The Lafayette Bar Association hosted its quarterly Bench Bar Quarterly at the offices of Liskow & Lewis and featured the Hon. Dana Douglas of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. Judge Douglas fielded questions from the crowd of litigators that varied from the best way to address judges when arguing their client’s appeals to gleaning insights about lessons learned in her journey as a lawyer, U. S. District Magistrate Judge, and her current position as a federal appellate judge. Interestingly, the 5th Circuit, which covers Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas, hears the highest numbers of cases in the U. S. Increasingly seen on the docket are administrative law cases. While the total number of cases are declining overall, the volume of work for the judges and staff has exponentially risen given that filings of more motions for stays and mandamus are occurring. Judge Douglas counseled the attendees to be candid with the court, as well as opposing counsel, when presenting their appeals. Only 7.5 to 8% of cases of the District Court cases are overturned, and thus, thoughtful presentation of why your case should prevail is of utmost importance. The standard of review on a finding of fact is the clearly erroneous standard and the reviewing court will not overturn the outcome even if they may have reached a different conclusion. We thank Jamie Rhymes for chairing the Bench Bar Quarterly and look forward to our next meeting on September 17, noon, with Judge David Joseph at the U. S. District Courthouse, 800 Lafayette St., Lafayette LA 70501/ Judge Douglas was nominated for the federal bench by President Joe Biden on June 15, 2022, and was confirmed by the Senate on Dec. 13, 2022, becoming the first Black female judge on the court’s bench. Prior to joining the Fifth Circuit bench, Judge Douglas had served as a magistrate judge for the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana since 2019. Before joining the federal bench, Douglas was a partner at Liskow & Lewis, where she worked from 2001 to 2018 in the firm’s New Orleans office, with her practice focused on commercial, energy, and intellectual property litigation in the state and federal courts of Louisiana. She also previously served as a judicial law clerk to Judge Ivan L. R. Lemelle of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana. Judge Douglas is a charter and founding member of the Louisiana Chapter of the Women’s Energy Network, and a past president of both the Greater New Orleans Louis A. Martinet Society and the New Orleans Bar Association. She earned her B.S. from the Miami University in 1997, and her J.D. in 2000 from Loyola University New Orleans College of Law. (fb)

Register NOW for next week’s CLE & social at Superior Grill! On June 5 at Superior Grill, hear from Frank Neuner and Phillip Smith, of NeunerPate, on how to prepare witnesses for depositions and how to coach them on their performance. This free event is open to all active LBA members. Register here: https://laba.memberclicks.net/junesocial25#!/ (fb)