A court of appeal in Louisiana has decided that a woman and her newborn are entitled to survivor benefits after her fiancé and the baby's father died in a tragic workplace accident, but the employer does not have to pay penalties in an alleged mishandling of the workers' compensation claim. The case is Perez v. Irby Constr. Co., 2020 La. App. LEXIS 153.

Travis Chiokai passed away in November 2017, after falling 100 feet while working on electrical lines for his employer Irby Construction Co. (Irby). His fiance, Latashia Perez, individually and on behalf of the unborn child, filed a disputed claim for compensation against Irby, and Republic Insurance Company, seeking death benefits as a result of the work-related accident, plus penalties and attorney fees due to the handling of the claim. Irby and Republic, collectively referred to as Irby Construction, disputed the claim, and argued that the claim on behalf of the unborn child was premature.

The baby was born a month after her father died. Paternity was confirmed, and Irby Construction began paying death benefits of $624 per week. The next month Irby Construction filed peremptory exceptions of no cause and no right of action, asserting that Perez was Chiokai's concubine, and thus not entitled to death benefits through La.R.S. 23:1253. A workers' compensation judge found that although the couple was engaged in concubinage, no evidence was presented that proved that Perez occupied the position of concubine, and denied the exceptions and found that Perez was dependent on Chiokai for support at the time of his death, and added penalties of $2000, and attorneys fees of $3000, because the company was "arbitrary and capricious in its handling" of the compensation claim.