Independence Lawyers

Douglas D. Brown, Attorney at Law, is a husband and father of three, and has practiced personal injury law, criminal defense and family law in Tangipahoa Parish for two decades. After working in Washington, D.C. for Congressman Richard Baker, Brown served as a judicial law clerk for State District Judges Ray Chutz in Amite and M. Douglas Hughes in Livingston. He later served as the City of Hammond's Assistant City Prosecutor and first In House Attorney. Before earning a JD degree at Louisiana State University's Paul M. Hebert Law Center, Brown attended Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. and earned a...

Tom Anderson was born and raised in Hammond, Louisiana. He received his J.D. from Loyola Law School in New Orleans. Early on in his career, he was elected as Louisiana’s youngest mayor. At the age of 30, Tom decided to retire from politics and dedicate his time to representing injured victims. Tom is known for holding the largest civil jury award in the 21st Judicial District and for receiving the highest possible AV® Rating by Martindale-Hubbell®. His passion for standing up against insurance companies and his proven track record has made him one of the leading advocates in the community.

Gary Boutwell was born in Plaquemines Parish and grew up in North Louisiana. He attended Louisiana State University and earned his law degree from Loyola Law School. Gary’s father worked offshore in Louisiana’s oilfield industry, so he knows firsthand the dangerous conditions and injuries that workers face every day. He has dedicated his legal career to fighting on behalf of the injured and to making sure that they receive justice. Gary resides in Hammond and welcomes cases all across Louisiana. In his spare time, Gary enjoys renovating and preserving old classic homes.

Experienced practitioner handling exclusively criminal defense case in both the Federal and State courts. I have successfully handled criminal matters, including murder, drugs, bank robbery, theft, burglary, firearms violations, and various other offenses. I have substantial experience in appellate practice, appearing before the First, Fourth, Fifth Circuit Courts of Appeal as well as the Louisiana State Supreme Court.

John M. Almerico is one half of the legal team comprising of John M. Almerico and Michael S. Bradley LLC, a post he has held since the firm’s inception. Mr. Almerico has held several positions since graduating from Southern University Law Center in 2005, including closing agent for the Road Home Program, Assistant Public Defender, and Law Partner at John M. Almerico and Michael S. Bradley LLC. He has represented clients throughout all levels of the criminal justice system in multiple jurisdictions around the greater New Orleans area. Mr. Almerico has also represented clients in both family law, personal injury,...

Chandler D. Craig is a lifelong resident of the Northshore, where he resides with his wife and young daughter. After graduating from Loyola University New Orleans in 2013 with a B.A. in Philosophy, Chandler began his career as a banking officer and eventually a branch manager for a local community bank. Deciding to pursue his lifelong dream of attending law school, he resigned from banking to attend Loyola University New Orleans College of Law, where he earned the Law Excellence Award in Securities Law and Regulation before graduating in 2020. He also served as Treasurer of the Federalist Society during...

Jason was born in New Orleans, Louisiana. He graduated Nicholls State University with a BS in Engineering Technology. He played varsity sports, was on the radio and involved in the performing arts. After a career in radio and television, he attended law school in New Orleans. He opened a private practice focusing on corporate, collection and consumer rights. He became a partner in the firm of Naccari, Deas and Pugh in 1992. His personal clients at the time included Benson Automotive World (owned by a well known local family), and most of the major hospitals and clinics in the...

Robert Hallack is the principal of Hallack Law Offices in Baton Rouge. In 1989, he earned his J.D. degree, cum laude, at Southern University Law Center. He was also Associate Editor of the Southern University Law Review by virtue of his article, "Louisiana's Comparative Fault Doctrine and the Mitigation of Damages," which was cited by the Louisiana Supreme Court. During his last year of studies, Mr. Hallack was awarded the West Publishing Award for Scholastic Achievement. Since 1989, he has devoted his practice to personal injury and wrongful death cases, including vehicle accidents, medical negligence, nursing home negligence, professional...

Choose Attorney Stephen Rue. FREE CONSULTATION* CALL 24/7 (504)529-5000 (985)871-0008 Voted "BEST ATTORNEY" in Gambit Weekly "Best of New Orleans" 5-STAR YELP, GOOGLE, AVVO and Lawyers.com Reviews. Stephen Rue is selected as the 2021 "TOP ATTORNEY" by New Orleans Magazine. Stephen Rue is selected as a 2021 SUPER LAWYER. He is the founder of BEST ATTORNEYS OF AMERICA. HAPPY CLIENTS have given testimonials saying, "Mr. Rue is the Best!" "Extremely Competent" "Truly a Blessing." "A Beast in the Courtroom" "Extremely Happy!" "Highly Recommend" "Powerful Attorney" "Beyond Expectations" "Great Results" Attorney Stephen Rue and his associated attorneys have handled thousands of cases with over 35 years of personal injury, ...

After graduating #1 in his law school class, Scott Courrege was admitted to practice law in Louisiana in the Spring of 2018. Scott was born and raised in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, and graduated from St. Stanislaus High School in 1998. In 2001, Scott was hired as a police officer for the Gulfport Police Department and worked full-time while he completed his B.A. in Criminal Justice at the University of Southern Mississippi.

In 2003, Scott went to work for the United States Border Patrol, where he served as a Senior Patrol Agent on the prestigious San Diego Sector Air Mobile Unit....

Ellen put herself through both undergraduate and law school. She a married, mother of two. Both her husband and daughter are also attorneys as are a nephew, father-in-law, 3 brothers-in-law and one brother-in-law who was elected judge. She was drawn to the areas of family law, criminal defense and plaintiff personal injury and has never changed course. She has practiced in Ascension, East Baton Rouge Jefferson, Livingston, Orleans, St. Bernard, St. Tammany, Tangipahoa and Washington Parishes for her entire 28 years of legal experience including, Amite, Baton Rouge, Chalmette, Covington, Denham Springs, Franklinton, Gonzales, Gretna, Hammond,...

Stephen Babcock was born and raised in Ruston, LA and is an active and passionate member of the Baton Rouge community. Originally studying as a title lawyer at Louisiana State University’s Paul M. Hebert Law Center, it didn't take long for Stephen to realize that he wanted to become a trial lawyer. It wasn't long until he graduated with a law degree and became a Bar member in 2000. The firm that would become Babcock Injury Lawyers would follow soon after in 2003.

The attorneys behind Babcock Injury Lawyers are experienced and dedicated to improving the lives of local accident...

I am a CPA and attorney. I have been a CPA since 1994 and an Louisiana attorney since 2000. The Louisiana Board of Legal Specialization has designated me as a Board Certified Estate Planning and Administration Specialist (since 2008), as well as a Board Certified Tax Law Specialist (also since 2008). My practice focuses strongly on the needs and issues particular to farmers, middle income clients and small business owners. These include issues such as estate tax reduction, medicaid long-term care planning, special needs planning, asset protection planning, and small business protection planning. Plans I regularly recommend and personally draft for...

Louis J. Cosenza is a skilled litigator with experience in diverse areas including tort law, medical malpractice, lawyer disciplinary proceedings, and criminal defense and prosecution in state and federal courts and military Courts Martial. In his 40+ years as a lawyer, Mr. Cosenza has also represented clients in a wide variety of civil disputes, notably in the areas of contract and property law.

A native of New Orleans who has spent over 20 years practicing law in a large town, Louis also lived and practiced law for 10 years in rural west Louisiana. This life experience has given him a valuable...

Attorney Leonard Kilgore is an experienced advocate for local, national and international commercial, energy and industrial clients in litigation involving toxic tort claims, personal injury, property damage claims, and class actions.

Ed Kramer graduated from both LSU and LSU Law School where he was on the Louisiana Law Review, a prestigious student organization only accepting a few students by grade. After that, Ed began to practice personal injury accident law – representing only injured parties, not insurance companies, in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Ed participated in trials, was involved in million-dollar cases, and even class action cases, mostly personal injury accident cases. Ed would like to help you too.

With extensive experience in real estate and business management, Christie Tournet & Associates is the consummate business, estate planning, and successions/probate firm. Christie views legal issues through a unique lens and becomes a trusted legal and business adviser.

Jenny graduated from the Loyola University College of Law, and earned her undergraduate degree from Our Lady of Holy Cross College. Jenny began her bankruptcy practice in 2011 as the Law Office of Jenny Abshier. Jenny's office took great pride in providing options to reduce the upfront costs required for filing bankruptcy, as well as providing access to pro bono services when available. As Jenny's reputation grew, so did her practice. Jenny has partnered with two similar minded attorneys to form the Big Easy Law Group in order to further spread her beliefs in compassion and accessibility...

Jason is one of the nation's top trial lawyers for one reason: when he represents a client, he's all in. No matter how tough the fight. No matter how big the challenge. When it matters most, he's there for people who have been wronged. He takes every case personally, treating each client like family while he fights to rebuild their lives.

When people need to win, they call Jason. He's won several verdicts and settlements worth more than $100 million, dozens of results worth more than $10 million, and more than 200 results worth $1 million or more. In total,...

Trey McCowan is a partner in the Baton Rouge office of Kean Miller. He joined the firm in 1989 and practices in the litigation group. Trey represents local, regional and multi-national energy and petrochemical clients in a wide variety of litigation matters. He has specific experience representing clients in litigation involving complex commercial agreements and legacy site litigation in the energy industry. Trey also represents clients with regard to environmental litigation and toxic tort defense. He also advises clients on electronic discovery, e-discovery compliance, electronically stored information (ESI), electronic information management, and retention and destructive policies and procedures.

Trey is listed...

I was born in Lafayette, in the heart of Cajun country. My grandparents lived next door, and there was rarely a day without a visit to or from someone in the extended family. Growing up, the family indulgence was season tickets to Saints games in the fall. I played volleyball at LSU, the culmination of a childhood dream. I went to LSU law school. There I enrolled in a tax law course and discovered that I really am a numbers person, and thrived in a program that appealed to my logical brain. After graduating, I headed north to pursue a Master...

A native New Orleanian, Leo graduated from Holy Cross High School, later obtained his Bachelor of Science in Business from the University of New Orleans, and then his Juris Doctorate from Loyola Law School, where he served as the Study Body President, Lead Attorney in the American Trial Lawyers Association Trial Competition, and member of the Clinic Program, successfully trying and winning cases on behalf of individuals’ rights. After graduating from Loyola School of Law, Leo opened the Palazzo Law Firm. Leo is admitted to practice in all state and appellate courts throughout Louisiana, the Federal Western, Middle, and Eastern Districts,...

Peggy Gonsoulin Vallejo graduated from Tulane Law School in May 1999 and was admitted to the Louisiana State Bar in October 1999.

Her practice consists of civil litigation with a strong focus on personal injury, divorce, child support, spousal support, and succession matters. She has clients in all of the surrounding parishes in the Greater New Orleans Metro Area including St. Tammany, Orleans, Jefferson, Washington, Tangipahoa, Livingston and East Baton Rouge.

Chip applies his more than three decades of civil trial litigation experience to the most complex and difficult cases of medical malpractice and products liability nowadays. Based in the metro New Orleans area, Chip is licensed in Louisiana and Texas, he has a multi-state practice and has been admitted pro hac vice in many other states including Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Georgia, South Carolina, Alabama, Arkansas, and Mississippi. Chip brings together meticulous preparation with passionate courtroom advocacy on behalf of both his individual and corporate clients.

Chip’s preeminent professional achievements have been recognized by his peers and various legal and professional organizations including...

We do things differently from other lawyers. We don't just give you a stack of documents. We advise and guide you to the best possible outcome for your family when you can't be there for them yourself. Our firm represents Louisiana families and individuals on matters involving estate planning, succession, probate, wills, trusts, and long-term care planning. We help you make the best planning decisions for your family and ensure that the estate plan you create with us will work when your loved ones need it most. Our team includes an expert estate planning attorney with 20+ years of experience in wills, trusts...

"Attorney Kenneth H. Hooks III focuses his practice on providing excellent representation to the few clients chosen by the section’s rigorous case selection. Kenny has practiced international maritime law for over 13 years as well as prosecuting horrific injury claims as a result of crashes, explosion burns, work place injuries and deaths, hospital errors and very large commercial claims all on a pure contingency basis. Mr. Hooks helps bring justice to individuals, businesses and professionals who have been wronged by others through both state and federal courts in Louisiana and throughout the United States as well as internationally. Mr....

When Kurt Arnold represents someone, he’s all in. He’s won billions for his clients. In fact, he has recovered more than $1 billion in a single year multiple times and shattered records with his historic verdicts and settlements. He has helped clients recover losses after major maritime disasters such as the Deepwater Horizon and the El Faro. For Kurt, no fight is too difficult or complicated. He refuses to take “no” for an answer. When something bad happens, Kurt fights for his clients, no matter what. He never backs down, no matter how big the challenge. Kurt co-founded Arnold & Itkin...

André Bélanger, a graduate of Loyola University, is a highly-respected criminal defense attorney serving the people of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and surrounding areas of Ascension Parish and New Orleans, for one of Baton Rouge's top-25 law firms. In his 15 years of practicing law, Mr. Bélanger has handled thousands of criminal cases at both the pre-trial and trial stage, including approximately 200 trials. This trial experience includes homicide defense and prosecution, large drug conspiracies and fraud cases making Belanger one of the few attorneys capable of handling even the largest, most complex federal cases. Having spent...

Allen P. Jones is a shareholder in Wiener, Weiss & Madison, A Professional Corporation. He practices in the areas of estate planning, tax law, succession and probate law, business and corporate law, and real estate. Allen represents individuals and families in all aspects of estate planning, including the preparation of wills, trusts, partnerships and limited liability companies. His work in the area of business and corporate law includes business succession planning, corporate reorganizations, and business sale transactions. He is Board Certified by the Louisiana State Bar in Estate Planning, and is licensed as a title insurance agent in the state...

With almost two decades as a lawyer, Jamie Cashio has represented thousands of injured clients in car and truck accidents, wrongful deaths and general negligence cases. Mr. Cashio's goal is to help his clients keep more of their money in their pocket after a settlement with low attorney's fees. It's not enough to just settle a client's case on paper, it's also about making sure the client is made financially whole after the settlement. Located in Baton Rouge Louisiana, Jamie Cashio specializes in automobile and truck accidents. Plus, Jamie Cashio is always available to his clients. Every client will have...

Before joining Walters, Papillion, Thomas, Cullens LLC, Andrée Matherne Cullens was a partner for more than fifteen years at Taylor, Porter, Brooks, and Phillips, LLP, one of the largest defense firms in Louisiana. She represented creditors and trustees in bankruptcy proceedings, state agencies and businesses in commercial litigation, banks and financial institutions, and Insurance Receivers in regulatory proceedings. Some of her former clients include Chase Bank, State Street Bank and Trust Company, the Louisiana Office of Economic Development, LSU, and the Louisiana Department of Revenue. Ms. Cullens has considerable courtroom experience in both federal and state courts and has been...

I am an experienced felony criminal defense trial attorney – bringing more than 40 felony jury trials to verdict in the last nine years. Call me now if you have a serious legal matter and you need immediate assistance. I was born in Ascension Parish and grew up in Baton Rouge. After moving around the south, I settled back home in 1999 where I started back a LSU, concluding with a Law Degree from the Paul Hebert Law Center at LSU in 2008. I began further studies at the University of Florida, School of Pharmacy, where I am...