Trial-Lawyers Take War on Jobs to TV
Carmouche and Co. Take to Airwaves to Change Public Perception of Job-Killing Coastal Lawsuits
South Louisiana voters are no stranger to seeing trial-lawyers on their TVs and on every single drive, familiar faces like Gordon McKernan, Morris Bart, Dudley DeBosier, and countless others advertising big payouts for car accident cases. In the last couple months, a new face has joined them on the airwaves- but not one who wants your business.
Trial-lawyer John Carmouche, the lead attorney on over 42 lawsuits against oil and gas companies filed by local governments, has taken his war on jobs to TV, recognizing that he needs to turn the tide of public opinion if he hopes to ever get the taxpayer funded windfall he's looking for.
Despite investing millions of dollars into electing friendly Judges, Parish Presidents in Jefferson and St. Bernard, and a trial-lawyer as Governor, Carmouche and his associates have little to show for it- with no cases settled or ruled in favor of the local governments. After failing to muscle a settlement in one of the largest lawsuits through the legislature, Carmouche has spent millions to game the system in his favor with no results so far.
Perhaps frustrated by the delay in his taxpayer funded payout, Carmouche is now trying a new tactic: going on TV to bring public opinion to his side. Polling shows the voters of Louisiana know his true motives, with 57% of Louisianans saying Carmouche's lawsuits are more about "trial-lawyers looking for a payday" than helping fix the coast. Voters have good reason to feel this way- as Carmouche has been clear that it's Louisiana taxpayers who will ultimately "pay the bill" for his lawsuits.
Carmouche's ads feel more like political candidate ads than traditional ambulance chasing trial-lawyer ads, with the first one focusing on his biography and playing to South Louisiana's passion for the outdoors. In another ad, Carmouche goes after "The Biden Administration and Washington liberals", pretending his political philosophy lines up with the voters who see his lawsuits for what they are- an effort to continue enriching himself at their expense. Each of the ads is clearly aimed at dinging that perception- focusing on pollution and cleaning up the coast- despite there being no guarantee that funds from the lawsuits would be invested in coastal restoration or cleaning up pollution.
These ads appear to be a sign of Carmouche going for broke, a last-ditch effort to shift public opinion ahead of next year's anticipated legislative battles over the lawsuits- especially with it being the last year of his hand-picked Governor in office.
The voters of South Louisiana have been too smart to fall for Carmouche and Co. so far, and we expect they'll continue to see through his hypocrisies in this latest effort.
You can read all of our previous stories on Louisiana's job-killing trial-lawyers here.
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