Molly Morgan and Robert Morgan on Behalf of their Minor Child, Allie Morgan v. Southern Hospitality Services, LLC

── Molly Morgan and Robert Morgan on Behalf of their Minor Child, Allie Morgan v. Southern Hospitality Services, LLC ── Court: Louisiana Court of Appeal Date: May 20, 2026 Author: PITMAN Category: General Judgment rendered May 20, 2026. Application for rehearing may be filed within the delay allowed by Art. 2166, La. C.C.P. No. 56,751-CW COURT OF APPEAL SECOND CIRCUIT STATE OF LOUISIANA ***** MOLLY MORGAN AND ROBERT Plaintiffs-Respondents MORGAN ON BEHALF OF THEIR MINOR CHILD, ALLIE MORGAN versus SOUTHERN HOSPITALITY Defendants -Applicants SERVICES, LLC, ET AL ***** On Application for Writs from the Fourth Judicial District Court for the Parish of Ouachita, Louisiana Trial Court No. 202517-62 Honorable Frederick Douglass Jones, Judge ***** PLAUCHE’ MASELLI PARKERSON LLP Counsel for Defendants- By: Eric Winder Sella Applicants, Southern Sarah M. Town Hospitality Services, LLC, and Arch Insurance BRUSCATO LAW FIRM Counsel for Plaintiffs- By: John F. Bruscato Respondents E. Michael Mahaffey TAYLOR, WELLONS, POLITZ & Counsel for Defendant- DUHE, LLC Respondent, MCRT 3 By: Paul J. Politz West Monroe Tenant, LLC Victoria A. Andry dba Hilton Garden Inn ***** Before PITMAN, MARCOTTE and ELLENDER, JJ. MARCOTTE, J. This case arises from the Fourth Judicial District Court, Parish of Ouachita, the Honorable Frederick D. Jones presiding. Relator, defendant Arch Insurance Company (“Arch”), seeks supervisory review of the trial court’s overruling of its exception of no right of action and denying its motion to strike. The writ is granted, and the trial court’s ruling is reversed. Arch’s exception of no right of action is sustained, its motion to strike is granted, and plaintiffs’ claims against the insurer are dismissed with prejudice. FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY On May 14, 2025, Molly and Robert Morgan filed a petition for damages on behalf of themselves and their minor child, Allie Morgan, naming as defendants Southern Hospitality Services, L.L.C. dba Hilton Garden Inn, West Monroe, Louisiana, and its insurer, Arch. The Morgans claimed that on May 23, 2024, Allie encountered a straight edge razor at plaintiff’s hotel, resulting in injuries. Plaintiffs claimed Arch was individually and jointly liable for their claims, and they included Arch in their prayer for relief. Plaintiffs filed a supplemental and amending petition for damages, adding a third defendant. The Morgans’ claims against Arch remained. On July 29, 2025, Arch filed a peremptory exception of no right of action and a motion to strike. Arch claimed that plaintiffs had no procedural right of action against it pursuant to Louisiana’s amended Direct Action Statute, La. R.S. 22:1269. The insurer stated that the amendment to the Direct Action Statute went into effect on August 1, 2024, and provided that no direct action could be brought against an insurer except in certain limited and inapplicable circumstances. Arch argued that plaintiffs’ procedural right to sue an insurer only became operative if they invoked the remedy served by the Direct Action Statute before the amendment removing the procedural right went into effect. Arch concluded that, because th