The Hon. John Davidson (’88), right, presents Ed Walters Jr. (’75) with the 2024 Louisiana Bar Foundation’s Curtis R. Boisfontaine Trial Advocacy Award at the Louisiana State Bar Association General Assembly in Destin, Florida on June 6.
Ed Walters Jr. (’75) of Walters, Thomas, Cullens was presented with the 2024 Louisiana Bar Foundation’s Curtis R. Boisfontaine Trial Advocacy Award at the Louisiana State Bar Association General Assembly in Destin, Florida on June 6.
Walters was honored with the award in recognition of his long-standing devotion to and excellence in trial practice, and for upholding the standards of ethics and consideration for the court, litigants, and all counsel.
As this year’s award recipient, Walters was able to direct a $1,000 stipend to any nonprofit legal program serving Louisiana. He selected the Judges and Lawyers Assistance Program, Inc., which was established by the LSBA in 1985 to provide confidential assistance to members of the bar and their families who were experiencing problems with alcohol or drug abuse.
Walters has been an active courtroom lawyer for over 45 years. Throughout his distinguished career, he has been among LSU Law’s most stalwart supporters and in 2015 he was honored as the LSU Law Distinguished Alumnus of the Year.
Walters has served as an adjunct professor at LSU Law for 35 years, teaching a hands-on trial skills course he co-developed with Baton Rouge attorney Michael Patterson entitled “Advanced Trial and Evidence,” and has been an instructor at the annual Trial Advocacy Program since its inception in 1995. He published “Ipse Dixit: Ruminations on a Career at Law” in 2022 and pledged all royalties to the LSU Law Classroom to Courtroom Campaign, which he and fellow LSU Law alum and Adjunct Professor Frank Holthaus (’75) launched in 2019.
Walters is board certified in the field of Civil Trial Advocacy by the National Board of Trial Advocacy and is a fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers and the International Academy of Trial Lawyers. He was presented the LBF Distinguished Attorney award in 2009. He was appointed by the Louisiana Supreme Court to serve as a member of the Judiciary Commission of Louisiana from 2017-2021 and served as chair in 2020.
Walters earned his undergraduate degree from LSU in 1969 before attending LSU Law, and is a member of the LSU Hall of Fame. He is currently the Louisiana State Bar Association’s President-Elect, which means he will serve as president for the 2025-2026 term.
The LBF Curtis R. Boisfontaine Trial Advocacy Award was established through an endowment to the LBF in memory of Mr. Boisfontaine, who served as president of the LSBA and of the Louisiana Association of Defense Counsel. Donations from Sessions, Fishman, Nathan & Israel, L.L.P., the Boisfontaine family, and friends established the fund.
