Last week I received a heads up that Slabbed’s mortal enemy Daniel “Danny” Abel had died after being struck by a car in a hit and run just before Christmas last year. One would have to imagine the range of emotions that one experiences under such circumstances. I was on someone else’s dime however and unable to indulge anything in the moment.
I knew Slabbed would certainly be publishing on this topic and the pause for reflection was a good thing. Whatever baser emotions we experienced inside Slabbed were gotten out of the way in fairly short order and that is good overall. We would never wish getting hit by a car and then lingering for two months inside a long term care facility during a pandemic on our worst enemy, which Abel would certainly make the short list. That said after news traveled another person Abel had terrorized with shithouse legal tactics described what happened as ‘karma’ to me. Such determinations are above my paygrade.
Ramon Vargas wrote the Obit for the Picayune and it was sourced by all the usual suspects in Abel’s adopted son Shane Gates and his long time friend Eric Paulsen. This much is true about him, he was gold to his friends and had excellent people skills. He was at his best as a lawyer teamed up with the late Wendell Gauthier during the class action bonanza of the 1990s, the worst abuses of which resulted in tort reform. Abel was the political component of that team as he had judges in his pocket and political connections including and especially with former Jefferson Parish President Aaron Broussard.
Continue reading “Requiem for the Super 8 Motel Legal Department”