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Stephen Babcock is a Baton Rouge, Louisiana-based trial lawyer. He is the founding partner of Babcock Partners in Baton Rouge, Louisiana which specializes in cases involving personal injury, wrongful death, select criminal and commercial litigation. He is best known for his high-profile cases involving large business disputes and catastrophic personal injury matters.
Stephen Babcock | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | Timothy Stephen Babcock May 20, 1973 |
| Nationality | American |
| Citizenship | United States |
| Alma mater | B.S., Louisiana Tech University, JD, Paul M. Hebert Law Center |
| Occupation | Lawyer |
| Spouse | Jessie H. Babcock |
| Website | www |
Early life
Stephen Babcock was born in West Monroe, Louisiana. He grew up in rural Lincoln Parish outside the city limits of Ruston, Louisiana. His father, Tim Babcock was a real estate broker, and his mother was a registered nurse. Babcock attended Cedar Creek School in Ruston, Louisiana from kindergarten to seventh grade when family financial issues necessitated his transfer to the public Ruston Jr. High and eventually Ruston High School, where he graduated in 1991. His first job was as a framing carpenter while in high school. He later worked at RadioShack, Dillard's, and Coca-Cola where he studied for and later became a licensed real estate agent and timber broker.
Education
He attended Louisiana Tech University where he earned a Bachelor of Science (BS) degree in marketing, and a Juris Doctor (JD) from LSU Law School.[1] He was initiated into Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity at Texas A&M University.[2]
Early career
Babcock's first job as a lawyer was as an in-house trial attorney for Allstate after he passed the Louisiana bar exam in 2000.[3] One year later, he entered private practice as an associate attorney with McKay Williamson Lutgring & Cochran and soon thereafter opened his own firm, Babcock Law Firm, LLC in March 2003. Babcock Law Firm was rebranded as Babcock Partners in July 2010.
Legal practice
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Babcock has represented a wide variety of clients including injured individuals, small businesses, Fortune 500 companies, Louisiana State University, foreign countries, and the State of Louisiana in civil cases in involving serious personal injuries, contract disputes, insurance coverage disputes, class actions, and shareholder disputes, among others.[4] He often takes high-profile cases, using press conferences and media releases to much effect. He is well known to prefer to accept all types of litigation on a contingency fee basis instead of traditional hourly fees.[5]
In July, 2013, over 200 news sources, including the Associated Press, confirmed that Stephen Babcock was hired by Ducks Unlimited to represent the organization in a high-profile million dollar federal lawsuit stemming from a contract dispute over a New Orleans artist's prints.[6][7][8][9][10][11][12] Babcock filed four Motions for summary judgment in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana on behalf of Ducks Unlimited. Three of the four motions were granted. The case resulted in a voluntary dismissal.
In early 2013, Babcock secured over a million dollars for a Louisiana company in a dispute over insurance coverage on a contingency fee basis.
He is Nationally known for a December 2007 case where he got a state judge to agree to postpone a trial scheduled to start on the same day LSU played Ohio State in the 2008 BCS National Championship Game. He was defending Imperial Casualty Insurance Co. in a lawsuit over a car crash, and requested the delay because he had tickets to the Jan. 7, 2008 game at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans. He and other LSU fans had rented out the second floor of a Bourbon Street bar for a pre-game tailgate party.
In court documents requesting the postponement, Babcock famously referred to Ohio State as "Slowhio" ("due to their perceived lack of speed on both sides of the ball") and noted that Allstate, sponsors of the Sugar Bowl, was not a party in the insurance case. He further stated that "All counsel to this matter unequivocally agree that the presence of LSU in the aforementioned contest of pigskin skill unquestionably constitutes good grounds" and went on to say that "In fact we have been unable through much imagination and hypothetical scenarios to think of a better reason." The judge agreed and granted the postponement.[13]
In another high-profile case, Stephen Babcock won an arbitration award of close to $2 million for hotel operator, against the owner of the Hilton hotel they had managed, Baton Rouge Area Foundation’s Commercial Properties Realty Trust.
In another high-profile case, Babcock represented and defended the Republic of Bulgaria in its high-stakes tobacco litigation with the state of Louisiana.
In the news
On June 23, 2015, Stephen Babcock posted on Facebook about seeing a young lady rescue an American Flag during a thunderstorm, creating the hashtag #JenaIsAPatriot. The post immediately went viral with 24.5 million views, 4.3 post clicks, and over 13,000 comments.[14]
In January, 2015, Stephen Babcock was named chairman of FuturePAC, the Baton Rouge Area Chamber's political action committee. FuturePAC's mission is to financially support issues and candidates that promote economic development in the Baton Rouge area and improve the business climate of the region.[15]
In August, 2012 Babcock was included and extensively quoted in an The Advocate (Louisiana) article that discussed individuals who brought their pets to work and its effect in reducing stress at work.[16]
In March, 2012 Babcock was included as the pop quiz professional of the week in The Advocate (Louisiana) and answered a number of pop-culture questions about himself, saying, “My favorite new artist is Shannon Whitworth from Brevard, N.C." and “Lately, I’ve been reading Saltwater Sportsman and Marlin magazines.” When asked what he was watching on T.V., Babcock stated: “‘The Simpsons’ and ‘The O’Reilly Factor’ are staples, but I’ve been known to TiVo Science Channel shows dealing with theoretical physics topics. I also like the shows ‘American Pickers’ and ‘Pawn Stars.’”[17]
Awards and Accolades
U.S. News & World Report Best Lawyers in Commercial Litigation and Personal Injury - Plaintiffs 2011-2016[18]
Best Lawyers 2011-2016[19]
Founding Member of Trial Masters[20]
Martindale-Hubbell AV 2005-2016[21]
Top 10 Personal Injury Attorney in Louisiana[22]
Top Lawyers of Louisiana 2015[23]
Louisiana Super Lawyers 2011-2016[24]
Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forum[25]
The National Trial Lawyers Top 40 Under 40 2010-2013 (2013 was the last year Stephen Babcock was under 40)[26]
The National Trial Lawyers Top 100 Trial Lawyer 2012-2016[27]
Louisiana State Bar Association's Stephen T. Victory Award[28]
References
- ^ "Mr. Stephen Babcock, Partner". Lawyer.com. Retrieved November 25, 2015.
- ^ Baton Rouge Attorneys, Retired Judge Receive Louisiana State Bar Association Awards
- ^ LSBA
- ^ Babcock's Client List
- ^ Babcock's Fee Structure
- ^ Miami Herald
- ^ New Orleans City Business
- ^ Daily Comet
- ^ Houma Today
- ^ WAFB Television
- ^ WKRN Television
- ^ WMCT Television
- ^ LSU-area judge agrees to delay trial set for BCS game day
- ^ #JenaIsAPatriot
- ^ FuturePAC
- ^ Peveto, Kyle (2012, August 12). Pets reduce stress at work. The Advocate (Louisiana), Page 1, People Section.
- ^ [[The Advocate (Louisiana)]] Pop Quiz for March 7, 2012]
- ^ U.S. News & World Report Best Lawyers
- ^ Best Lawyers
- ^ Trial Masters
- ^ Martindale-Hubbell
- ^ National Academy of Personal Injury Attorneys
- ^ The Times-Picayune on NOLA.com
- ^ Louisiana Super Lawyers
- ^ Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forum
- ^ The National Trial Lawyers Top 40 Under 40
- ^ The National Trial Lawyers Top 100 Trial Lawyers
- ^ Louisiana Bar Association