Minnie Dantzler v. Fantasia Delacerda

STATE OF LOUISIANA

COURT OF APPEAL, FIRST CIRCUIT

MINNIE DANTZLER NO. 2020 CW 1108

VERSUS

FANTASIA DELACERDA, ET AL. DECEMBER 30, 2020

In Re: Autozone Stores, LLC and Greenwich Insurance Company,
applying for supervisory writs, 19th Judicial District
Court, Parish of East Baton Rouge, No. 655742.

BEFORE: GUIDRY, McCLENDON, AND LANIER, JJ.

WRIT GRANTED. Under the collateral source rule, a

tortfeasor may not benefit, and an injured plaintiff' s tort
recovery may not be reduced, because of monies
received by the
plaintiff from sources independent of the tortfeasor' s
procuration or contribution.
Louisiana Dept of Transp. & Dev.
v. Kansas City S.
Ry. Co., 2002- 2349 ( La. 5/ 20/ 03), 846 So. 2d
734, 739. Accordingly, " evidence of furnishing or offering or

promising to or losses occasioned by an injury
pay expenses to
person or damage to property is not...admissible to mitigate,

reduce,
or avoid liability therefor." La. Code Evid. art. 409.
However, Article 409 " does not require the exclusion of such

evidence when it is offered
solely for another purpose..." See
Turcich v. Baker, 594 So. 2d 505, 508 ( La. 5th Cir. 1992).
App.
Evidence of the financial arrangement between HMR and the
plaintiff' s health care providers is admissible pursuant to La.
Code Evid. art. 607 for the purpose of impeaching the
credibility of the plaintiff' s treating physicians. See Thomas
v. Chambers, No. CV 18- 4373, 2019 WL 8888169, at * 4( E. D. La.
Apr. 26, 2019) . Accordingly, we grant the writ and reverse the
trial court' s June 1, 2020 judgment the plaintiff' s
granting
Motion in Limine and/ or Motion to Exclude Payment by Collateral
Sources to the extent it bars the from
relators
introducing
evidence of the financial arrangement between HMR and the
plaintiff' s health care providers for the purpose of
impeaching
the credibility of the plaintiff' s treating physicians.

JMG

PMC
WIL

COURT OF APPEAL, FIRST CIRCUIT

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DEPUTY
L11 bi
CLE OF COURT
FOR THE COURT