Dixie Hoerner v. Ryan J. Templet, Et Al.

Supreme Court of Louisiana
January 17, 2024
Chief Deputy Clerk of Court
For the Court
The Supreme Court of the State of Louisiana
DIXIE HOERNER
VS.
RYAN J. TEMPLET, ET AL.
No. 2023-CC-01188
_ _ _ _
_ _
IN
RE: Dixie Hoerner - Applicant Plaintiff; Applying For Supervisory Writ, Parish
of Jefferson, 24th Judicial District Court Number(s) 777-318, Court of Appeal, Fifth
Circuit, Number(s) 23-C-365;
_ _ _ _ _ _
January 17, 2024
Writ application granted. See per curiam.
Weimer, C.J., would grant and docket.
JTG
JDH
SJC
WJC
JBM
PDG
01/17/2024 "See News Release 002 for any Concurrences and/or Dissents."

S
UPREME COURT OF LOUISIANA
N
o. 2023-CC-01188
DI
XIE HOERNER
VS.
RYAN J. TEMPLET, ET AL.
O
n Supervisory Writ to the 24th Judicial District Court, Parish of Jefferson
P
ER CURIAM
W
rit granted. The judgments of the lower courts sustaining Defendants’
exception of failure to join a necessary and indispensable party are reversed, and the
matter is remanded for further proceedings.
Defendants, Ryan Templet and State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance
Company, asserted that Plaintiff, Dixie Hoerner, assigned her medical expense
causes of action to Fairway Medical Surgical Hospital DBA AVALA (“AVALA”)
through an Assignment Agreement (“the Agreement”) , thereby making AVALA a
necessary and indispensable party to the lawsuit. We find no merit to their
contention.
The Agreement entered into between Plaintiff and AVALA assigns “all right,
title and interest in and to any proceeds” recovered by Plaintiff. Therefore, based on
the clear language of the Agreement, AVALA was assigned only the right to receive
certain “proceeds” which may be recovered by Plaintiff in the tort suit. The language
of the Agreement did not encompass an assignment of Plaintiff’s litigious rights.
For the foregoing reasons, the lower courts erred in finding that AVALA is a
necessary and indispensable party to this lawsuit. The judgments of the lower courts
sustaining the exception of failure to join a necessary and indispensable party raised
by Defendants are reversed, and the matter is remanded for further proceedings.
REVERSED AND REMANDED.
01/17/24