Direction of Louisiana’s Highest Court at Stake

  BATON ROUGE — Eight candidates are seeking a seat on the Louisiana Supreme Court in the Nov. 6 election, including four Court of Appeal judges, two District Court judges, and two local attorneys.  The election will fill a vacancy on the court caused by an impending resignation of Chief Justice Kitty Kimball.Judge John M. Guidry is considered the leading Democrat, but many attorneys believe the top Republican vote-getter in the Nov. 6 primary will be the eventual winner in the Dec. 8 runoff.  However, some Republican leaders are concerned that the large number of Republican candidates could so split the Republican vote in the primary that two Democrats — Guidry and Baton Rouge attorney Mary Olive Pierson — could slip into the runoff together.

The Republican Party of East Baton Rouge Parish has endorsed Court of Appeal Judge Toni Higginbotham and District Judge Tim Kelley.  The eight candidates are:

The Republicans

• Court of Appeal Judge Toni Higginbotham.  Conservative Republican; long-time Republican activist with seven years practicing law,  14 years as Juvenile Court judge, and two years as judge of the Court of Appeal.  Resides in South Baton Rouge.

• Court of Appeal Judge Jeff Hughes.  Conservative Republican with 12 years as practicing attorney, 14 years as District Judge, and eight years on the Court of Appeal.  Resides in Livingston Parish.

• District Judge Tim Kelley. Conservative Republican with 21 years practicing law and eight years as District Judge.  Resides in South Baton Rouge.

• District Judge Bill Morvant.  Conservative Republican with 11  years as a practicing attorney and 15 years as District Judge.  Resides in South Baton Rouge.

• Court of Appeal Judge Duke Welch.  Conservative Republican who served in the U.S. Air Force.  He served on the Baker City Council, practiced law for 15 years, served as District Judge for nine years, and has served for eight years on the Court of Appeal.  Resides in Zachary area.

The Democrats

• Court of Appeal Judge John Michael Guidry.  Moderate Democrat.  He served in Louisiana House and Louisiana Senate, practiced law for 10 years, and has served for 15 years on Court of Appeal.  He resides in Baton Rouge.

• Mary Olive Pierson.  Democrat.  She has practiced law for 42 years representing a wide variety of clients but is well known for high profile cases including multi-million dollar civil cases and white collar criminal cases.  Served on the City-Parish Council.  Resides in South Baton Rouge.

The Independent

• Jeffry Sanford.  Independent.  He has practiced law for 21 years and has a wide-ranging practice that includes multi-million civil cases, international law, professional sports, and many others.

Why the Election Matters.  The Louisiana Supreme Court has three conservative justices, three liberal justices, and one who can tilt either way, depending on the issue.  The election of a Republican to this seat would move the court in a more conservative direction because Chief Justice Kimball is considered more liberal.

Notes on the Race.  

• The primary election is Nov. 6, and the runoff is Dec. 8.  All of the six sitting judges seeking the post are considered capable and well qualified.

• Court of Appeal Judge John Michael Guidry is viewed as the candidate most likely to run first in the primary.  He is considered moderate.  He enjoyed the support of LABI when he ran for the Court of Appeal and was opposed by former Sen. Cleo Fields.

• Democrat attorney Mary Olive Pierson has an outside chance of making the runoff.

• District Judge Bill Morvant secured the coveted LABI endorsement and is expected to be well funded, which could provide him with a strong media presence in the final weeks.

• Court of Appeal Judge Toni Higginbotham and District Judge Tim Kelley received a lot of media exposure in their campaigns for the Court of Appeal two years ago, and this name recognition is relatively fresh.

• Court of Appeal Judge Jeff Hughes is the only candidate from Livingston Parish, which gives him a block of voters in the primary.

• Court of Appeal Judge Duke Welch is the only candidate from the north part of the parish, and he should be well funded by trial lawyers.

• The largest percentage of Republican voters is found in South Baton Rouge.