The CLE seminar, “Tracking Louisiana ‘s Legal Heritage: Celebrating 200 Years of the Federal Courts in Louisiana”, highlighted the colorful history of the federal courts in Louisiana, particularly that of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana. The presentations focused on notable cases, judges, and events from the past 200 years, such as the distinctive cultural combination of Creoles and Americans in Louisiana’s early days of statehood, how the city’s neighborhoods evolved, the “moving” history of the court’s physically locations in the city, the evolution of civilian aspects of Louisiana law, Andrew Jackson’s infamous fight with Judge Dominick Hall, and the important role that the court played in Civil Rights litigation.

The seminar also featured a skit performed by International High School of New Orleans students featuring the debate among our forebears about whether Louisiana would be admitted to the union as a civil law or a common law state. The skit was written by local attorney Barry Ashe, and performed in English, Spanish, and French, and was both entertaining and historically informative.

The program was well received by an enthusiastic crowd of 600 attendees. One attendee offered that the program “was likely the most informative and entertaining CLE seminar I can recall attending. It was well done, the speakers were both talented and knowledgeable and the preparation work was evident in the flow of topics. The mini-play added an unexpected entertainment factor but maintained the flow of information.”

In addition to the Eastern District of Louisiana, co-sponsors and partners included the New Orleans Chapter of the Federal Bar Association, the New Orleans Bar Association, the Louisiana Bar Foundation, and the Louisiana Center for Law and Civic Education. Several local university professors as well as The Historic New Orleans Collection were also instrumental in the planning of the celebration.

The seminar was videotaped, and is available for viewing. Select the link above on the right.