Kathy “Kat” Rito is a versatile litigator who has successfully defended clients throughout Louisiana and Mississippi in two core areas of law: high-exposure professional liability defense, including medical malpractice and healthcare litigation; and serious casualty claims involving transportation, premises liability, and toxic exposures.
Kat represents hospitals, physicians, and long-term care providers in malpractice suits involving catastrophic injury, misdiagnosis, surgical error, birth trauma, and failure-to-monitor claims. She also defends national insurers, major retailers, trucking and logistics companies, and property owners in cases involving multi-vehicle collisions, impaired drivers, premises accidents, and environmental exposures. In all domains, she is known for her meticulous case assessments, confident courtroom presence, and pragmatic approach to resolution strategy.
Kat’s counsel exists beyond the courtroom. She routinely advises on risk transfer, coverage strategy, and litigation budgeting, aligning case tactics with insurer expectations and exposure management. Her experience includes working closely with excess carriers, risk managers, and national coordinating counsel in claims involving significant reputational and financial stakes. She provides general counsel and advice in these sectors – as well as to startup companies in the health care and hospitality industries – on issues regarding risk mitigation, ethical pitfalls and preliminary regulatory compliance issues.
Prior to joining SPSR, Kat practiced at a national litigation defense firm, where she built a strong foundation in high-volume, high-risk defense work across multiple lines of insurance. Her litigation style blends careful preparation with confident advocacy, making her a trusted resource for clients facing challenging exposures, before and after a lawsuit has been filed.
Kat earned her law degree from Tulane University Law School and her undergraduate degree from Newcomb College of Tulane University, New Orleans. She is admitted to practice in all state and federal courts in Mississippi and Louisiana. She is active in the Louisiana Association of Defense Counsel and the New Orleans Bar Association.
Whether defending a healthcare provider or advising on a trucking loss, Kat brings clarity, precision, and strategic focus to every case she handles.
Representative Matters
Representative matters include:
- Defense of physicians, health care facilities, and other medical professionals in malpractice and general negligence suits involving wrongful death, surgical negligence, failure to monitor and missed diagnosis claims, and battery.
- Defense of licensed professionals and E&O-insureds in professional negligence actions involving complex regulatory frameworks.
- Litigation of transportation claims involving commercial vehicles, fatal accidents, and alleged FMCSA violations.
- Premises liability defense for national retailers and commercial property owners facing claims of serious injury, ADA/code violations, and unsafe conditions.
- Strategic resolution of environmental/toxic tort claims involving mold, chemical exposure, and historical contamination.
Practice Areas
Bar Admissions
- Louisiana
- Mississippi
- U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana
- U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana
- U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana
- U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi
- U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi
Education
- J.D., Tulane University Law School
- B.A., Newcomb College of Tulane University, New Orleans
Memberships
- Louisiana State Bar Association