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Richard Hymel’s broad professional experience gives him the ability to mediate a wide variety of cases. He has successfully mediated cases since 2004 in the areas of admiralty and maritime, trucking and automobile accidents, premises liability, environmental contamination, insurance coverage, contractual indemnity, construction disputes, employment discrimination, sales tax, and workers’ compensation. In 2012, he attended mediation training offered by Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution at Pepperdine University School of Law, then ranked as the #1 dispute resolution program in the country by U.S. News & World Report.

Biography

PROFILE

Mr. Hymel is a lawyer with Mahtook & LaFleur in Lafayette and has 34 years of legal experience. He is a seasoned, mature litigator having tried a range of cases, including those in the areas of admiralty and maritime, well blowouts, environmental contamination, trucking accidents, commercial disputes, premises liability, and workers’ compensation.

Mr. Hymel serves as a court appointed neutral/mediator in the Hurricane Laura and Delta Claims for the 14th Judicial District Court, Calcasieu Parish, Lake Charles, Louisiana. As selected by his peers, he holds an AV Preeminent peer review rating on Martindale-Hubbell, the highest possible rating for legal ability and ethical standards. Mr. Hymel was named "Louisiana Super Lawyer" by Thomson Reuters and “Top Lawyer” by Acadiana Profile Magazine. In addition to Mr. Hymel’s impressive experience as a Louisiana litigator, he is also a member of the Texas State Bar Association and passed the Certified Public Accountant exam.

Mr. Hymel represented Transocean in the investigation and litigation arising out of the BP Macondo well blowout. Mr. Hymel led the initial investigation for Transocean then served as trial counsel for Transocean in the seven-week Coast Guard/MMS hearings and eight-week Multi-District Litigation trial. In connection with his representation of Transocean in the BP Macondo well blowout, Mr. Hymel attended IADC WellCap Supervisor Well Control School.

TESTIMONIALS

“I wanted to say thanks and great job once again. My client is extremely pleased with the results of the mediation conference... It all starts with your hard work and perseverance...”

“I found him to be very effective. There had been much acrimony between the lawyers and the parties, and Richard was able to quickly cut through all of that.”

“His quick study grasp of the case and its dynamics and his obvious experience in dealing with these types of cases as a litigant and mediator were evident, and yielded a resolution that was satisfactory to all of the parties.”

"[T]hank you for a great job. ... and I were both impressed and will keep you in mind for future mediations."

"It was a pleasant day with a good result … you did a great job … Thanks for your help in getting this matter resolved."

"Thanks Richard. It was great working with you... You worked hard and we got it settled. That’s a success... I hope to see you again on another claim."