--- title: "Elizabeth Erny Foote | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/elizabeth-e-foote" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-10-09" --- # Elizabeth Erny Foote U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana · Judge ## Profile - Court: U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana - State: Louisiana - Role: Judge - Service status: senior - Last verified: 2026-07-25 ## Summary Official judge-specific and circuitwide procedural guidance has been located for this profile. ## Biography ### Professional career - Judge, District Court, W.D. Louisiana, 2010-present - Senior Judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of Louisiana, having assumed senior status on January 21, 2022 after serving on the bench from 2010 to 2022 - Judge, Judge, U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana, nominated by President Barack Obama on February 4, 2010 to seat vacated by Tucker L. Melancon, confirmed by Senate voice vote June 15, 2010, commission issued June 15, 2010, ceremonial oath September 10, 2010, duty station Shreveport - Partner at The Smith Foote Law Firm, LLP, Alexandria, LA 1981-2010, specializing in commercial litigation and medical malpractice defense - Worked in private practice in Alexandria, LA, as an associate at Ledbetter, Percy & Stubbs (1979–1980) and later as a partner at Smith Foote Law Firm, LLP (1980–2010), specializing in commercial corporate litigation, insurance, and medical malpractice defense - Associate at Smith Foote Law Firm, Alexandria 1980-1981 - William A. Culpepper, Chief Judge of the Louisiana Third Circuit Court of Appeal (1978–1979) - Law clerk to Hon. William A. Culpepper, Louisiana Court of Appeal, Third Judicial Circuit, 1978-1979 - As Senior Judge, Foote continues to hear cases in the Western District of Louisiana - Third female judge to serve on the Western District court - Adjunct Professor at LSU Law Center in Appellate Advocacy ### Education - Louisiana State University Law School (now Paul M. Hebert Law Center) — Law — J.D. (1978) - Duke University — English literature — M.A. (1975) - Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College — B.A. (1974) - Louisiana State University — English literature; with honors — B.A. (1974) ### Additional information - Foote has received multiple honors, including the President’s Award for CLE work (1994) and was named Distinguished Jurist by the Louisiana Bar Foundation in 2023 - Nominated by President Barack Obama on February 4, 2010 to fill a seat vacated by Judge Tucker L. Melancon - First woman to serve as officer of LSBA as Treasurer, served on Board of Governors and House of Delegates, chaired multiple LSBA committees, recipient of 1994 President's Award for CLE, LSBA President 2008-2009; duty seat Shreveport. - Date of birth: 1953-01-01 - She is also active in legal education, having taught at LSU Law Center and served on the Judicial Security Committee of the Judicial Conference of the United States - Birth place: Lafayette, LA ## Before you appear - Read the judge-specific standing order first when one is listed. - Check the docket and case orders for requirements that supersede broader guidance. - Confirm current remote-access and courtroom technology arrangements before the proceeding. ## Courtroom Rules ### presentation procedure Scope: judge specific Judge-specific source Evidence excerpt: 2. Should a party use charts, diagrams, or other demonstrative exhibits, they are required to: a. Provide a copy to the Court prior to trial. [LAWD_EEF_Evidence_Guidelines_0.pdf](https://www.lawd.uscourts.gov/sites/lawd/files/UPLOADS/LAWD_EEF_Evidence_Guidelines_0.pdf) Source checked: 2026-07-24 ### civil remote testimony Scope: courtwide In federal district-court civil proceedings, testimony is ordinarily taken in open court; remote contemporaneous testimony requires good cause in compelling circumstances and appropriate safeguards. Evidence excerpt: For good cause in compelling circumstances and with appropriate safeguards, the court may permit testimony in open court by contemporaneous transmission from a different location. [Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 43(a), Testimony in Open Court](https://www.uscourts.gov/forms-rules/current-rules-practice-procedure/federal-rules-civil-procedure) Source checked: 2026-07-26 ### criminal recording and broadcasting Scope: courtwide Federal district courts may not permit courtroom photography or broadcasting during criminal judicial proceedings unless a statute or another federal rule provides an exception. Evidence excerpt: Except as otherwise provided by a statute or these rules, the court must not permit the taking of photographs in the courtroom during judicial proceedings or the broadcasting of judicial proceedings from the courtroom. [Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 53, Courtroom Photographing and Broadcasting Prohibited](https://www.uscourts.gov/court-records/access-court-proceedings/remote-public-access-proceedings/history-cameras-broadcasting-and-remote-public-access-courts) Source checked: 2026-07-26 ## Sources - [Official profile](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1393241) - [Official roster](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1393241) - [Federal Judicial Center biography](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1393241) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/1089/elizabeth-erny-foote/) - [LAWD_EEF_Evidence_Guidelines_0.pdf](https://www.lawd.uscourts.gov/sites/lawd/files/UPLOADS/LAWD_EEF_Evidence_Guidelines_0.pdf) - [Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 43(a), Testimony in Open Court](https://www.uscourts.gov/forms-rules/current-rules-practice-procedure/federal-rules-civil-procedure) - [Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 53, Courtroom Photographing and Broadcasting Prohibited](https://www.uscourts.gov/court-records/access-court-proceedings/remote-public-access-proceedings/history-cameras-broadcasting-and-remote-public-access-courts) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/1089/elizabeth-erny-foote/) - [Wikidata: Elizabeth Erny Foote](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5362729) - [Supplied Louisiana biography research](https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/elizabeth-e-foote) - [Supplied Louisiana biography research](https://sites.law.lsu.edu/lyonprogram/files/2010/09/Honorable-Elizabeth-E.-Foote.pdf) - [Supplied Louisiana biography research](https://ballotpedia.org/Elizabeth_Erny_Foote) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/1089/elizabeth-erny-foote/) - [Wikidata: Elizabeth Erny Foote](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5362729) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/elizabeth-e-foote", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/elizabeth-e-foote", "name": "Elizabeth Erny Foote | KnowJudges", "description": "Elizabeth Erny Foote, U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana. 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Section-specific exceptions, waivers, later amendments and case orders remain applicable. This is a source excerpt, not an exhaustive statement of the rule. [Official source](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/federal-rules-of-civil-procedure.pdf). Collected 2026-10-27. - [Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, December 1, 2025](https://knowjudges.com/courtroom-rules/national-shared-set-8721a344fececced2257fe1d) — Criminal proceedings in United States District Courts; this conservative mapping does not distribute appellate-specific provisions to appellate judges. Section-specific exceptions, waivers, later amendments and case orders remain applicable. This is a source excerpt, not an exhaustive statement of the rule. [Official source](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/federal-rules-of-criminal-procedure.pdf). Collected 2026-10-27.