Rafael A. Duboue filed suit against CBS Outdoor, Inc. and CBS Outdoor Group, Inc. (CBS) and St. Paul Travelers Insurance Company (Travelers) on August 25, 2006. He alleged that his building was damaged during Hurricane Katrina as a result of CBS's large advertising sign that was attached to the roof of his building, leased by CBS and insured by Travelers was improperly attached. CBS and Travelers argued that the sole cause of the damage was Hurricane Katrina and moved for summary judgment. The trial court heard the motion and granted it from the bench on April 4, 2008, issuing a written judgment without stating its reasons. Duboue's appeal was based on whether the trial court erred by granting summary judgment.

On appeal, Duboue argued that the damage to the building during the hurricane was caused by the placement of the defendant's sign on top of the building. CBS and Travelers produced evidence that Duboue purchased the building in 1987 with the sign, which had been erected by a private owner in the 1950's, already attached to the roof. Duboue testified that he did not know of any construction defects related to the sign and that it had not been repaired, adjusted or moved since he owned the building. He stated that he had never had the sign or the roof inspected. According to his testimony, during Hurricane Katrina, the sign remained intact but the front wall of the building collapsed and water entering through the roof damaged his tools. At the time of his deposition, the uninsured building had not been repaired but Duboue continued to operate out of it.

To support their motion, CBS and Travelers produced an affidavit by a civil engineer who had designed hundreds of similar signs and had conducted numerous studies of hurricane-related damage to building structures, including outdoor signs damaged by Hurricane Katrina. After examining the sign in this case, he stated that he believed that wind forces beyond those contemplated by building codes in effect 50 years earlier when the building was constructed caused the building damage. He also stated that the building had not been repaired and was in a dilapidated state prior to the hurricane and that he found no evidence of a design or construction defect associated with the sign.

The appellate court found that CBS and Travelers produced sufficient evidence to prove that the damages were caused by an act of God of an unusual, sudden and unexpected manifestation of the forces of nature that could not have been prevented by the exercise of reasonable care. It stated that this defense applied when the accident was directly and exclusively due to natural causes without human intervention and when there was no negligent behavior by the defendants that contributed to the accident. Duboue was unable to produce any evidence indicating negligence on the part of CBS and Travelers that contributed to the damages he sustained. Since he was unable to refute the defendant's motion by producing any such evidence, the appellate court held that the trial court had correctly granted the motion for summary judgment and affirmed its judgment.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, Fourth Circuit. Rafael A. Duboue v. CBS Outdoor, Inc. CBS Outdoor Group, Inc. and St. Paul Travelers Insurance Company. No. 2008-CA-0715. Oct. 1, 2008. 966 So.2d, 2008-0715 (La.App. 4 Cir. 10/1/08)