Attorneys Lawrence G. Pugh and William W. Sentell obtained a $1.185M jury verdict in a long-running commercial dispute. Along with Stanley Cohn of the Lugenbuhl law firm, Messrs. Pugh and Sentell represented the owners of a luxury condominium unit near New Orleans’ Jackson Square. The owners claimed they had been unable to use their condominium unit for 75 months as the result of unrepaired roof leaks. In 2012, they filed suit against the condominium association, arguing that the association’s negligent repairs amounted to a deprivation of their protected property rights.

The matter was tried before a 12-person jury over five days. After deliberating for approximately 75 minutes, the jury returned a unanimous verdict for $1.185M, representing loss of use damages over 75 months. Combined with an earlier settlement of a property damage claim, the total recovery in the matter exceeds $1.5M with interest. The owners have a pending claim for attorneys’ fees under the Condominium Act. The case is FIE, LLC v. New Jax Condominiums Association, Inc., No. 2012–03078, Civil District Court for the Parish of Orleans, State of Louisiana.

UPDATE: On May 13, 2016, Judge Kern Reese denied a motion for new trial and/or motion for remititur filed by New Jax Condominiums Association.