Loyd Bourgeois, a former engineering student who founded his own law firm to handle personal injury and disability claims, was interviewed by Attorney at Law Magazine. Bourgeois explains how one case could change a lawyer’s career.
AALM :Loyd tell us your journey to become a lawyer.
LB I took a path that was not very traditional. I’ve always wanted to do something to help the community I live in and I was determined to protect our coastal environment in south Louisiana. I went to college to become an Environmental Engineer because I wanted to create and implement projects that would help the Louisiana Coast and my community.
We spent most of our time in engineering school working to make the environment cleaner by developing solutions for chemical factories or oil refineries. As a senior, I did internships in some of these plants. While working as an intern, I learned that when changes were needed to processing equipment, the engineers would tell me to consult the lawyers first to ensure it complied with our permits. I thought, “Why not become a lawyer?” and went to Tulane Law School in order to become an environmental lawyer. I graduated with honors as well as an environmental law certification. I entered the world of law.
AALMHow did your engineering degree influence your legal career
LBEngineering has a lot to do with lawyering. Engineers and lawyers are both problem solvers at their core. The skills needed to be a great lawyer are honed by rigorous training in mathematical and scientific methods used to solve engineering issues. I think both are described by the same process: taking facts and circumstances that can be very diverse and distilling them to their core, identifying what went wrong, and who was responsible. This is what we do almost every day.
AALM Tell us about a legal case that changed your perspective.
LBI’m not sure about a shift in perspective because I’ve been a helper all my life, but there were a few cases that inspired me to go back to helping people.
I practiced for four years, mostly doing insurance defense and environmental litigation defence – not glamorous work. My grandmother called me. She tells me that my cousin’s (her niece) long-term disability claim was being abused and she might have to sell the house. She asked me to look into the matter for her cousin. So I called my cousin to ask her what the problem was. She was unable to explain it. She had brain cancer, and she’d undergone several treatments. She was someone I knew my entire life, and she asked me repeatedly for my name during this and other calls because she couldn’t recall it. It was heartbreaking. I was finally able to figure out what was going on and discovered that her insurance company had denied her benefits, claiming she could continue her previous job, which was selling high-volume health insurance across the company. It was very frustrating to see a family member who could not remember my name, but the insurance company said, “yeah, but you can still sell health insurance.” I became angry and determined. I spent a lot of time helping her. She eventually got her benefits restored and her family was able to have financial security during some difficult times.
This experience awakened in me a purpose to help people (like my cousins) who are being taken advantage of by insurance companies. I was the child who would always speak up and stand up on the playground, even if it meant getting beaten up. I knew I was capable of handling it, but I also knew that others were not. I felt the same way about this case – asking questions and standing up for my sister when she couldn’t do it on her own, and being beaten up by the insurance company because they were throwing money, documents and lawyers at me.
After we won, I knew that I would only help people for the rest my career. It doesn’t matter if it is an auto case, where the insurance company holds a client hostage to save money for its executives and shareholders. Or a disability case, where the regular workers who paid for the benefits were denied them when they needed it the most. This case has really been the foundation of everything we have built, and will continue to build.
What prompted you to start your own practice, AALM?
LBI wanted to help people. That was the main reason I started my own business. I worked mostly on property insurance claims (this was following Hurricane Katrina), and environmental defense litigation relating to oil field waste. It just didn’t suit who I am. Because I wasn’t helping people, I wasn’t fully engaged or satisfied. Everything changed when I took on the case of my cousin. I knew I was meant to help other people. I also had a family, including a wife, two children and a third on the way. I wanted to make sure I was there for my family. I thought that opening my own business would allow me to help people while also being there for my family. Two months before the birth of my third child, I decided to go it alone.
Tell us about your team, and the culture that you have tried to establish in your company.
LBOur team is a mix of ages, personalities, and strengths. Above all, we are all passionate about helping others. Helping people does not only include our clients, but also our team, our community and, of course, them. We strive every day to make a difference in someone’s day by being compassionate.
Tell us about your outside life?
Lindy: I have been married to my lovely wife for more than 20 years. We have three children Preston, Sophie, and Reid. Our kids were (or are) all involved in extracurricular activities and sports throughout their schooling, so we’re always on the move to a match, practice, competition or other event. I have coached baseball and soccer since Preston began playing (he recently graduated high school), and just finished a baseball season for Reid’s team. I enjoy teaching and helping the children about sportsmanship, life and sports. It’s not always easy, but it’s worth it. Our family is also a huge LSU fan. We attend as many games as we can and have watch parties in our home or neighborhood.
AALM : What is your involvement in the community like?
LBI have been a member of the board of our local United Way, as well as a secretary/treasurer. I also lead the finance committee. During my tenure as a board member, the organization grew from $1.2 million to almost $5 million in donations. We’ve also funded a community college in our area, and launched a program to provide food for economically disadvantaged children during weekends and school breaks. We participate in charity events, such as cook-offs, to support community programs. We also sponsor a variety of school programs, including sports teams, dance groups, robotics teams and academic teams. ).
Looking back at your career, what would you change?
LB : There’s going to always be some Monday Morning quarterbacking but I wouldn’t change anything. These learning moments helped us become the team we are today. We see things as an opportunity and not regrets.
The first time Attorney at Law Magazine published the article Loyd Bourgeois: From Engineering To Law.