A Louisiana appellate court has upheld the dismissal of a suit from a woman claiming that flaws in a helicopter’s rotor blade system caused a crash in which the pilot, her husband, died. The State of Louisiana Court of Appeal, Third Circuit ruled November 26 that the trial court had not erred by ruling in favor of the helicopter manufacturer.

Don Haycraft, a shareholder in the firm’s New Orleans office, represented the helicopter manufacturer and argued that the cause of the crash was pilot error and the pilot’s decision to fly at a low altitude in poor weather. Although Haycraft could not use the National Transportation Safety Board’s probable cause finding from its investigation, pilot error was the conclusion of the NTSB. The plaintiff had contended that the helicopter crash was caused by a rotor blade that failed seconds before the crash due to a manufacturing defect.

On appeal, the plaintiff contested the trial court's decision to give little value to testimony from one of the plaintiff's expert witnesses after finding fault with his methodology.

The three-judge appeals court, with one member dissenting, ruled that the trial court had not erred as the plaintiff had not demonstrated that the helicopter's blade "was produced with defective characteristics" and that the lower court had properly found that the plaintiff "presented no evidence" that the blade either failed to meet the manufacturer's design or that the design was "inappropriate for the intended use of the ... blade."

Haycraft said his client "applauds the appeals court decision that emphasizes that an expert must employ a sound methodology in reaching opinions." "Credentials alone are not sufficient," Haycraft added. "The expert must show that his scientific opinions are reliable."

Don Haycraft has practiced law for twenty-five years and has extensive trial experience in cases ranging from Jones Act personal injury, wrongful death, and longshoremen’s injuries to major toxic tort class certification hearings. He has handled numerous jury trials to verdict and bench trials in various state and federal courts in Louisiana, as well as in state and federal courts in Texas, Mississippi and Illinois. Among his notable recent achievements, in 2007 he won a trial concerning a barge contended by plaintiffs to have breached a New Orleans levee during Hurricane Katrina. In his aviation practice, he obtained summary judgments in cases involving two separate helicopter crashes that resulted in numerous personal injury suits in multiple jurisdictions.

Mr. Haycraft is a past president of the New Orleans chapter of the Federal Bar Association, which is the organization’s largest chapter in the country. He has spoken before professional organizations about attorney-client privilege, trial procedures, electronic discovery, and mass torts trial techniques.

For his complete bio, please click here.