A federal judge in New Orleans threw out the whistleblower lawsuits against Allstate Insurance Co. and other insurers alleging that they forced the U.S. government to pay inflated claims through the National Flood Insurance Program after Hurricane Katrina.
On Monday, U.S. District Court Judge Sarah Vance dismissed the case United States of America ex relator Branch Consultants LLC versus Allstate Insurance et al, saying the court didn't have jurisdiction. Through the reasoning in the decision, two other whistleblower suits against Allstate that had recently been transferred to Vance's court, one brought by New Orleans attorney Johnny Denenea and another filed in Baton Rouge by Kermith Sonnier, are also likely to be dismissed.
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