Louisiana Circuit Courts of Appeal


The Louisiana Circuit Courts of Appeal are the intermediate appellate courts for the state of Louisiana.
There are five circuits, each covering a different group of parishes. Each circuit is subdivided into three districts.
As with the Louisiana Supreme Court, the regular judicial terms on the courts of appeal are ten years.
The courts of appeal are housed in the following cities in Louisiana:
First Circuit – Baton Rouge. See Samuel A. LeBlanc I, Luther F. Cole, Douglas Gonzales, John Michael Guidry, Jefferson D. Hughes III, Samuel A. LeBlanc I, Morris Lottinger Jr., Morris Lottinger Sr., Albert Tate Jr., and J. Louis Watkins Jr.
Second Circuit – Shreveport. See H. Welborn Ayres, Walter O. Bigby, James E. Bolin, Henry Newton Brown Jr., Jeff Cox, Harmon Caldwell Drew, Harmon Drew Jr., A. B. George, Fred W. Jones Jr., Pike Hall Jr., George W. Hardy Jr., Robert F. Kennon, Cecil Cherry Lowe, Charles A. Marvin, J. Frank McInnis, William Norris, III, Charles B. Peatross, O. E. Price, Robert Roberts Jr., Carl E. Stewart, Lynn Kyle Watkins, and Jeffrey P. Victory.
Third Circuit – Lake Charles. See William A. Culpepper, Alfred Briggs Irion, Jeannette Knoll, Jonathan Perry, Elizabeth Pickett, Albert Tate Jr., and Henry L. Yelverton.
Fourth Circuit – New Orleans. See Philip Ciaccio and Albert Estopinal Jr.
Fifth Circuit – Gretna. See Charles Grisbaum Jr., and Greg G. Guidry.

Jurisdiction

The Circuit Courts of Appeal have appellate jurisdiction over all civil matters, all matters appealed from family and juvenile courts, and most criminal cases that are tryable by a jury. A court of appeal also has supervisory jurisdiction to review interlocutory orders and decrees in cases which are heard in the trial courts within their geographical circuits.
One unique feature of the Courts of Appeal of Louisiana is that they are able to review questions of fact, as well as questions of law, in civil cases. In appeals of criminal cases, however, the appellate jurisdiction of the courts of appeal extends only to questions of law.

1st Circuit

Parishes Included:
Circuit Seat: First Circuit Courthouse

2nd Circuit

Parishes Included: Bienville, Bossier, Caddo, Caldwell, Claiborne, DeSoto, East Carroll, Franklin, Jackson, Lincoln, Madison, Morehouse, Ouachita, Red River, Richland, Tensas, Union, Webster, West Carroll, Winn
Circuit Seat: Second Circuit Courthouse

3rd Circuit

Parishes Included: Acadia, Allen, Avoyelles, Beauregard, Calcasieu, Cameron, Catahoula, Concordia, Evangeline, Grant, Iberia, Jefferson Davis, Lafayette, LaSalle, Natchitoches, Rapides, Sabine, St. Landry, St. Martin, Vermilion, Vernon
Circuit Seat: Third Circuit Courthouse

4th Circuit

Parishes Included: Orleans, Plaquemines, St. Bernard
Circuit Seat: Fourth Circuit Courthouse

5th Circuit

Parishes Included: Jefferson, St. Charles, St. James, St. John the Baptist
Circuit Seat: Fifth Circuit Courthouse