Burris
NEW ORLEANS – While Democrats stayed home, voters in a heavily conservate district in Louisiana elected the Republican candidate who was not the preferred pick of plaintiff lawyers.
Billy Burris will be the state’s next supreme court justice, filling a vacancy created when President Donald Trump appointed Will Crain to a federal judgeship in the state. Burris defeated Republican judge Blair Downing Edwards by 16 percentage points in a two-candidate primary Friday that featured no Democrats, leaving those registered as such unable to vote.
Though Burris and Edwards represent the same political party, one group – First Principles PAC - saw enough difference in the two to spend nearly $3 million on advertising, texting and mail campaigns backing Burris.
“We were proud to support Billy Burris in this race,” said Peter Bisbee, president of First Principles.
“His commitment to the rule of law, judicial restraint and originalism made him an ideal candidate for the Louisiana Supreme Court, and it’s no surprise that the voters agreed.”
Part of the perceived difference between the two GOP candidates came from Edwards’ family. Her brother-in-law is John Bel Edwards, Louisiana’s former governor who now serves on the Board of Governors for the state’s group for plaintiff lawyers. Though she maintained her ability to remain independent and pointed to years of experience as a judge in a juvenile court and the First Circuit Court of Appeals, it was clear that she was the choice of plaintiff lawyers.
The Louisiana Illuminator reported more than $200,000 of her $750,000 in donations came from the trial bar. The day before the election, personal injury lawyer Tony Clayton gave $12,000 to her campaign – the same amount given days earlier by both the injury firm Broussard, David & Moroux and Dudley DeBosier Injury Lawyers.
Lawyers at Dudley DeBosier also opened their wallets on the Tuesday before the election. Steven DeBosier gave $12,000, Chad Dudley gave $12,000 and James Peltier gave $12,000
Burris, meanwhile, campaigned as a “conservative, rule-of-law” jurist opposed to activism from the bench. Though he raised less than Edwards, he was nevertheless supported by civil defense firms that gave nearly $60,000 and $50,000 from the oil, gas and energy sector, the Illuminator reported.
Groups representing the trucking, oil and gas and contracting industries endorsed Burris, whose election on Friday was welcomed by state Attorney General Liz Murrill.
“Congratulations to Justice-elect Billy Burris on being elected to the Louisiana Supreme Court,” she posted to Facebook. “He’s both an LSU and Southern graduate with a well-respected record of dedication to the rule of law and public service. I look forward to his continued service to our State and Constitution on the bench.”
One of the biggest legal issues in the state won’t be heard by its justices, after the U.S. Supreme Court found high-dollar lawsuits blaming the oil and gas industry for coastal erosion belong in federal court. Companies wanted to avoid state courts, where the first trial in dozens of cases resulted in a $740 million verdict.
Without a Democrat opponent for November, Burris will take his spot on the bench next year. His district includes the parishes of St. Tammany, Washington, Tangipahoa, Livingston and St. Bernard, plus some of Orleans Parish.
Burris has been a judge in the 22nd Judicial District in St. Tammany Parish since 2018 and was once the president of the Franklinton Chamber of Commerce.
“The business community must support candidates who will be conscientious jurists and apply the law in a fair and balanced manner,” Jim Patterson of the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry said earlier this year when announcing the group’s endorsement.
“Judge Burris has a history of rulings that display his intellectual leadership on the bench.”
The court will retain its current political makeup after justices Jay McCallum and Cade Cole were uncontested in their re-election campaigns. Those two, Burris and Jefferson Hughes will make up a Republican majority.
Two justices – Piper Griffin and John Guidry – are Democrats, and Chief Justice John Weimer is an Independent. Burris will fill out the final two years of Crain’s term before he can run for a full 10-year term.
