NEW ORLEANS, LA – 

McDonald Toole Wiggins PA and Irwin Fritchie Urquhart & Moore LLC won a summary judgment dismissal with prejudice for Crown Equipment Corporation in a suit brought by an operator of the RM6000, a forklift designed and manufactured by Crown. With the matter set for a five-day jury trial scheduled to begin on February 7, 2022, the Honorable Sarah S. Vance of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana issued the Order dismissing the case on January 20, 2022.

Lead counsel for Crown—Michael Correnti and Philip Kegler of McDonald Toole & Wiggins in Orlando, Florida—along with Quentin Urquhart, Kelly Brilleaux, and Connor Peth of Irwin Fritchie Urquhart & Moore in New Orleans, prepared the Motion for Summary Judgment on Plaintiff’s claim that the RM6000 was defectively designed under the Louisiana Products Liability Act (“LPLA”). Finding that Plaintiff was unable to meet his burden of proof on his design defect claim as a matter of law, the Court granted the Motion and dismissed the case with prejudice. Prior to this ruling, on January 7, 2022, the Court also
granted Crown’s Motion for Summary Judgment on Plaintiff’s claims for negligence and negligent maintenance and repair, holding that such claims were barred by the exclusivity provisions of the LPLA.

The case is Dawson Vallee v. Crown Equipment Corp. of Ohio, et al., No. CV 20-1571, 2022 WL 179532 (E.D.La. Jan. 20, 2022).