News & Knowledge

Forman Watkins & Krutz LLP congratulates firm attorneys for being named as 2018 Louisiana Super Lawyers. Each year, no more than five percent of the lawyers in the state are selected by the research team at Super Lawyers to receive this honor.  Super Lawyers, a Thomson Reuters business, is a rating service of outstanding lawyers from more than 70 practice areas who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. The annual selections are made using a patented multiphase process that includes a statewide survey of lawyers, an independent research evaluation of candidates and peer reviews by practice area. The firm is proud to announce Super Lawyer Charles H. Abbott and Rising Stars: Melissa Fuller, Erin Wedge Latuso, Michelle Roy, and Peyton Smith.

A big thank you to our New Jersey office for collecting money and donations to buy warm clothing for those in need.  Our team worked in conjunction with local charity organization, Lunch Break, to gather items for donation during cold winter months.  We appreciate your generosity throughout the year but especially during the Holiday season! Pictured below: Donna Ross & Nicole Diesa   

On December 13, 2017, Forman Watkins attorneys Jake Banks obtained a favorable jury verdict in the County Court of Hinds County.  Plaintiff claimed she suffered serious personal injuries and sought to recover significant damages. Though the Defendant conceded liability for the accident, she maintained that the Plaintiff was only entitled to recover her past medical bills, and that is exactly what the jury awarded.

Forman Watkins welcomed Demi Brown to speak at a recent lunch-and-learn session hosted by the firm’s Diversity and Inclusion Committee.  Mr. Brown is the Associate Dean of Intercultural Affairs and Community Life at Millsaps College in Jackson, Mississippi, and presented on Ten Core Concepts Toward Cultural Proficiency.  The session was a continuation of the Committee’s efforts to provide in-house programming focused on navigating a diverse workplace.  Our staff enjoyed lunch with their co-workers and the interesting perspectives offered by Mr. Brown on a number of topics currently in the headlines.                  

The firm recently participated in the Capital Area Bar Association’s annual Toys for Tots campaign. Our team donated a box of unwrapped toys for children in our community. Thank you to Elizabeth Penn and Sam Kapoor for representing the firm at CABA’s Christmas Social to present our donations!

On November 27, 2017 Judge New granted summary judgment for two Forman Watkins clients in an asbestos exposure case filed in the Court of Common Pleas for Philadelphia County.  Our clients were two of the three remaining defendants when summary judgment was granted one week prior to the start of trial. Despite a seven-figure demand against each of our clients in a jurisdiction where summary judgment is seldom granted, the court dismissed all claims against our clients, with prejudice.  The court denied the motion for summary judgment of the third remaining defendant. Alison McMinn, Ruth Maron, Sam Kapoor and our Pennsylvania counsel successfully argued that the plaintiff provided no evidence of asbestos exposure from our clients’ products, highlighting the speculative nature of plaintiff’s testimony.

Forman Watkins & Krutz LLP congratulates firm attorneys for being named as 2017 Mid-South Super Lawyers. Each year, no more than five percent of the lawyers in the state are selected by the research team at Super Lawyers to receive this honor.  Super Lawyers, a Thomson Reuters business, is a rating service of outstanding lawyers from more than 70 practice areas who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. The annual selections are made using a patented multiphase process that includes a statewide survey of lawyers, an independent research evaluation of candidates and peer reviews by practice area. The firm is proud to announce Super Lawyers, Fred Krutz, Trey Watkins, and WG Watkins and Rising Stars: Mary Clift Abdalla, Mimi Arthur, Jake Banks, Tanya Ellis, Joel Fyke, Nick Giallourakis, Brian Hannula, Ruth Maron, Vernon McFarland, Alison O’Neal McMinn, Joshua Metcalf, Elizabeth Penn, Spencer Ritchie, Mandie Robinson, Peyton Smith, Andrew Stubbs, and Caroline Upchurch.

Joel Fyke, along with two other Croft alumni, with degrees in international studies, spoke to a crowd of undergraduate students in the Croft building Friday afternoon. The graduates advised students on making the most of their undergraduate degrees and pursuing jobs they want after graduation. Directly following the panel discussion, the alumni met with small groups of students to conduct breakout sessions, which allowed for more personal conversations. “If you don’t get the job, talk to the person who just rejected you and ask them where you should go and get some experience before you can come back,” 2005 graduate Joel Fyke said. A recipient of the Truman Scholarship, Fyke began his career in a small newspaper and now works with the firm as an Associate in the Jackson office. The Croft Institute for International Studies will celebrate its 20th anniversary next year, and Friday’s event was the second of its kind under director Oliver Dinius’ leadership. Read more on the panel by clicking here.

Charles Abbott and Byron Kitchens undertook representation of a national power tools manufacturer in July 2017 in claims arising out of a residential fire in Orleans Parish, Louisiana in which the homeowner’s insurer claimed losses of nearly $700,000.00, casting allegations of sole fault for the loss upon the power tool manufacturer, claiming its product was defective under the Louisiana Products Liability Act. Partnering with attorneys from Lightfoot, Franklin & White, our team quickly removed the lawsuit from the Civil District Court of Orleans Parish to the United States Eastern District of Louisiana.  Within two weeks of removal, the Plaintiff-Insurer transmitted a settlement offer. Assessing the evidence, or more particularly lack thereof, the defense counter-offer was simply an opportunity for the Plaintiff-Insurer to dismiss its case with prejudice.  A week later, the Plaintiff-Insurer accepted the “offer” and agreed to dismiss its case with prejudice.

Congratulations to Charles Abbott selected as a “2017 Top Lawyer” by New Orleans Magazine. Charles was recognized as a top lawyer in Mass Tort Litigation/Class Actions.