2006 // A federal judge has certified as a class action a lawsuit against Murphy Oil Corp. over an oil spill in Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina. U.S. District Judge Eldon Fallon’s decision applies to an area in St. Bernard...

La. Gov. Says Wait for FEMA Standards is Delaying Recovery

Jan 27 2006 // The wait for federal standards for home building is hampering Louisiana’s hurricane reconstruction efforts, according to Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco. The Federal Emergency Management Agency is developing a new set...

La. Citizens to Get Loans to Continue Paying Claims

Jan 27 2006 // With Louisiana’s state-run homeowners insurance company quickly running out of money to pay claims, a banking group is trying to put a loan in place to keep it afloat. Citizen’s Property Insurance has been...

Hurricane Center Upgrades Tropical Storm Cindy to Hurricane Status

Jan 27 2006 // Tropical Storm Cindy has been upgraded to hurricane status by the National Hurricane Center in Miami. Accumulated data analyzed by NHC indicates that Cindy was “a relatively short-lived tropical cyclone,” but...

Four Arrested in La. for Medicaid Fraud

Jan 27 2006 // Louisiana Attorney General Charles C. Foti, Jr., announced that the following individuals have been arrested and each charged with two counts of Criminal Conspiracy to commit Medicaid Fraud and two counts of Medicaid...

La. Lawyer Pleads Guilty to Theft of Clients’ Insurance Money

Jan 26 2006 // A Thibodaux, La., lawyer recently pleaded guilty to more than 40 criminal charges stemming from an investigation into his misuse of clients’ insurance money. Keith Labat pleaded guilty to seven counts of felony...

La.’s Lexington General Agency Moves to Burns & Wilcox Offices

Jan 25 2006 // The staff and operations of Lexington General Agency Inc. of Hammond, La., have moved into the offices of Burns & Wilcox of Baton Rouge, effective Jan. 20, 2006. Gary Batten, vice president and branch manager of Burns...

FBI Uncovers Fraud in Miss., Creates Hurricane Task Force on Corruption

Jan 24 2006 // The FBI has uncovered fraud by public officials in the wake of Hurricane Katrina and has created a task force to investigate corruption as federal money pours into the Gulf Coast region, Mississippi’s top agent told...