House committee rejects lowering threshold for jury trials in lawsuits
by Bill Barrow - Times-Picayune (excerpt)

Handing the business lobby a rare defeat, a Louisiana House committee Monday declined to lower the threshold in certain civil cases that would allow litigants to request a jury trial. Louisiana has, by far, the nation's highest threshold at $50,000, meaning causes of action for anything less are decided by a judge. Rep. Tony Ligi, R-Metairie, proposed lowering the cap to $15,000 in tort cases, chiefly personal injury cases. He originally filed House Bill 343 with a $5,000 threshold, but was unable to win over his colleagues on the Civil Law and Procedure Committee, which jettisoned the idea by a 7-5 margin. Ligi's measure would have allowed either defendants or plaintiffs in a tort case to request a jury at their own expense. Joined by representatives of business and insurance, including New Orleans lawyer Wayne Fontana, Ligi pitched the measure primarily as a means to lower automobile insurance rates and business property and casualty insurance rates, also measures in which Louisiana is a national leader. Ligi cited a U.S. Chamber of Commerce study suggesting Louisiana has among the worst tort environments for business in the nation.