Liskow lawyers Cherrell Taplin and Melanie Derefinko recently secured a ruling in their favor dismissing the entirety of Plaintiffs’ claims against Liskow’s client, ExxonMobil Product Solutions Company (“ExxonMobil”). Gerren Jenkins, along with his wife and children, initiated the personal injury lawsuit against ExxonMobil, Gulf Intermodal Services, LLC, and Park Avenue Intermodal, LLC.
Jenkins alleged several physical, financial, and emotional injuries resulting from the overturning of his 18-wheeler while transporting cargo from ExxonMobil’s warehouse in Baton Rouge, Louisiana to the Port of Orleans. While ExxonMobil owned the cargo being transferred, Jenkins admittedly had no knowledge of who loaded the cargo, how much the cargo weighed, or what ExxonMobil’s involvement was (if any) in the process of loading and transporting the cargo. Nor could Jenkins identify any conduct of ExxonMobil that may have caused or contributed to the alleged accident. Following the close of fact discovery, Liskow filed a motion for summary judgment seeking a dismissal of the entirety of Plaintiffs’ claims against ExxonMobil.
The Court’s analysis focused on Plaintiffs’ failure to point to any evidence to support their claims against ExxonMobil. Plaintiffs argued that ExxonMobil “failed to conform to the appropriate standard of care” and that it was “ExxonMobil’s product that was being transported” at the time of the incident. However, the Court found that Plaintiffs’ entire case rested on vague assertions and allegations, neither of which established a genuine issue of material fact. Additionally, the Court found that Jenkins’ own admissions concerning his lack of knowledge surrounding ExxonMobil’s involvement “s[u]nk” his case. Accordingly, the Court granted the motion for summary judgment and dismissed the entirety of Plaintiffs’ claims against ExxonMobil, with prejudice.
A copy of the final ruling can be found here, and please contact Cherrell Taplin and Melanie Derefinko if you have questions about the case.
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