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Flanagan Partners
Laurent J. Demosthenidy, Partner at Flanagan Partners

Partner

Laurent J. Demosthenidy

Overview

Laurent Demosthenidy represents businesses, government entities, and individuals in complex litigation through trial and appeal. He has experience in commercial litigation, admiralty and maritime, catastrophic personal injury and casualty, insurance coverage and bad faith, and First Amendment law. This direct experience taking complex matters to trial gives him the knowledge to advise clients in the immediate aftermath of an incident and either to represent them or to assist them in monitoring and evaluating other outside counsel through the course of litigation.

He also advises clients on insurance recovery and other transactional matters, including business formation, contract drafting and negotiation, and employment-related matters. He is admitted to practice before all Louisiana and Mississippi state and federal courts.

He studied Political Science at U.C. Santa Barbara and then attended Tulane University Law School, where he received a J.D. with certification in Admiralty law in 2006. While at Tulane, he served as a justice on the Tulane Moot Court Board and a student attorney with the Tulane Criminal Clinic.

He has made homes in both the U.S. and France. He has served on the boards of local nonprofits and is an adjunct professor at Tulane Law School, where he teaches insurance law and is an instructor in Tulane's trial advocacy program. He lives in New Orleans with his wife, Mollye Demosthenidy, and their two daughters.

Professional Experience

  • Lead trial counsel for a historic New Orleans church complex in federal litigation over bad-faith handling of a Hurricane Ida property insurance claim. Obtained a jury verdict in excess of $5 million, including bad-faith penalties and attorneys' fees. Rayne Memorial United Methodist Church v. Church Mutual Insurance Company, S.I., E.D. La. No. 23-cv-4129.
  • Lead trial counsel for a dredge owner and operator in a complex admiralty limitation action involving numerous vessels damaged by a derrick barge's breakaway during Hurricane Zeta. All Coast, LLC v. Shore Offshore Services, LLC, E.D. La. No. 21-258 (and consolidated cases).
  • Represented a Mississippi River terminal operator in defense of a seaman's wrongful death Jones Act claims, resulting in a favorable settlement funded entirely by other defendants.
  • Advised and assisted a local business in preparation, submittal, and negotiation of an eight-figure Hurricane Ida claim.
  • Represented a hydrocarbon pipeline company in wetlands erosion litigation. After all other defendants had settled, the day before trial, plaintiffs agreed to settle for the remaining cost of defense.
  • Advised and assisted a Mississippi River terminal operator in connection with a vessel allision claim, including preparation, submission, and negotiation of a disputed insurance coverage claim valued in excess of $30 million, and representation of the client in related admiralty litigation.
  • Champagne v. USAA Cas. Ins. Co., 2019-CA-0334 (La. App. 1 Cir. 2019). Employer's claim for defense and indemnity against employee's liability insurer dismissed. The appellate court held that the primary insurer had no obligation to fund continued defense once its limits were exhausted.
  • Muller v. Fort Pike Volunteer Fire Department, 275 So. 3d 927 (La. App. 4 Cir. 2019). Obtained dismissal of a defamation case under Louisiana's anti-SLAPP statute.
  • Cruz v. Creecy, 254 So. 3d 817 (La. App. 5 Cir. 2018). After a bench trial, the district court rendered a defense judgment based on lack of causation. The Fifth Circuit affirmed.
  • Sims v. Vides, 24th JDC No. 767-734. Obtained a jury verdict in favor of defendants in a personal injury case.
  • Bennett v. Moscano, 18-C-179 (La. App. 5 Cir. 2018). Writ granted reinstating a parish government's right to jury trial under La. R.S. 13:5105(D). Following a four-day trial, the jury returned a defense verdict.
  • Zen-Noh Grain Corp. v. Thompson, 123 So. 3d 777 (La. App. 5 Cir. 8/27/13). The Fifth Circuit vacated a lis pendens dismissal. Thompson later abandoned all claims against Zen-Noh.
  • Claudio v. Silla Cooling Sys., 55 So. 3d 902 (La. App. 5 Cir. 12/14/10). The court of appeal reversed a dual-capacity judgment against an employer and rendered judgment for the employer.
  • Defended a movie stunt company in a traumatic brain injury case with potential exposure of over $5 million, obtaining a favorable settlement days before trial.
  • Represented an offshore exploration company in a Jones Act paraplegia case involving extensive indemnity and liability issues.
  • Represented a defendant employee of an offshore supply company in a personal injury case involving severe traumatic brain injury, permanent disability, and punitive-damage exposure.
  • Represented a Louisiana oilfield support company in multimillion-dollar federal litigation related to construction of facilities on the Bakken Shale Formation in North Dakota.
  • Represented an offshore supply company in a multi-million-dollar dispute with a contractor over oil-spill cleanup efforts.
  • Defended a landowner in connection with wrongful death claims, obtaining a settlement of less than $50,000. A later jury trial resulted in an award of over $2.5 million against a non-settling defendant.
  • Obtained a trial judgment in favor of a subsidiary of a publicly traded multinational company in a breach of barge construction contract.